Communion Wafers

[ScarlettsMommy]

I called my church bc I just heard I cant eat the communion wafers...the women said we do have special ones but they arent gluten free but VERY small amounts... contains less than 0.01% gluten. HMM what do I do now?? Is that safe?? It is importsnt for me b/c I am relgious, but at the same time I do not want to get sick again.

[Kelley Baldwin]

I called my church bc I just heard I cant eat the communion wafers...the women said we do have special ones but they arent gluten free but VERY small amounts... contains less than 0.01% gluten. HMM what do I do now?? Is that safe?? It is importsnt for me b/c I am relgious, but at the same time I do not want to get sick again.

I know how important communion must be for you and how heart-breaking it can be to feel shut out. What kind of low-gluten wafers does your church use? The Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration offer a low-gluten (and Vatican-approved) host for those with Celiac Sprue Disease or who have wheat allergies. The amount of gluten is less than .01 percent and have been deemed safe for most Celiac suffers to consume (per the Center for Celiac Research, which did studies on the wafer). This means you'd have to consume more than 270 wafers at one time to feel any adverse effects. However, that is MOST people. Please check with your doctor first. If he/she gives the OK, you can contact the Sisters and give the host a try (if your church doesn't already order from them). If you Google their name, you'll find their site and the link to altar breads. Good luck!

[ravenwoodglass]

If you are catholic Canon Law requires the host to have wheat. You could try the ones that are used by your church or that the other poster mentioned. You might want to wait until you are well healed first though so you will know if you are reacting to them.

Some other faiths that observe communion will let you sub a gluten free cracker or piece of bread.

Some people also recieve just the blessed wine, from a cup that is not shared and doesn't have a piece of the host in it.

This is a common problem so hopefully some other folks will also chime in with some advice.

[love2travel]

I am not Catholic but my church actually has a separate plate with rice crackers instead of the yummy-looking gluten bread just for the three of us in our congregation who cannot have gluten. No one makes an issue out of it at all. Those who prepare it are careful to use gloves, too, to prevent cross contamination with that gorgeous bread. (I'm not bitter! )

[silk]

I am a Catholic and not being able to receive the host was very traumatic for me until I was told by a priest that you could experience 'spiritual communion' without having to ingest the wafer. He also said you could do the wine only if you choose to but to be honest with you the logistics of being at the right mass (we go to the cathedral), at the right time, make sure that you are the very first to receive the wine before others who have taken the host CC it...well you get the idea. It sort of loses the importance of the 'why' when you have to focus so much on the 'how'. I simply walk forward with my family, bow before the host and pray that the lord bless me in the way that he does for those who can consume the host. Hope this helps. As for the 'very low dose' wafers...I am very sensitive to gluten and personally, I don't feel that it is worth the risk.

[bbuster]

I called my church bc I just heard I cant eat the communion wafers...the women said we do have special ones but they arent gluten free but VERY small amounts... contains less than 0.01% gluten. HMM what do I do now?? Is that safe?? It is importsnt for me b/c I am relgious, but at the same time I do not want to get sick again.

My son has been receiving these for almost 7 years now. We have 4-5 other people at our parish who receive them too.