Should You Receive the Eucharist on the Tongue or by Hand? Rules for Reception of Holy Communion

There are a lot of questions floating about how you should (or should not) receive the Eucharist, whether on the hand or on the tongue. Here are a few:  

Should you receive the Eucharist on the tongue or in the hand? Is one way good and one way bad? Is receiving Holy Communion on the tongue the better way? Is it legal to be prohibited from receiving Holy Communion on the tongue? Is receiving the Eucharist on your hands wrong? Is receiving the Eucharist on your hands a sacrilege or offensive to God?   

What should you do? There are a lot of questions here, too. 

What should you do if you have been refused communion on the tongue? How do you talk to your priest or bishop if they prohibit receiving the Eucharist on the tongue? How can you help your parish learn about this subject? 

Should You Receive Holy Communion on the Hand or the Tongue? Table of Contents

Would You Rather Watch a Video about Receiving Holy Communion on the Hand vs. the Tongue?

Fr. Chris Alar and the Marians of the Immaculate Conception explain all this beautifully. Here is both a short or long video on the manner of receiving the Eucharist.  

Want a short, bite-size video on receiving the Eucharist on the tongue vs. the hand? Here's the 5-minute version:

Want the longer version of this? Here's the longer video:

What Does Vatican II or the Catechism of the Catholic Church Say About Receiving Holy Communion on the Hand vs. the Tongue?

The short answer? Nothing.  

The long answer? Vatican II and the Catechism describe the need for reverence in receiving Holy Communion, in terms of being in a state of grace, how often you can/should receive Holy Communion, etc., but these documents do not go into the specifics on tongue or hand.   

The Catechism, par. 1388-1389, quotes the Vatican II documents, specifically Sacrosanctum Concilium, as follows:  

1388. "... The Second Vatican Council says: That more perfect form of participation in the Mass whereby the faithful, after the priest's communion, receive the Lord's Body from the same sacrifice, is warmly recommended." (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 55)

1389 "The Church obliges the faithful to take part in the Divine Liturgy on Sundays and feast days and, prepared by the sacrament of Reconciliation, to receive the Eucharist at least once a year, if possible during the Easter season. (OE 15; CIC, can. 920.) But the Church strongly encourages the faithful to receive the holy Eucharist on Sundays and feast days, or more often still, even daily."  

1415 Anyone who desires to receive Christ in Eucharistic communion must be in the state of grace. Anyone aware of having sinned mortally must not receive communion without having received absolution in the sacrament of penance.

As you can see above, the Catechism and Vatican II documents make it clear that the Eucharist should be received reverently and in a state of grace. But neither state what this reverence requires of us. We need to dig deeper ...  

What Does The Bible Say About Receiving Holy Communion on the Hand vs. the Tongue?

Here is a nice verse from the Prophet Ezekiel, 2:8: 

But you, son of man, hear what I say to you; be not rebellious like that rebellious house; open your mouth, and eat what I give you.

Do not be rebellious! Open your mouth to receive what God gives you. 

Here's another from Psalm 81, verse 10, referring to the Manna, the prefigurement of the Eucharist:

I am the Lord your God, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt. Open your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

God will fill your mouth, not you, not me. Even a priest is incapable of feeding himself, spiritually. God will feed us. We will not feed ourselves. 

Receiving the Eucharist on the Tongue or in the Hand? Here's The Short Answer:

The Catholic Church's preferred or desired way to receive Holy Communion is on the tongue. Receiving on the tongue is the normal way of receiving the Eucharist. It has been the standard practice for almost 14 centuries. 

Receiving the Eucharist on the hand is allowed as an exception--what's called an "indult"--from the normal/preferred way. In 1969, Pope Paul VI allowed bishops to permit people to receive Communion in their hands if it's done reverently. The Holy See has warned that Communion in the hand could lead to profanation, loss of reverence, or altering the true doctrine. 

RECEIVING THE EUCHARIST ON THE TONGUE OR IN THE HAND: HERE'S THE LONG ANSWER:

What are the Universal Rules of the Church from the Vatican for Receiving Holy Communion on the Tongue vs. the Hand?   

Here is the answer from the Vatican's Congregation of Divine Worship:

Question: Whether in dioceses, where it is valid to distribute Communion in the hands of the faithful, it is permissible for the priest or extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion to bind the communicants by an obligation, so that they receive the host only in their hands, and not on the tongue.

