Ever since American Catholic bishops announced their decision to release a teaching document on the reception of Holy Communion, news and social media sites have teemed with outrage. The backlash is a product of the belief that church teachings must adapt to avoid being controversial in modern times. The plethora of misinformed reactions is troubling, hinting at the larger issue of uninformed Catholics. When 69% of American Catholics don’t believe in the presence of Jesus in the Eucharist, and 59% support abortion, it is unsurprising they are angered by centuries old church teachings on proper reception of the Son of God. Rep. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., made headlines with his tweet, “Instead of denying God to Catholic human beings who disagree with your political views, you should be inviting everyone to God’s table. God’s love is not a quid pro quo transaction. Remember Agape? It’s no wonder Catholic membership has been rapidly declining.” Wajahat Ali, a columnist for the Daily Beast, similarly tweeted, “US Catholic Church doing everything it can to make people leave the Church. Interesting marketing strategy.” The tweets demonstrate a misconception that the new teaching document was a vicious ploy to discriminate against political enemies in the Communion line, and that the Catholic church ought to market itself to the whims of the times. These ideas couldn’t be further from the truth.
Secular Media: ‘Why Catholic Bishops are Right About Joe Biden and Communion’ – Roman Catholic Man