Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Help Celiac.com:
    eNewsletter
    Donate

gluten-free & Communion


mrsnj91

Recommended Posts

mrsnj91 Explorer

I know this subject came up on the board and saw this. Thought you might find it interesting since you all were talking about it.. I find it sad.

______________

A First Communion dream in doubt

By Kathleen Burge, Globe Staff | April 12, 2006

The white dress from Sears is hanging in her closet, near the long veil and the matching purse. She has practiced cupping her hands together to receive the wafer from the priest. And she chatters with excitement about the party to be held in her honor afterward.

But as Victoria Coyne, 7, prepares for her first Holy Communion, there has been a major snag: As a child suffering from both celiac disease and diabetes, she can neither eat the wheat wafer that represents the body of Christ nor drink the wine that signifies his blood.

''I already got the stuff ready," said Victoria, who hopes to make her First Communion in June at St. Marguerite D'Youville Church in Dracut. ''My mom is trying to talk to the priest, and so is my dad."

Her parents thought they found a solution in a rice Communion wafer -- free of gluten, a protein found in wheat and other grains that makes her ill -- but official church policy forbids its use. The ritual of Communion is tied to the Last Supper, when Jesus is believed to have eaten wheat bread and drunk grape wine with his disciples. Canon law requires that both wheat and grapes be part of the Communion service. Worshippers who receive Communion consume at least one: Children usually eat only the wafer, and adult Catholics sometimes receive both wafer and wine.

Church officials have grappled repeatedly in recent years with the collision between longstanding church teachings and modern medicine. In his previous job leading the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Pope Benedict XVI addressed the issue of worshippers suffering from celiac disease and alcoholism, allowing for the substitution of low-gluten wafers and a slightly fermented grape juice.

Officials in the Boston Archdiocese say they have seen more than 40 cases in the past year and a half in which people with celiac disease and other illnesses cannot eat the traditional Communion wafers. Each case was resolved, usually with low-gluten wafers, said Kevin Shea, a spokesman for the Archdiocese of Boston.

About 1 out of 133 people suffers from celiac disease, according to the Celiac Disease Foundation. For those with the disease, which is genetic, ingesting gluten damages the small intestine, impairing the ability to absorb nutrients from food. If the disease goes untreated, it can cause other conditions, including anemia and osteoporosis.

Some of the conflicts have been bruising. In 2001, the Boston Archdiocese told the family of a 5-year-old girl with celiac disease that when she took her First Communion, she could not substitute rice wafers for traditional communion wafers. Her family left the church and began practicing as Methodists.

In New Jersey, a bishop declared invalid the First Communion of a girl with celiac disease who took rice wafers instead of those containing gluten. Her mother unsuccessfully petitioned the Vatican to reverse the decision.

Victoria's multiple health issues complicate her case. Her body cannot tolerate even the low-gluten wafers, her mother said. The solution for Victoria may lie in a low-alcohol grape juice, often offered to priests who are alcoholics; her parents are investigating whether it is safe for their daughter.

Although the Coynes are grateful for the support of their priest, the Rev. Paul Clifford, they are discouraged by the church's rules on Communion, which they believe are overly rigid.

''Right now we're frustrated, because it just doesn't seem right that she would be expected to ingest something that would be harmful to her body in order to make her First Communion," said Stephanie Coyne, Victoria's mother. ''She's sad. She's been at Sunday school for two years, practicing what she needs to do to make her First Communion."

Shea, the archdiocesan spokesman, said Clifford was determined to find a solution. He offered to hold a special First Communion service for Victoria and her friends if she felt self-conscious about drinking the grape juice rather than taking a wafer, Shea said.

''They're going to find a way for that First Communion," he said. ''There's no question about that."

_________________

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):
Celiac.com Sponsor (A8):



Celiac.com Sponsor (A8-M):



cornbread Explorer

Grrrr.... <_<

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      120,458
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    RUTHANN BRANOFF
    Newest Member
    RUTHANN BRANOFF
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      120.2k
    • Total Posts
      1m

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):




  • Who's Online (See full list)


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Upcoming Events

  • Posts

    • trents
      And the fact is, no two celiacs will necessarily respond the same to gluten exposure. Some are "silent" celiacs and don't experience obvious symptoms. But that doesn't mean no harm is being done to their gut. It just means it is subclinical. 
    • AlyO
      Thank you, Trents.  I appreciate your helpful and friendly reply. It seems more likely to be a bug.  It has been a pretty severe bought. I feel that I don’t have enough experience to know what signs my little one shows after exposure to gluten. 
    • trents
      Hannah24, be aware that if you are on a gluten free diet, you will invalidate any further testing for celiac disease (except genetics) and would need to go back to eating significant amounts of gluten for weeks or months to qualify for valid testing.
    • knitty kitty
      Hello, @Hannah24 Have you had a DNA test done?  Celiac Disease is genetic.  You must have at least one gene to develop celiac disease.  You don't have to be consuming gluten for a genetic test.   Anemia, diabetes and thiamine deficiency can cause false negatives.  Some lucky people are seronegative, but still have celiac disease.  Peripheral neuropathy, tingling in hands and feet are symptoms of vitamin deficiencies.  Vitamin C, Thiamine B1, Niacin B3, Pyridoxine B6, and Cobalamine B12 can each cause peripheral neuropathy.  These same vitamins are needed to produce blood cells.  Most undiagnosed Celiacs suffer from nutritional deficiencies. The DNA test would be helpful.
    • trents
      We do hear of cases of remission but they generally eventually revert back. I wouldn't push your luck.
×
×
  • Create New...