Response: Certainly it is clear from the very documents of the Holy See that in dioceses where the Eucharistic bread is put in the hands of the faithful, the right to receive the Eucharistic bread on the tongue still remains intact to the faithful. Therefore, those who restrict communicants to receive Holy Communion only in the hand are acting against the Norms, as are those who refuse to Christ's faithful [the right] to receive Communion in the hand in dioceses that have this indult.

This is from Notitiae, the Official Publication of the Congregation of Divine Worship, regarding the Reception of Holy Communion. See Notitiae 35 (1999): 160–161; [Footnote: 1, see additional Notitiae resources below]  

What does the Vatican say? You cannot be denied Holy Communion on the tongue at any Catholic Church, anywhere. Such a denial is a violation of the Norms, the rules of the Catholic Church. You also cannot be denied Holy Communion in your hands in Dioceses where an indult is granted for such an exception. 

Let's state this another way. Where can you be denied Holy Communion on the tongue by either an Extraordinary Minister, Deacon, Priest, or Bishop? No where. It is the universal law of the Church. In some dioceses, however, receiving Holy Communion by hand is allowed.   

What Do the Doctors of the Church and Saints Say About Receiving the Eucharist on the Hand or on the Tongue? 

See below for what St. Thomas Aquinas and other saints and Doctors of the Church say about whether one should receive the Most Blessed Sacrament on the tongue or on the hand. 

St. Catherine of Siena received Holy Communion straight from Jesus. Did Jesus place Himself in the Eucharist on the altar made by her hands? No. Jesus place the Eucharist onto the tongue of St. Catherine of Siena.

Also, the children at the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima -- how did they receive Holy Communion from the Angel? On their tongues. 

There is no evidence of any early pope allowing reception of the Eucharist in the hand. 

> St. Thomas Aquinas on Receiving the Eucharist on the Tongue ALONE, from the Summa Theologica

St. Thomas Aquinas, in his typical style, provides us with a very thorough and direct answer to whether we should reserve the Eucharist on the tongue or the hand: 

I answer that, the dispensing of Christ's body belongs to the priest for three reasons, First, because, as was said above (Article 1), [the priest] consecrates as in the person of Christ. But as Christ consecrated His body at the supper, so also He gave it to others to be partaken of by them. Accordingly, as the consecration of Christ's body belongs to the priest, so likewise does the dispensing belong to him. Secondly, because the priest is the appointed intermediary between God and the people; hence as it belongs to him to offer the people's gifts to God, so it belongs to him to deliver consecrated gifts to the people. Thirdly, because out of reverence towards this sacrament, nothing touches it, but what is consecrated; hence the corporal and the chalice are consecrated, and likewise the priest's hands, for touching this sacrament. Hence it is not lawful for anyone else to touch it except from necessity, for instance, if it were to fall upon the ground, or else in some other case of urgency.

[2] Source: Summa Theologica, "The Minister of This Sacrament" (Tertia Pars, Q. 82, Article 3)

Aquinas provides a very important explanation and rule: "Nothing touches it, but what is consecrated." The priest is consecrated, i.e. set aside and made holy, specifically for this purpose. This is why the priests' chalices are consecrated at the Ordination Mass.   

Pope St. John Paul said about the consecration of priests' hands at Ordination, "We especially, the priests of the Latin Church, whose ordination rite added in the course of the centuries the custom of anointing the priest's hands, should think about this."[3]

Have you ever seen old Italian men or women kiss the hands of the priest? This is why. 

The Council of Trent (1545-1565) confirms this, as well: "The fact that only the priest gives Holy Communion with his consecrated hands is an Apostolic Tradition."

But wait, you might say, my tongue isn't consecrated! What's the difference between my hand or tongue if neither is consecrated? This is why the Rite of Baptism used to include a sprinkling of blessed salt on the baby's tongue -- to consecrate the child's tongue in preparation for the day the child's tongue would receive the Eucharist.   

Extraordinary Ministers? This also brings up the question of the level of "urgency" required to justify Extraordinary Ministers. But that's another article ...  

> Pope St. John Paul II on Receiving the Eucharist on the Tongue or on the Hands

In a November 1980 interview while in Fulda, Germany, Pope St. John Paul II said the following about receiving the Eucharist in the hands:[4] 

There is an apostolic letter on the existence of a special valid permission for this [Communion in the hand]. But I tell you that I am not in favor of this practice, nor do I recommend it. 

