LifeSiteNews has the story: “On February 7, 2021, at the conclusion of the 11 a.m. Sunday Mass, Fr. Fredy Leonardo Herrera Fuentes, pastor of Immaculate Heart of Mary parish in Bogotá, Colombia, told parishioners that “from this moment in our parish, it’s only going to be possible to receive Holy Communion on the tongue and kneeling down.’ ”
During the Mass, the priest stopped, turned away from the people, bent over while standing, and was shaking. This lasted about 20 seconds. Then he spoke to the people. This priest is from the Parish of the Immaculate Conception of Mary in Bogota, Columbia.
Actual video of the event: Himmel associacion. You can see the priest begin to bend over at 11 seconds into this particular video. He is fully bent over (90 degrees) at the 18 second mark. And by 36 seconds, he is upright and the claimed vision is over. That is 25 seconds of vision. Please click the setting on the video and choose “auto-translate” and then “English”. The priest then says the following (in Spanish), which is here translated using the YouTube auto-translate. My additions or corrections are in brackets:
“I appreciate your participation in the holy Mass. We continue united in prayer. There are things that sometimes cannot be explained or rather what happens is that it hurts a lot when the Lord allows [us to] share or see certain things. From this moment on in our parish, they will only be able to receive Communion in the mouth and on their knees. It cannot be otherwise. Well, Christ is alive, is between us [perhaps “among us”] in which it hurts a lot not only when he does not receive Communion because it is already a very great for him, but when it is received and even being aware of who is receiving and when it is received as if any food was received as if you did not believe in his presence there he is very active. And if I told you, receive not in this way, be careful and do not do it like that, be a little the smallest particle there is there is the whole so always be as careful as possible.”
That is the auto-translate. If anyone can provide a better translation, please add in the comments.
Some persons are claiming, as in this video, Chosen, that the priest described a vision of “Jesus trampled underfoot by those faithful who receive Communion on the hand and standing up.” Perhaps he described this part later, I don’t know.
Communion on the Tongue Kneeling
The Lord Jesus is present in holy Communion in body, blood, soul, and Divinity. His whole human nature and the Divine Nature are present. But this same Lord established the Church, with Peter and his successors as the visible Head of that Church, and the other Bishops as the successors to the other Apostles. They teach and guide with the authority of Jesus Christ, the very same Lord in Communion. So it is a grave error to say we can only receive Communion on the tongue while kneeling, when the Popes and Bishops who speak with the authority of this same Lord Jesus, whose teaching is the teaching of Christ, permit Communion on the hand while standing. And it is a grave act of disobedience to Christ, to refuse to receive Communion at all, unless on the tongue, kneeling. The Church, which is the body of Christ, which has the Holy Spirit as Her soul, whose teaching is the teaching of Christ, permits Communion in the hand, standing.
The Church does not teach that Communion in the hand, standing, is a grave sin or grave offense. The Church has permitted this type of reception for many years. Pope after Pope, Pope Saint after Pope Saint, and the body of Bishops dispersed in the world, successively, have permitted Communion in this manner. And since the Church is indefectible, She cannot err gravely in doctrine or discipline. She cannot lead the faithful astray by telling them to do something that supposedly gravely offends the Lord.
When you reject this decision of the Church, you are disobedient to Christ. When you say to the Lord Jesus that you will never receive Him unless you have your way, on the tongue, kneeling, that is when you offend the Lord greatly. Imagine the Lord Jesus, during His ministry, coming to your town. And you have a chance to meet with Him in person! But you refuse to meet with Him in person unless the conditions are exactly as you have demanded. He is the Son of God. How dare anyone refuse Him unless they get their way in the manner of reception. The Church speaks with the authority of Christ, and She permits Communion in the hand, standing.
If you have a preference for Communion on the tongue, kneeling, that is only acceptable and faithful, if you are also willing to receive in the hand, standing — to show that your preference is not an act of disobedience, nor an act of rebellion against Church authority. For there are many persons who think themselves so holy and faithful, while denigrating every recent Pope and Council, that they accept nothing of what the Church decides, unless they evaluate it and approve it. They usurp the role of God himself over the Church. They refuse submission to Church authority. They accuse Pope after Pope of grave errors against the faith. They do not worship the Lord Jesus, but inwardly they worship themselves, while outwardly they worship a particular subculture in the Church (such as conservatism or traditionalism or liberalism).
Saint Augustine used to require his monks to eat meat and drink wine on Sundays, so that they would not fall into an error of that time of rejecting the good things of this life as evil, and rejecting the body as evil. The error claimed that the soul is good, and is trapped in the evil body, and that bodily goods are evil. Such persons rejected meat and wine, and fasted very strictly. Augustine had his monks show that they had not fallen into that error by eating meat and drinking wine.
