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Bread used to celebrate the Eucharist during Catholic masses must not be gluten-free, although it may be made from genetically modified organisms, a letter sent to all diocesan bishops says.
Furthermore, the bread “must be unleavened, purely of wheat, and recently made so that there is no danger of decomposition”.
Bread made from products other than pure wheat is not allowed.
“Even if it is grain, or if it is mixed with another substance different from wheat to such an extent that it would not commonly be considered wheat bread, does not constitute valid matter for confecting the Sacrifice and the Eucharistic Sacrament,” the letter says.
The wine “… must be natural, from the fruit of the grape, pure and incorrupt, not mixed with other substances … well conserved and has not soured”.
Paul Mooney, who is the winemaker from the Mission Estate which produces most of New Zealand’s altar wine, says New Zealand wine regulations allow sugar to be added, during the process. As altar wine may not have any added substances, it is kept apart from the main vintage and a different process is used to make it.
Mooney says the process ensures it is palatable by allowing its natural sugars sweeten it.
The letter about the standards of bread and wine is from Cardinal Robert Sarah, who is the prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments.
He wrote the letter at Pope Francis’s request.
The letter targets the bishops because their role involves being the “principal dispenser of the mysteries of God, moderator, promoter and guardian of the liturgical life in the Church”. This includes providing for all that is required for celebrating the Lord’s Supper.
Until relatively recently religious communities catered for the Lord’s Supper. Nowadays though, it’s possible to go to the supermarket or an online shop to buy the necessities.
To make sure all the bishops are on track with what’s required, Sarah’s letter offers assistance by recapping the existing regulations and offering some practical suggestions.
These suggestions include the ordinaries:
- guaranteeing the Eucharistic matter through special certification
- reminding priests … of their responsibility to verify those who provide the bread and wine for the celebration and the worthiness of the material
- providing information to the producers of the bread and wine and reminding them of the absolute respect that is due to the norms.
Source
- Radio NZ
- Vatican Radio
- Image: RCLB Sacraments
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