Pope John Paul II also dealt with the matter when he wrote Dominicae Cenae, "Letter to all the Bishops of the Church on the Mystery and Worship  of the Eucharist." In paragraph 11, he reflects on the subject of touching the Blessed Sacrament in the context of priestly spirituality, lay Eucharistic ministers and Communion in the hand.[3]

In Dominicae Cenae, St. Pope John Paul II also describes the exceptional nature of reception on the hands and illegality of prohibiting reception on the tongue:[3]

In some countries the practice of receiving Communion in the hand has been introduced. This practice has been requested by individual episcopal conferences and has received approval from the Apostolic See. However, cases of a deplorable lack of respect towards the eucharistic species have been reported, cases which are imputable not only to the individuals guilty of such behavior but also to the pastors of the church who have not been vigilant enough regarding the attitude of the faithful towards the Eucharist. It also happens, on occasion, that the free choice of those who prefer to continue the practice of receiving the Eucharist on the tongue is not taken into account in those places where the distribution of Communion in the hand has been authorized. It is therefore difficult in the context of this present letter not to mention the sad phenomena previously referred to. This is in no way meant to refer to those who, receiving the Lord Jesus in the hand, do so with profound reverence and devotion, in those countries where this practice has been authorized.

Dominicae Cenae also includes an oft-cited line from St. Pope John Paul II that is seemingly against Extraordinary Ministers handling the Eucharist, but the full quote is more nuanced:[3]

To touch the sacred species and to distribute them with their own hands is a privilege of the ordained, one which indicates an active participation in the ministry of the Eucharist. It is obvious that the Church can grant this faculty to those who are neither priests nor deacons, as is the case with acolytes in the exercise of their ministry, especially if they are destined for future ordination, or with other lay people who are chosen for this to meet a just need, but always after an adequate preparation

Extraordinary ministers is again allowed, albeit in a limited sense and as a last resort, and such requires "adequate preparation."'

In Inaestimabile Donum ("Inestimable Gift"), subtitled "On Some Norms Concerning the Cult of the Eucharistic Mystery"), John Paul II said the following:[5] 

The Holy Eucharist is the gift of the Lord, which should be distributed to laymen through the inter-mediation of Catholic priests who are ordained especially for this work. Laymen are neither permitted to take the Sacred Host by themselves nor the Consecrated Chalice. 

> Quotes from Saints, Popes, and Church Council on Receiving the Eucharist by Hand or by Tongue, Chronological 

From various sources, including Get Us Out of Here by Maria Sims, Latin Catholic, A Southern Catholic:

Pope St. Sixtus I (c. 115): "The Sacred Vessels are not to be handled by others than those consecrated to the Lord."

Origen (250): Doctor of the Church, " ... be aware with all care and reverence that not the smallest particle of it fall to the ground, that nothing be dropped of the Consecrated Gift You believe, and correctly so, that you have sinned when some is dropped out of carelessness!"

Pope St. Eutychian (275-283): Forbade the faithful from taking the Sacred Host in their hand.

St. Basil the Great, Doctor of the Church (330-379): "The right to receive Holy Communion in the hand is permitted only in times of persecution." St. Basil the Great considered Communion in the hand so irregular that he did not hesitate to consider it a grave fault.

Council of Saragossa (380): Excommunicated anyone who dared continue receiving Holy Communion by hand. This was confirmed by the Synod of Toledo.

Pope St. Leo the Great (440-461): Energetically defended and required faithful obedience to the practice of administering Holy Communion on the tongue of the faithful.

Synod of Rouen (650): Condemned Communion in the hand to halt widespread abuses that occurred from this practice, and as a safeguard against sacrilege.

Third Council of Constantinople, the Sixth Ecumenical Council (680-681): Forbade the faithful to take the Sacred Host in their hand, threatening transgressors with excommunication.

(Jesus to...) Saint Bridget of Sweden (1373): "Look, my daughter, I left behind five gifts to my Priests ... and fifth, the privilege to touch My Most Holy Flesh with their hands."

St. John Fisher (1535): Cardinal, Martyr, "Times of flowering or collapse within the history of the Church were always associated with the handling of the Holy Eucharist."  

Council of Trent (1545-1565): "The fact that only the priest gives Holy Communion with his consecrated hands is an Apostolic Tradition."

St. Jean-Marie Vianney, Cure of Ars (1859): A consecrated host left his fingers and flew by itself into the mouth of a First Communicant. A doubter who witnessed this converted and thereupon became a priest.  