If you claim to be faithful and obedient to the Church, and you prefer to receive holy Communion on the tongue, kneeling, I suggest you prove that you are truly faithful and obedient. Receive Communion in the hand, standing, from time to time. If you refuse, you have rejected the authority of Jesus in the Church He founded. You have rejected His own decisions through His Church. You are the one offending God by your reception of Communion. It is not sufficient to receive with the supposedly proper externals of kneeling and on the tongue. You must have the proper inner disposition of love and obedience to the Lord. Rebelling against Church decisions on Communion is not obedience, and therefore shows a lack of love.
I recall the story of an elderly woman, on her way to Mass in winter. The sidewalk was icy, and so she went down on her hands and knees and crawled in the snow to go up the hill to the Church for Mass. Would you crawl in the snow to receive Jesus in Communion, as this elderly woman did? Or would you reject Communion unless you get your way?
The Vision of Fr. Fredy
I have made a study of claimed private revelations here. Over the course of years, I have read thousands upon thousands of claimed messages and descriptions of visions. And what I have found is that the vast majority are false. They often present ideas that are contrary to the teachings of the Church. That is the most common and clearest sign of falsehood. The visions can be accompanied by false signs and wonders, caused by fallen angels. And certainly most of these false claims of private revelation are from devils. The only other possibilities for false revelation is that the visionaries are lying or mentally ill, both of which are rare. The vast majority of the false revelation are the work of devils, of literal fallen angels. As the beginning of the End Times draws near, these false claimed private revelations have increased.
True visions usually occur when the individual is in prayer. The reaction to the vision is usually peaceful. The person has a look of holiness and love on their face. By contrast, false visions often occur with the individual’s body bent or contorted, accompanied by pain or distress, as was the case with Fr. Fredy: “it hurts a lot when the Lord allows [us to] share or see certain things.” In addition, a true vision or message from Heaven never contradicts the authority, teaching, or discipline of the Church.
If Jesus wished to have people receive Communion on the tongue, kneeling, only, do you not believe that He has the power to teach through the indefectible Church? Do you not believe that He sent His Spirit on the Church to teach His own teachings, which are truly from the Father?
[John]
{16:12} I still have many things to say to you, but you are not able to bear them now.
{16:13} But when the Spirit of truth has arrived, he will teach the whole truth to you. For he will not be speaking from himself. Instead, whatever he will hear, he will speak. And he will announce to you the things that are to come.
{16:14} He shall glorify me. For he will receive from what is mine, and he will announce it to you.
{16:15} All things whatsoever that the Father has are mine. For this reason, I said that he will receive from what is mine and that he will announce it to you.
I believe that the experience of Fr. Fredy was not from Jesus or from Heaven at all. It was likely from a fallen angel. God does not give a supernatural vision or experience in order to contradict His own Church. The most holy Trinity guides the Church and teaches through the Church. The Lord Jesus certainly is able to cause any Roman Pontiff at any time to teach whatever the Lord wishes. He does not need to choose a single parish priest in Bogota, Columbia in order to supposedly correct a decision by the Church which has stood for many years. Some persons have lived their whole lives and died during the time when the Church permitted Communion in the hand, standing. So it makes no sense for Jesus to allow such a supposedly grave error, for so long, affecting so many persons, and then make the alleged correction in one parish priest.
Do you not believe that the teaching of the Church is the teaching of Jesus? Do you not believe that the Lord Jesus is able to issue whatever doctrine or discipline He wishes through the Roman Pontiff and the body of Bishops? But many persons today have lost their faith in the Church entirely. Some do not have the infused theological virtue of faith itself anymore. They are instead following a subculture, and focusing on externals, rather than on love, faith, and hope.
Receive the Lord Jesus in Communion standing, on the hand, at least from time to time, in order to show that you are obedient to the only Church that Jesus founded and still guides. And recall the dogma (as I explained in previous posts) that Christ and His Vicar, the Pope, constitute only one Head of the one Church. The Lord Jesus teaches and guides through the Church. He does not let the indefectible Church fall into supposedly grave error, and then offer correction in a vision to a parish priest.
The vision to Fr. Fredy is false. It contradicts the decision of the Church, of successive Popes and Pope Saints, and of the body of Bishops dispersed in the world. If you think yourself faithful to Christ, and prefer Communion on the tongue kneeling, you should receive Communion on the hand, standing, from time to time, as an act of obedience to Christ.
