Low Gluten Hosts

In a recent letter to diocesan bishops, the Vatican said the bread used for communion must contain some gluten, the general name for proteins found in wheat. Despite reports to the contrary, this is not a new directive. The Church has always maintained that the eucharistic bread be composed purely of wheat:

The bread for celebrating the Eucharist must be made only from wheat, must be recently made, and, according to the ancient tradition of the Latin Church, must be unleavened.

 General Instruction of the Roman Missal 320.

The Vatican is responding to an increasing number of the faithful who are going gluten-free, either because they have celiac disease or because they have a sensitivity or allergy to gluten. Some manufacturers of communion breads make hosts that are totally gluten-free, by substituting rice, potato, or other non-gluten containing flours. In this most recent directive, the Vatican said that those hosts are not approved for use at a Catholic Mass.

In order for hosts to be considered low-gluten, they must contain less than .002 percent of wheat gluten, usually not enough to affect persons with gluten allergies. However, there are some people who are so gluten-sensitive that they can’t even consume the low-gluten hosts. The only option for these persons who wish to partake in communion is to only consume the Blood of Christ.

Likewise, those who can’t consume alcohol typically take only the Body of Christ or they might consume mustum, which is grape juice that is either fresh or preserved by methods that suspend its fermentation without altering its nature.

At St. Thomas Aquinas, low-gluten hosts are available for those with gluten allergies. Persons who wish to use these hosts should notify the sacristan before Mass and plan to receive communion from the priest-presider who will have the low-gluten hosts in a separate container.