For
eight years, Robert Snow crossed himself as he approached his priest
during communion instead of receiving the wafer he desperately wanted.
Snow, of Deerfield Beach, was diagnosed in 2001 with celiac disease,
which prevents him from eating foods containing gluten, including
communion wafers.
But Snow's church, St. Gregory's Episcopal in Boca Raton, recently
began offering wheat-free communion wafers for people who cannot digest
grains. And Snow says he finally feels part of the Mass.
"I feel more into what I'm doing," said Snow, 60. "I feel included."
The latest in communion wafers: gluten-free
The latest in communion wafers: gluten-free
June 1st, 2009 by Valerie ChavezAbout one in 133 Americans has celiac disease, an inability to process
wheat, barley and rye, said Elaine Monarch, executive director of the
Celiac Disease Foundation in Studio City, Calif. Celiacs who eat these
grains can develop severe problems, such as headaches, anemia, canker
sores, miscarriage, osteoporosis and cancer.
There is no cure; celiacs must follow a gluten-free diet, Monarch said.
Recent publicity campaigns have made Americans increasingly aware of
celiac. An abundance of gluten-free products, including pastas and
cookies, is flooding the food market; a gluten-free restaurant
community opened recently in Philadelphia; Celebrity Apprentice
contestant Jesse James recently made a gluten-free meal on the show to
increase awareness of the condition.
St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Delray Beach also offers the gluten-free
wafer. Many denominations, including the United Methodist Church and
the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, allow these special wafers,
but the Catholic Church requires sacramental bread to be made from
wheat.
In 2004, the church approved a very-low gluten host (0.01 percent) made
by the Benedictine Sisters of Perpetual Adoration in Clyde, Mo., that
is considered safe for celiac patients.
Catholic celiacs who cannot tolerate this low-gluten wafer can drink
communion wine and still receive "the whole Christ, in his Body and
Blood, soul and divinity," according to the U.S. Conference of Catholic
Bishops website. However, the Diocese of Palm Beach and some other
dioceses do not offer a common cup for wine right now due to swine flu
concerns.
St. Jude Catholic Church west of Boca Raton has offered the
low-gluten wafer for the past four years to the eight celiac
parishioners known to the congregation, said the Rev. Michael Driscoll,
the church's pastor.
Each celiac parishioner has to take a low-gluten wafer from the
sacristy refrigerator before Mass and place it in the pyx a special
container, to make sure it is not contaminated by the traditional
wafers, Driscoll said.
Parishioner Dottie Bennett has performed this routine at St. Jude since
she moved to Boca Raton from New Jersey in 2005. Bennett, 63, was
diagnosed with celiac in 2000 and was unable to find a church in New
Jersey to accommodate her.
"That ended communion for me," said Bennett, whose six grandchildren
also have the disease. "My church did not offer both species [bread and
wine]. It's so difficult when it's your religion."
Joanne Sassone said her family left the Catholic church about five
years ago because she was told her daughter, Alexandra, then 7, could
not get a gluten-free wafer. The family was thrilled to find out St.
Gregory's Episcopal offers the special bread.
"We really wanted her to be part of a religion and make her communion"
at 12, Sassone said. "We wanted her to feel connected and receive
Jesus."
LINK: http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/palmbeach/sfl-wheat-free-communion-p060109,0,409458.story
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