The Star Tribune had an article the other day about a sullied but possibly miraculous communion wafer at a Catholic church in South St. Paul. The wafer fell to the floor during a mass and, as it had presumably been consecrated, was placed in a chalice with water so that it would dissolve. It seems that, having touched the floor, the wafer no longer qualifies as the body of Christ. Nevertheless, you can't just toss it in the scrap, either. There are rules covering these cases. Well, the wafer did not dissolve, as expected, but sank to the bottom and turned "a blood-red color," causing some to think they were in the presence of a miracle. The Star Tribune article continues:
The church's pastor turned it over to the archdiocese for examination.
The archdiocese sent the host to an unnamed laboratory to be tested and released the results Wednesday in a statement from archdiocese spokesman Dennis McGrath.
"Exhaustive biological analysis by an independent scientific laboratory has determined that the reddish coloration on the Holy Communion host that was kept in a water solution after it was discovered on the floor of St. Augustine Church . . . was caused by fungus. The host in question has been disposed of in a manner prescribed by church law.
"While the Catholic Church fully recognizes the possibility of miracles and remains open to their possibility, it does so with extreme scrutiny, investigation and care. This incident was the result of natural biological causes and should not be considered in any other way."
You have to love the tone of breathless stupidity in the church statement. The analysis was exhaustive. The laboratory was independent. The situation called for scrutiny, investigation and care. Oh, my! If you're worried about the manner in which the fungus-infested host was discarded (and who isn't?), rest easy: it was accomplished "in a manner prescribed by church law." Whew!
It's also good to know that "the Catholic Church fully recognizes the possibility of miracles and remains open to their possibility." On the question of "miracles," the key word is evidently possibility. There's a lot to love about this little story. I think my favorite aspect concerns the wafer's ascent up the chain of command. The parish priest turned it over to the archdiocese "for examination." The archdiocese in turn called in the scientists. That's why the archdiocese boys have been promoted--they know who is most apt to be able to explain the mystery, which in the end must be attributed to "natural biological causes," or, more colloquially, fungus.
