Communion Interrupted: Noah Had Other Plans
I left town for conference for one weekend. One. Weekend.
Ziva still had to serve at Mass, so their dad dropped the kids off to meet my mom, Shane, and Riley. My mom, Ilyia, and Noah sat up front like model parishioners. Shane and Riley rolled in late and took the back row, as one does when sprinting into church.
Noah was fantastic through the entire Mass. Truly inspiring. I would have nominated him for sainthood.
Then came Communion.
My mom was up assisting, which left Ilyia alone in the pew with Noah. According to Ilyia, Noah suddenly shouted, “Hug Granddaddy!” which is not a typical Communion response. Before she could process this declaration, Noah launched himself out of the pew and made a full sprint toward the altar, determined to hug his grandfather mid-sacrament.
Ilyia attempted to stop him. It was not successful. Think less gentle guidance and more wrestling match in a church pew.
Meanwhile, Ziva casually walked across the altar in full server attire, like this was just another Sunday, attempting to assist. Nothing worked. Noah was on a mission.
Parishioners continued through the Communion line, glancing over at what appeared to be a small, determined child fighting for his life to hug a priest.
Finally, Ziva retrieved my mom. The moment my mother grabbed Noah’s elbow, he straightened up and calmly walked back to the pew like nothing had happened.
He will fight me. He will fight his sisters. He will not fight his grandmother. He knows better.
I return home from my conference to this story, only to learn the entire event was recorded and is now living its best life on YouTube. If you need a visual, check out St. Ignatius Hickory, April 19 at 10:30 a.m. You are welcome. (About 1:12:05, upper right hand corner.)
For a little background, the priest Noah was chasing down is my father. He was ordained as an Anglican priest in the early 1970s and later converted to Catholicism when Saint Pope John Paul II allowed it on a case by case basis. My dad was one of about 100 selected in the United States and the first in Maryland. He trained in New York, earned a Doctorate of Divinity, and completed additional formation before becoming a Catholic priest.
All of which is impressive, but none of it prepared him for being tackled by his grandson during Communion.
The good news is the parish is used to Noah.
The bad news is now the internet is too.
Stay tuned for the edited video. In the meantime, feel free to enjoy the full Mass and recording if you would like. Do not forget to follow us on Facebook and the Life with Noah website for more moments like this.
