Now one of the changes Pope Pius XII brought to the liturgy was to reduce the midnight fast to three hours (1953). That is, beforehand you could not receive Holy Communion unless you hadn't eaten anything since midnight. This is a reason why the Midnight Mass became so popular. You could eat at 11:59pm, and still go to Communion!
A little snack. And then...
Midnight Mass. And then...
Presents!
Of course nowadays there is just the one hour fast, which means that you can literally eat food up to a few minutes before Mass begins and still be ok to receive Communion (not advisable though).
Why do I bring this up? After all, this little tidbit is just a thing of the past, and the reason my course is called: Liturgical History. The initial change took place in 1953, some thirty years before I was even born. Well this might be history to some of us, but it was a reality for others, and produces some great stories...
This past week we went and visited my grandparents. My grandma was telling stories about her life growing up on a very poor farm in southern Saskatchewan. One story involved how her family would get up every Sunday (all 13 of them) and, after chores, hook up the horses and ride to the church. They would arrive before 9am and they, along with the whole surrounding community, would take turns going to confession. After hearing several confessions the priest would then distribute Holy Communion to those who would line up! Then the priest would go back to hearing more confessions before distributing more of the Eucharist (and on and on). Upon receiving Communion, all the families would go to the basement of the rectory and eat breakfast. Following breakfast they would go back to the church for Mass, which would take a minimum of 2 hours (10am - noon). Following Mass half the community would go over to someone's house for lunch/supper. It's funny how despite the extreme poverty, the host family always was able to provide enough food for half the community.
Now my grandma said that there was only one lay person in the whole church who would actually fast all morning, every Sunday, so that she could receive Holy Communion at Mass: my great grandma Marie Rose Millette. Just one person!
This reminds me of another story. One old priest friend I know said he had to say three Masses every Sunday morning, and that he was not allowed to eat or even have a drink of water during that time. However, he said he broke that rule every Sunday, because he would've passed out without as much as a drink (he has had heart problems all of his life). Fair is fair. You can't really force someone to say three Masses (travelling to a different town for each) while going 12-14 hours without food or drink.
Anyway, these stories brought a connection between what I am studying, and how it actually affected those at the time. Pretty neat stuff.
For me, I'm glad that it is easier to go to Communion, and to receive Communion at the actual Mass celebrated. However, I do admire how the Communion fast was taken more seriously back then. It seemed to inspire a greater awareness of the solemnity of the Eucharist.
Maybe we're just big wimps nowadays...