Maria Simma (1915-2004): Mystic, Author of Get Us Out of Here, visions approved by the Church:  “One day, a woman who distributed Communion, urged other women to do the same, she passed away. Before the funeral, the coffin was open for family and friends to give the last salute. Then it was closed. However, a close relative arrived late and asked the priest to open it so that he could also say goodbye to the deceased. The priest lifted the cover of the coffin and looked inside. Several saw that the woman’s hands had turned black. This sign, for me, as for the rest, was God’s confirmation that unconsecrated hands cannot distribute Jesus during Communion.”

Pope Paul VI (1963-1978): "This method [on the tongue] must be retained." (Memoriale Domini)

Pope St. John Paul II: "It is not permitted that the faithful should themselves pick up the consecrated bread and the sacred chalice, still less that they should hand them from one to another." (Inaestimabile Donum, April 17, 1980, sec. 9). Additional quotes in John Paul II section above.

> On the Reported Plan by Freemasons and Satanists to Attack Catholic Belief in the Real Presence

The following can be quoted from a Masonic plan in the year 1925:[6] 

How can one rob the faithful of their belief in the true presence? ... First, one must bring people everywhere to receive communion while standing, then one must place the Host in their hands. Prepared in this fashion, they will come to see the Eucharist as a mere symbol of a general brotherly meal and will thereby fall away.

The following can be quoted from a list of Masonic directives from 1962, as given by an American Grand Master. Of the 34 separate anti-Catholic suggestions he made in it, here is Number Six:[6] 

 

#6 Stop Communicants from kneeling to receive the Host. Tell Nuns to stop the children from folding their hands to and from Communion. 

Going back further to the 19th century, Stanislas de Guaita, a fallen-away priest, kabbalist (Jewish mysticism), and Satanist said the following: "When we have succeeded in having Catholics receive Communion in the hand, then we will have met our goal." 

The following was first published by Marquis de la Franquerie in 1819 and also in Der Stille Krieg Gegen Thron und Altar (oder) das Negative der FreiMaurerei, Nach Dokumente ("The Silent War Against Throne and Altar (or) The Negative of Freemasonry, According to Documents") by G. M. Pachtler, the second edition of which was published in 1876. 

Pachtler writes that the following secret instructions occurred in 1819 with its entire title being Istruzione Permanente, Codice e Quida Practica Dei Preposti All'Alta Massoneria, with original text in Civilta Cattol, 4th edition, 1875, p. 598: 

The thought is the liberation of Italy, from which on a particular day the liberation of the entire world, the Brotherly Republic and the Unity of mankind, must radiate ... Our goal is after all much more than that of Voltaire and the French Revolution: therefore the entire destruction of Catholicism and the idea of Christianity itself ... 

The Pope, whoever he may be, will never come to the secret Brotherhood; therefore the secret associations must undertake the first steps toward the Papacy and the Church with the intention of putting both in chains. Our assignment is not one of a day, of a month or of a year. It may take many years or perhaps a century. We do not after all intend to win the Pope over to us, to make of him a neophyte of our principles or an apostle of our ideas. That would be a laughable dream. And even when the circumstances turned out that it were to happen that a Cardinal or a Prelate was to come to us with all his heart or as a trick on the consecrated ones of our secrets, still we could not wish to elevate him onto Peter's Throne. Yes, such a selection would be our ruin. For just as he would have come to apostasy out of pure ambition, in the same manner his wish for power would also have him offer us up. What we seek and what we must strive for is, as the Jews wait for their Messiah, is a Pope according to our needs ... 

And so in order to make a Pope according to our hearts, we must raise a generation out of which a man will rise who will be worthy of our rule. One must leave the old or mature men entirely aside. Instead aim straight at the youth and perhaps even at children ... 

Once your good reputations have become well founded in the Colleges, High Schools, Universities and Seminaries, and once you have the trust of the professors and the youth; make sure that especially the candidates for the Priesthood seek your company ... 

After a number of years this young clergy will, due to the power of circumstances, occupy all Offices. It will reign, manage, judge, form the sovereign's (Pope's) advice and be obligated to pick the next Pope ... 

Throw out your nets like Simon Barjona in the inner Sacristies, the Seminaries and Convents, not at the bottom of the sea. And if you do not rush things, we promise you a catch as wonderful as that of St. Peter. The fisherman has turned into man-catcher, and you will even catch friends at the foot of the Apostolic Throne. In this way you will have a revolution in your nets of the Crown and Cape at whose tip the Cross and the large papal flag will be carried; a revolution which will need only a little help in order to spread the fire in all four directions of the world ...  

