It would now appear that Catholicism is not for those who have a wheat allergy:
An 8-year-old girl who suffers from a rare digestive disorder and cannot eat wheat has had her first Holy Communion declared invalid because the wafer contained no wheat, violating Roman Catholic doctrine.
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Haley was diagnosed with celiac sprue disease when she was 5. The disorder occurs in people with a genetic intolerance of gluten, a food protein contained in wheat and other grains.
When consumed by celiac sufferers, gluten damages the lining of the small intestine, blocking nutrient absorption and leading to vitamin deficiencies, bone-thinning and sometimes gastrointestinal cancer.
Call me a heathen, but I don’t understand the Catholic church’s insistence on not just all of these rituals and reliance on icons, but that the rituals have to be just so. And if a medical situation prevents someone having such minute details in their rituals, they’re invalid?
Note: for those who were wondering, the title of this article was in fact a thinly veiled Pink Floyd reference.