St. Columbkille Catholic Church, Fort Myers FL

We acknowledge that Mass is Mass and wherever it is celebrated, Jesus is present. Having said that, if you are looking for a more traditional Mass experience, this is NOT it. We are visiting from out of town and have the blessing and privilege of attending church at Our Lady of Good Counsel in Kansas City which offers a traditional novus Ordo liturgy said ad orientum. Many of the women wear chapel veils and communion is offered using an altar rail and receiving on the tongue is encouraged. I realize that we cannot have that experience everywhere and perhaps we should have chosen an FSSP church in the Latin rite; however I have never been anywhere where we were refused reception of our Lord directly on the tongue. In a time when statistics state that almost 70% of Catholics do not believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, it is important that our posture and behavior say something about what we believe. If a church is not equipped with an altar rail, reception on the tongue should be not only allowed, but encouraged. Again, Jesus was surely present in the sacrament of the Mass this morning, but being refused reception of our Lord directly on the tongue is just not acceptable.