 

I will leave the above instructions for the attack on the Catholic Church for you to read as they are, without any commentary from me. 

FOOTNOTES on Receiving the Eucharist Properly on the Tongue

[1] I found a lot of great resources in researching the source of this quote. 

• Here is the Notitiae Response Database [Thesaurus responsorum ex « Notitiae »], a compilation of official Vatican responses to liturgical questions. Thanks to New Liturgical Movement (article) for sharing this awesome resource. 
• Here is an online database of ALL Notitiae magazines published since 1965, its inception, I believe. Of course, the magazine is written in Latin, so ... there's that.   
• Here is the original Latin statement, question and answer, from Notitiae, plus translation (my translation, so apologies for any mistakes):
• Question: Whether in dioceses, where it is valid to distribute Communion in the hands of the faithful, it is permissible for the priest or extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion to bind the communicants by an obligation, so that they receive the host only in their hands, and not on the tongue. Utrum in dioecesibus, ubi valet Communionem distribui in manibus fidelium, liceat sacerdoti sive extraordinariis sacrae communionis ministris obligatione adstringere communicantes, ut hostiam tantummodo in manibus accipiant, non autem super linguam.
• Response: It is certainly clear from the very documents of the Holy See that in dioceses where the Eucharistic bread is placed in the hands of the faithful, the right to receive it on the tongue remains intact. They therefore act contrary to the norms, both those who oblige the communicants to receive Holy Communion only in the hands, or those who refuse the Christian faithful to receive Communion in the hand in the dioceses which enjoy this indult.  ℟. Certo patet ex ipsis documentis Sanctae Sedis ut in dioecesibus, ubi panis eucharisticus ponitur in manibus fidelium, integrum tamen eis manet ius super linguam eum recipiendi. Contra normas ideo agunt sive qui communicantes obligatione adstringunt ad sacram communionem tantummodo in manibus recipiendam, sive qui renuunt christifidelibus Communionem in manu recipiendi in dioecesibus, quae hoc indulto gaudent.
• Paying attention to the regulations regarding the distribution of holy communion, the ordinary and extraordinary ministers shall see to it in a special way that the host is immediately taken from the faithful, so that no one leaves with the Eucharistic species in hand.  Attentis normis de sacra communione distribuenda, peculiari modo curent ministri ordinarii et extraordinarii, ut statim hostia a christifidelibus sumatur, ita ut nemo discedat cum speciebus eucharisticis in manu.
• Let all remember, however, that it is an ancient [saecularem] tradition to receive the host on the tongue. The priest celebrating, if there is a danger of sacrilege, does not deliver the communion into the hands of the faithful, but rather informs them of the basis of this procedure. Meminerint tamen omnes saecularem traditionem esse hostiam super linguam accipere. Sacerdos celebrans, si adsit sacrilegii periculum, communionem in manu fidelibus non tradat, eet certiores faciat eos de fundamento huius procedendi modi.

[2] Source: Summa Theologica, "The Minister of This Sacrament" (Tertia Pars, Q. 82, Article 3). Question 82. The minister of this sacrament, full list of all the articles:

1. Does it belong to a priest alone to consecrate this sacrament?
2. Can several priests consecrate the same host at the same time?
3. Does it belong to the priest alone to dispense this sacrament?
4. Is it lawful for the priest consecrating to refrain from communicating?
5. Can a priest in sin perform this sacrament?
6. Is the Mass of a wicked priest of less value than that of a good one?
7. Can those who are heretics, schismatics, or excommunicated, perform this sacrament?
8. Can degraded priests do so?
9. Are communicants receiving at their hands guilty of sinning?
10. May a priest lawfully refrain altogether from celebrating?

[3] Dominicae Cenae: Letter to all the Bishops of the Church on the Mystery and Worship  of the Eucharist. From Paragraph 11:

Celebration of the Eucharist places before us many other requirements regarding the ministry of the eucharistic table. Some of these requirements concern only priests and deacons, others concern all who participate in the Eucharistic Liturgy. Priests and deacons must remember that the service of the table of the Bread of the Lord imposes on them special obligations which refer in the first place to Christ Himself present in the Eucharist and secondly to all who actually participate in the Eucharist or who might do so. With regard to the first, perhaps it will not be superfluous to recall the words of the Pontifical which on the day of ordination the bishop addresses to the new priest as he hands to him on the paten and in the chalice the bread and wine offered by the faithful and prepared by the deacon: "Accipe oblationem plebis sanctae Deo offerendam. Agnosce quod agis, imitare quod tractabis, et vitam tuam mysterio dominicae crucis conforma."(65) This last admonition made to him by the bishop should remain as one of the most precious norms of his eucharistic ministry.