Pope Pius XII, 1943: “They, therefore, walk in the path of dangerous error who believe that they can accept Christ as the Head of the Church, while not adhering loyally to His Vicar on earth. They have taken away the visible head, broken the visible bonds of unity and left the Mystical Body of the Redeemer so obscured and so maimed, that those who are seeking the haven of eternal salvation can neither see it nor find it.” [Mystical Body of Christ, n. 41]
Ronald L. Conte Jr.
the reproach of Christ 
Attn Ron Conte:
Allowing the Communion in the hand was not a result of Vatican II
The Pope Paul VI , months after he declared that receiving the Communion in the mouth was the norm in the RCC, had his hand forced by disobedient bishops in Holland, Belgium and France who authorized receiving the Communion in the hand while standing. This practice began to spread in Europe and elsewhere and with regrets, the Pope allowed it as an indult, not as the norm.
I remember the late Saint Teresa of Calcutta who declared to Fr Rutler of the St Agnes church (N.Y.) that the communion in the hand was the worst thing that could happen in the world, worse than all catastrophes, earthquakes, plane crashes, epidemics and so on…
I have read in the book of the well known austrian mystic Maria Simma was once visited by a bishop’s soul who had his hands in flames. He said that he had to stay in Purgatory because he had authorized this bad practice and that he had to stay in Purgatory until one of his successors will reverse his decision.
If there was a private revelation saying something that you disliked, you would reject it, saying that private revelations are no obligatory. You cannot establish a claimed dogma, one not taught by the Church, by reference to claims about visions or Saints. And we do not base our Faith on these things, not even on the opinions of Saints (unless confirmed by the Church), but on whatever the Church decides on doctrine and discipline. Those who reject Communion in the hand are disobeying Christ. If you truly loved Christ, you would obey His Church. Cannot Christ himself permit His own Body to be touched by the faithful whom He loves? He has given that permission through His Church. But if you do not believe that the Catholic Church speaks for Christ, then you are not a Catholic, but a Protestant.
I don’t believe Saint Teresa of Calcutta (who is named after Saint Therese of Lisieux) said such a thing. I also think that any Saint would obey the Church, and receive in the hand, esp. when ordered to do so by the Bishops.
Also, that claim about staying in Purgatory until his successor made a decision is not just, and therefore cannot be true of Purgatory, which is the just punishments of God. Those in Purgatory suffer as much as required by their sins, unless they receive indulgences from the faithful. They do not suffer for an arbitrary amount of time depending on the decision of a successor.
Mr. Conte. What is being done by this Pope to stop homosexuals from being priests. Why does this Pope not talk about the grave sin of homosexuality. The mortal sin of abortion! And you pick on this priest who i say had this miraculous vision. Do you call out priests who give Holy Communion to those who support abortion or homosexuality? I get on my knees to receive on my Tongue. Communism and wickedness has entered the Church. Soon all Evil will be wiped from this earth. Time is short. Time to repent! PS Joe Biden should be denied Holy Communion. No Mr. Conte?
According to Church teaching, those who sin by heresy or schism are to be denied Communion. So this includes not only President Biden, but also persons who reject the authority of Pope Francis, reject the authority of Vatican II, and other Popes and Councils. The faithful are required to be obedience to the Church, to believe what She teaches and to accept what She decides — including Her decision to permit Communion on the hand. It is a grave sin to invent a new fake dogma, claiming that Communion in the hand is gravely immoral, or that only Communion on the tongue is permissible. The Church decided this question, and various persons rejected it.
As for “the Pope”, the First See is judged by no one but God. As a baptized Catholic Christian, you are free to speak out against abortion, homosexuality, and other sins, but you are not free to stand in judgment over the Church.
–“If you claim to be faithful and obedient to the Church, and you prefer to receive holy Communion on the tongue, kneeling, I suggest you prove that you are truly faithful and obedient. Receive Communion in the hand, standing, from time to time. If you refuse, you have rejected the authority of Jesus in the Church He founded.”–
Ron,
First, let me say I would agree with you that no one sins per se by receiving communion in the hand, and that it is scandalous to suggest that Rome would explicitly permit people to receive the Eucharist in a sinful way. Moreover, no one should be condemned for receiving the Eucharist in a manner permitted by the Church. Yet I think that lack of condemnation cuts both ways.
The long-standing norm for the reception of the Eucharist in the Roman Rite is kneeling and on the tongue. It was only several decades ago that the Vatican decide to tolerate the practice of receiving communion in the hand, as certain members of the clergy decided to introduce the practice prior to authorization from Rome.
The Sacred Congregation for Divine Worship, in a letter authorizing communion on the hand, noted the following: “The new manner of giving communion must not be imposed in a way that would exclude the traditional practice. It is a matter of particular seriousness that in places where the new practice is lawfully permitted every one of the faithful have the option of receiving communion on the tongue and even when other persons are receiving communion in the hand.”
