Posted on 07/06/2008 9:43:53 AM PDT by Pyro7480
A University of Central Florida student, upset religious groups hold church services on public campuses, is holding hostage the Eucharist, an object so sacred to Catholics they call it the Body of Christ.
Church officials say UCF Student Senator Webster Cook was disruptive and disrespectful when he attended Mass held on campus Sunday June 29. It was during that Mass where Cook admits he obtained the Eucharist....
A church leader was watching, confronted Cook and tried to recover the sacred bread. Cook said she crossed the line and that's why he brought it home with him.
"She came up behind me, grabbed my wrist with her right hand, with her left hand grabbed my fingers and was trying to pry them open to get the Eucharist out of my hand," Cook said, adding she wouldn't immediately take her hands off him despite several requests....
"The church feels that I'm the problem here," Cook said. "The problem is actually that this is a publicly-funded religious institution. Through student government here, we fund them through an activity and service, so they're receiving student money."
Cook is upset more than $40,000 in student fees have been allocated to support religious organizations on campus for the 2008-2009 school year, according to student government records. He denied he is holding the Eucharist hostage to protest that support.
...Cook has been keeping the Eucharist stored in a plastic bag since last Sunday....
Cook said he'd consider returning the Eucharist if he gets an apology and a meeting with the Bishop's office to discuss the Diocese's policy on physical force....
(Excerpt) Read more at wftv.com ...
Angel's Prayer at Fatima
Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the Most Precious Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges and indifference by which He is offended. And through the infinite merits of His Most Sacred Heart, and the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners.
Catholic ping!
Hate crime.
expect very sizeable things to happen in this individual’s life.
This poor lost soul thinks he knows everything about life. Unfortunately, the body of Christ is about everlasting life and he has committed a sin.
May he see the error of his ways and return the Eucharist to where it belongs.
florida is the spiritual sink-strainer of the US.
OH FOR CRYING OUT LOUD!
Yikes!
Lucky for her she did not do this at a Catholic Church as there are lil old ladies that watch for varments like her and would have blocked the doors and physically took The Body of Christ from her and any crumb that fell.
Jesus gave the disciples his body by hand at the last supper - the method is not the problem.
I have no doubt just like the Crucifixion, God will bring good out of this despicable act and evangelize people.
“florida is the spiritual sink-strainer of the US”
That is an incredibly ignorant comment. It’s quite the opposite - there are VERY strong faith communities here.
> The Diocese is dispatching a nun to UCF's campus to oversee the next mass, protect the Eucharist and in hopes Cook will return it.
I'm studying to be a Catholic, so this might sound like a dumb couple of questions:
Wouldn't a couple of burly Priests be a more effective deterrent to a repeat offense?
And isn't it actually a Federal crime to disrupt a religious service in this matter in America? (I believe it is, and quite a serious one at that.)
He is expecting a job in Obama’s Department of Education.
Aside from the fact that we’re talking about a sacred object here, how does this differ from any other theft and why isn’t this POS under arrest? And since someone tried to stop him and there was a struggle, doesn’t that elevate it to strong-arm robbery?
Charge the person with theft and have him thrown in jail.
Where does it say in the Bible that Our Lord gave it to them in the hand. It just says gave it to them. It's uncertain. In any case, your forget the Apostles were the first bishops.
I disagree. The method IS part of the problem.
I’m not Catholic, I’m not even Christian; but to me this is an outrage.
Right. The sort of ignorance based upon a half a lifetime of experience.
It’s quite the opposite - there are VERY strong faith communities here.
Yeah, like Cassadaga. Ask the locals what they do in the cow pastures on Friday nights.
Two words for your "strong spiritual communities": Terry Schiavo.
Those aren't dumb questions at all. The fact that they're sending a nun does make it seem like they're not treating this matter seriously enough.
And you're right, it is a federal crime to disrupt a religious service. I don't know how often they prosecute though.
Sorry, California has that position locked up!
Disruption of a religious service is a crime and the diocese should not be reluctant in demanding that this be prosecuted.
Maybe you didn't notice, but this is a Catholic Caucus thread.