It is from this admonition that the priest's attitude in handling the bread and wine which have become the body and blood of the Redeemer should draw its inspiration. Thus it is necessary for all of us who are ministers of the Eucharist to examine carefully our actions at the altar, in particular the way in which we handle that food and drink which are the body and blood of the Lord our God in our hands: the way in which we distribute Holy Communion; the way in which we perform the purification.

All these actions have a meaning of their own. Naturally, scrupulosity must be avoided, but God preserve us from behaving in a way that lacks respect, from undue hurry, from an impatience that causes scandal. Over and above our commitment to the evangelical mission, our greatest commitment consists in exercising this mysterious power over the body of the Redeemer, and all that is within us should be decisively ordered to this. We should also always remember that to this ministerial power we have been sacramentally consecrated, that we have been chosen from among men "for the good of men."(66) We especially, the priests of the Latin Church, whose ordination rite added in the curse of the centuries the custom of anointing the priest's hands, should think about this.

In some countries the practice of receiving Communion in the hand has been introduced. This practice has been requested by individual episcopal conferences and has received approval from the Apostolic See. However, cases of a deplorable lack of respect towards the eucharistic species have been reported, cases which are imputable not only to the individuals guilty of such behavior but also to the pastors of the church who have not been vigilant enough regarding the attitude of the faithful towards the Eucharist. It also happens, on occasion, that the free choice of those who prefer to continue the practice of receiving the Eucharist on the tongue is not taken into account in those places where the distribution of Communion in the hand has been authorized. It is therefore difficult in the context of this present letter not to mention the sad phenomena previously referred to. This is in no way meant to refer to those who, receiving the Lord Jesus in the hand, do so with profound reverence and devotion, in those countries where this practice has been authorized.

But one must not forget the primary office of priests, who have been consecrated by their ordination to represent Christ the Priest: for this reason their hands, like their words and their will, have become the direct instruments of Christ. Through this fact, that is, as ministers of the Holy Eucharist, they have a primary responsibility for the sacred species, because it is a total responsibility: they offer the bread and wine, they consecrate it, and then distribute the sacred species to the participants in the assembly who wish to receive them. Deacons can only bring to the altar the offerings of the faithful and, once they have been consecrated by the priest, distribute them. How eloquent therefore, even if not of ancient custom, is the rite of the anointing of the hands in our Latin ordination, as though precisely for these hands a special grace and power of the Holy Spirit is necessary!

To touch the sacred species and to distribute them with their own hands is a privilege of the ordained, one which indicates an active participation in the ministry of the Eucharist. It is obvious that the Church can grant this faculty to those who are neither priests nor deacons, as is the case with acolytes in the exercise of their ministry, especially if they are destined for future ordination, or with other lay people who are chosen for this to meet a just need, but always after an adequate preparation.

[4] Also translated as the following:

• "But I say that I cannot be for it [Holy Communion in the hand], and also cannot recommend it ... [The Priest has] as servant of the Holy Eucharist and all Holy forms, a primary responsibility — primary, because it is complete."
• “I cannot be in favour of the Communion in the hand and I cannot recommend it. The priest has a primordial responsibility as a ‘servant of the Holy Eucharist and of all the Holy Forms’, primordial because it is complete."
• Sources for quote: New Liturgical Movement, LINK 2, LINK 3
• Pope John Paul II provided the quote while "responding to a reporter from Stimme des Glaubens magazine, during his visit to Fulda, Germany in November 1980."  
• Quote not found in this official list of speeches and homilies given by John Paul II in 1980 in the Federal Republic of Germany provided on the Vatican website.

[5] Inaestimabile Donum, subtitled "On Some Norms Concerning the Cult of the Eucharistic Mystery", Address to the Holy Congregation for the Sacraments and Divine Worship, April 3, 1980 (Holy Thursday)

[6] From Get Us Out of Here by Catholic Mystic, Maria Simms, Addendum; Chapter 10, Note 15.

[+] Additional Resources:

• National Catholic Register, "Why Communion on the Tongue is More Suitable Than in the Hand", LINK
• Catholic Answers, "How Ancient is Communion in the Hand", LINK

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