Moreover, we find in the General Instruction on the Roman Missal: “The option to receive by hand or by mouth is entirely up to the communicant and should always be done with respect toward the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist.”
As far as I’m aware, no command to receive only on the tongue has been given by Rome, and to date, I’ve heard of just one bishop who suspended communion on the tongue from May to November 2020. That bishop’s decision was, after the suspension was already lifted, approved by Rome. Therefore, in most dioceses (certainly my own), the norm of the communicant choosing how to receive prevailed even during the COVID pandemic. Outside of that one diocese (and perhaps several others I’m unaware of), I don’t see how anyone is guilty of refusing obedience, much less gravely, if they opt to receive only while kneeling on the tongue, just as no one sins gravely by always and without exception receiving only in the hand. Indeed, if the Bishop permits communion on the tongue, and a parish priest anyway refuses a person communion on the tongue, it would be the priest who is guilty of disobedience, for it is not given to them to decide how the laity should receive.
Lastly, I think it’s a quite defensible position to hold (and it is a position likely held by many who receive exclusively on the tongue), that to prevent grave evils such as schism, Rome decided to tolerate a practice that was not gravely wrong yet still inferior to the traditional practice. The initial resistance of Rome to communion in the hand and the insistence that much was to be done to avoid scandal and ensure that the laity continue to recognize the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist can be counted as evidence in favor of this view. In my experience, people who receive the Eucharist on the tongue do so because they feel this is the best way to show love and adoration to Jesus.
Good points. However, no matter what documents of the Church say, She has the authority to change those rules. Discipline is changeable. The OT disciplines were issued by God in Sacred Scripture, and yet they were dispensed by Christ. If the local Bishop orders Communion only in the hand, then that is what the faithful should do, out of love for Christ.
{14:15} If you love me, keep my commandments.
Those who continually rail against the Popes, the Bishops, and Vatican II are not keeping the commandments of the Lord through His indefectible Church. Therefore, they love little or not at all. Some of these persons who oppose Pope Francis speak with great malice and hatred of him, and I find it hard to believe that they could still be in the state of grace, with infused charity while treating the Vicar of Christ in that manner.
Which Vatican II document prescribed this modern practice? Please quote. Vatican II gets blamed for a lot of things and we all can’t chant Gregorian Chant also prescribed by Vatican II?
The Church has always taught what Vatican I and II also taught, that the Pope and the body of Bishops have authority over doctrine and discipline. If you cannot accept their teachings and disciplines on faith, then you lack the submission to the Church needed to avoid schism. The Church at all times has the ability to make changes in the discipline for receiving Communion, and you cannot refuse those decisions based on your own arguments.
Sacred Hosts have and are being left in pews, I’ve seen it with my own eyes and had to call the attention of the priest. I’ve seen a woman who had to be confronted because she didn’t consume the Sacred Host at the alter. Also, Sacred Hosts are being taken from Mass for various reasons. And with no Communion plate, many times the Sacred Host falls to the ground.
You are offering reasonings. The Church calls us to faith. Many on the far right have rejected faith, and live only by reason. When the Church makes a decision or issues a teaching, rather than accepting it on faith, they reject it based on their own reasons. This is simply pride. They think themselves to be holier and more faithful than the Pope and the body of Bishops. Jesus is not harmed by tiny particles of hosts that fall to the ground. He is offended, though, when people who use their tongue to attack His Vicar, then receive Him in Communion. Schismatics are forbidden from Communion. If you do not accept the teachings and disciplines of the Church, and instead reject the authority of the Pope and the Bishops to decide these questions, you are a schismatic.
Mr. Conte……my guess is you believe it is WRONG for a priest at a Latin Mass to refuse to put Holy Communion in someones hand ??
Louise, your other comments were deleted by me. Like so many Catholics on the far right, you have rejected faith, and replaced it with your own reasonings and those of your peers in the conservative subculture. We are called to accept what the Church teaches and decides. Your own reasonings fail before the authority of the Church, which is the authority of Christ.
In John 6, some of the disciples reasoned that it would not be right to eat flesh and drink blood, so they turned away from Christ. But those disciples who had faith accepted what Jesus taught on faith, rather than on their own reasoning. You have fallen into the sin of pride, thinking that you understand the faith better that the recent Council and the recent Popes.
Disobedience to the Church is wrong. If the Bishop orders his priests to give Communion only in the hand, or only on the tongue, then they should obey. You and your peers are schismatics, who have rejected the authority of the Church and replaced it with the conservative subculture. Rather than praying for me, you should be praying for your own soul, that God will return you to the state of grace. For someone who has no faith cannot be in that state. So your public expressions of faithlessness indicate that you might not be in the state of grace.