I do not know where you attend church. However, my parish consists of 3,500 registered families. Plus, we are located in a Winter resort area, and our church attendance increases by 35% during the cooler months.
At every Mass, of which there are 6 each weekend, our church is standing room only. We have ONE priest in our parish, and at each Mass we have 15 Eucharistic Ministers to assist that ONE priest in distributing Communion under both species.
Now, please explain to me how that ONE priest is going to distribute Communion under both species to approximately 1,200 attendees at each Mass. Are you proposing that we go back to the old days when very few received Communion under only one species?
The problem here is not the millions of Catholics in the US who attend Mass each week and receive Communion. It is one nut case in Florida. The solution to this nut case is simply to ignore him. Do not meet with him. Do not even attempt to retrieve the Host. Jesus Christ has suffered far greater indignities, and He will surely survive this one. Leave it to God to judge this person’s behavior.
You know, there used to be some guys who would be about retirement age now, and who may or may not have Italian-American last names, whose Old Country religious tradition would lead them to regard this thing as a serious act of disrespect.
I believe I am on firm ground in stating that Southern Baptists, like most other mainstream Protestant denominations, do not believe in doctrine of transubstantiation. Consequently, the communion wafer remains a wafer.
(In saying this, I am implying in no way whatsoever that the gentleman still doesn’t deserve an energetic, thorough, and memorable “counseling” session concerning the proper handling of the consecrated host.)
If they send Sister Elizabeth Worley, the CFO of the Diocese, the poor Eucharist-stealing SOB doesn't stand a chance.
She is an “Old School” nun.
I live in Orlando, I'm not even Catholic and I know about Sister Elizabeth!
If, as appears likely, this guy has committed a crime, I want him to do the max!
There's no need to receive the Precious Blood in that species in that instance. The Host, as St. Thomas Aquinas teaches, contains the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ in its entirety. Also, are you saying there's no deacon at your parish to assist?
The solution to this nut case is simply to ignore him. Do not meet with him. Do not even attempt to retrieve the Host. Jesus Christ has suffered far greater indignities, and He will surely survive this one. Leave it to God to judge this person’s behavior.
You have that first part wrong. If you ignore it, you open yourself up to lots of others doing it.
See #29.
Trust me, I love her, but every time I see Sister Elizabeth, my knuckles hurt in memory.
... It’s only business.....
As it stands, he is simply an intolerant little twerp.
This is clearly a hate crime, although nothing will be done about it.
Nope!
All of Florida is like DeLand, huh?
Randall and the Schindlers were also Floridians, were they not?
Glass half full my friend.
If Webster Cook wants to impress me he should go to Mecca and act up.
And what have today’s Apostles said on the matter - both forms (recieved with reverance) are acceptable.
Believers of a more...peaceful religion would have slowly sawed his head off.
I was raised Catholic. I’m now a Baptist.
When I was a kid a lot of old nuns were nick-named “Sister Mary Agony,” and not without reason!
Agree 100 percent with you! :)
This absolutely sounds like hate crime. Imagine what would happen if some Catholic students disrupted a muslim ceremony. The outcry would be deafening. They would screaming for justice.
It all depends on whether or not the nun is one of those yardstick wielding 1960s Dominican style nuns who used to teach my father in elementary school. (He still has flashbacks)
Unless they use academia's own "weapons" against them. What would happen if the Nun were a "protected minority" and this little punk started trouble with her?
My boot would be apologizing to his ass. He needs to be expelled pronto.
Just wondering -- how many of those 1,200 would you estimate are in a proper state of grace to receive Communion? Were there 1,200 people in line for the confessional yesterday? Perhaps the the single priest would be capable of distributing Communion to those who are eligible to receive it? Just wondering.
Just one comment and then I'm back to lurking. There was a somewhat similar incident four years ago: Tabernacle stolen from West Va. church
"This is an extreme violation of the basis of our entire Catholic faith," Larry Prunty, who serves as chairman of the parish council, said Monday. "Without the tabernacle, our church is empty. They have taken the body of Christ from our church."
This is a Christophobic hate crime and the perpetrator should be prosecuted on a hate crime charge. What’s good for the right is good for the left...
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