The three Catholic bishops' conferences of these islands have issued a joint document on the Eucharist which agrees to allow couples in mixed marriages to receive Holy Communion at Mass under certain exceptional circumstances.
In general, however, the document states that Catholics may not receive Communion in "Reformation Churches", and members of other Christian denominations may receive Holy Communion in the Catholic Church only when there is danger of death or some other "grave and pressing need".
The document, "One Bread One Body", was launched at simultaneous press conferences yesterday - by the Irish Bishops' Conference in Dublin, by the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales in London, and by the Scottish Bishops' Conference in Glasgow.
The Catholic Primate, Dr Sean Brady, presided at the Dublin launch, Cardinal Hume presided in London and Cardinal Winning presided in Glasgow. The 80-page document had been in preparation since late 1996.
In what Father Dermot Lane, president of the Mater Dei Institute in Dublin, described at the Dublin launch as "breaking new ground", the document outlines exceptions to the norms for receiving Communion in a Catholic Church in these islands.
They include such occasions as when a non-Roman Catholic parent may wish to receive at a Mass during which his or her child is baptised or confirmed, or when the child is receiving First Communion.
It might also arise for the non-Roman Catholic parent or wife of a deacon or former Anglican priest at an ordination, or for the intimate non-Roman Catholic family of the deceased at a funeral Mass.
It could also arise at the wedding of an inter-church couple and then only where the non-Roman Catholic partner is concerned. It does not extend to the guests at the wedding.
In all such exceptional cases the non-Roman Catholic seeking Communion must be unable to approach a minister of his or her own community for the sacrament. He or she must greatly desire to receive Communion, and must ask to receive it spontaneously. He or she must manifest Roman Catholic faith in the sacrament and must be properly disposed.
In each exceptional instance permission to receive Communion will rest with the local bishop or his delegate.
Referring to what it means by "a unique occasion", the document says the bishops mean "an occasion which of its nature is unrepeatable, a `one-off' situation at a given moment which will not come again. This may well be associated with the significant moments of a person's life, for example, at the moments of Christian initiation - Baptism, Confirmation, First Communion, Marriage, Ordination and death." The only circumstance explicitly added to those mentioned in previous Catholic documents on the Eucharist is that concerning mixed marriages.
Catholics may, when necessary, receive Communion in Eastern (Orthodox) churches and vice-versa. However, "for historical and theological reasons, there are special difficulties with regard to Anglican orders", the document says.
Acknowledging that they are aware "that this is a sensitive question, and one which can be a source of hurt to ministers of communities with whom we seek to work as friends in the name of Christ", the bishops say: "However, we have to say to members of the Catholic community in our countries that it is not permissible for Catholics to receive Holy Communion, or the sacraments of Reconciliation (Confession) and Anointing of the Sick, from ministers of the Anglican Communion (the Church of England, the Church of Ireland, the Church in Wales, the Scottish Episcopal Church), the Church of Scotland or of other faith communities rooted in the Reformation. It is for this reason that exceptional sacramental sharing between the Catholic Church and these faith communities can not be reciprocal.
"The Catholic Church claims, in all humility, to be endowed with all the gifts with which God wishes to endow his Church . . . that the fullness of the means of salvation, the entirety of revealed truth, the sacraments and the hierarchical ministry are found within the Catholic Communion of the Church."
It says "our belief is that the Catholic Church is uniquely gifted in this way" did not imply that Catholics and their ordained ministers were perfect in the life of the Spirit.
The bishops say they "know only too well that the Catholic Church's understanding of itself and our convictions about who may and may not be admitted to Holy Communion can and do cause distress both to other Christians and to some Catholics. It is not, however, the Church's norms on sacramental sharing which cause division: those norms are simply a reflection and consequence of the painful division already present because of our Christian disunity".
The bishops appeal to Catholics "to remain faithful to the discipline of the church. We appeal also to our brothers and sisters in other Christian communities, and to their pastoral leaders, to respect that discipline, just as we seek to respect the liturgical and sacramental discipline of other communities".
