Perfume-tasting Host?

[lilac_angel]

I was receiving Communion last Sunday and noticed that it tasted like it had perfume on it. After my husband and I knelt down after receiving, I asked him if his tasted "in any way perfumed," and he said no. I had not been wearing perfume, just for the record.

Has this been known to happen before? More importantly, could I see this is a possible "sign" from God?

I had been a bit weak in faith for quite some time, due in part to feeling overpowered by the disbelief of others and too many questions flying around my head, and I'm wondering if God may have been saying "hi" to me, like one of my convert friends suggested, to encourage me to perservere.

It was not an unpleasant taste - just a bit perfumish. So it wasn't like "YUMMY" or "this is the best thing I've ever tasted," but it caught my attention in a gentle way. It certainly tasted different and distinct from my other receiving experiences, even though I went to Mass as I always did, with all of the factors the same.

Any thoughts?

Edited June 11, 2008 by lilac_angel

[Holly3278]

It very well could have been a sign from God to you. A few weeks ago, I was at Mass and the Sacred Host literally tasted like flesh. Now don't get me wrong, I don't know what human flesh tastes like but it tasted sort of like chicken or some other animal flesh. I don't know if it tasted like human flesh or not but it tasted kind of like what I would imagine human flesh to taste like. You know that taste that you get when you lick your arm as a child or something? It tasted eerily similar to that. I told my priest about it and he said that it was likely a sign from God to me to keep having faith. He also told me that back in the Middle Ages this happened sometimes and it forced the Catholic Church to forbid chewing of the host for a time. Needless to say, it did happen to me and it was something that strengthened my faith in the Eucharist and in Christ's Church.

[EricTheRed]

It could be a sign, but it certainly is a very delicate subject matter.

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='Holly3278' post='1568899' date='Jun 11 2008, 08:43 PM']It very well could have been a sign from God to you. A few weeks ago, I was at Mass and the Sacred Host literally tasted like flesh. Now don't get me wrong, I don't know what human flesh tastes like but it tasted sort of like chicken or some other animal flesh. I don't know if it tasted like human flesh or not but it tasted kind of like what I would imagine human flesh to taste like. You know that taste that you get when you lick your arm as a child or something? It tasted eerily similar to that. I told my priest about it and he said that it was likely a sign from God to me to keep having faith. He also told me that back in the Middle Ages this happened sometimes and it forced the Catholic Church to forbid chewing of the host for a time. Needless to say, it did happen to me and it was something that strengthened my faith in the Eucharist and in Christ's Church.[/quote]

Wow, that's really something... thanks for sharing that.

I'm pretty sure they perfumed Christ's body before burial? I wasn't thinking about that when it happened, though, or even much afterward. I didn't give it too much thought at the time. Mass gets busy with a 2 year old. I tried looking for other perfumed host cases with a couple of quick Google searches and didn't come up with anything the same, though I didn't look that hard.

Edited June 12, 2008 by lilac_angel

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='EricTheRed' post='1568905' date='Jun 11 2008, 08:47 PM']It could be a sign, but it certainly is a very delicate subject matter.[/quote]

So it seems.

Thanks for the response.

[prose]

[quote name='Holly3278' post='1568899' date='Jun 11 2008, 08:43 PM']It very well could have been a sign from God to you. A few weeks ago, I was at Mass and the Sacred Host literally tasted like flesh. Now don't get me wrong, I don't know what human flesh tastes like but it tasted sort of like chicken or some other animal flesh. I don't know if it tasted like human flesh or not but it tasted kind of like what I would imagine human flesh to taste like. You know that taste that you get when you lick your arm as a child or something? It tasted eerily similar to that. I told my priest about it and he said that it was likely a sign from God to me to keep having faith. He also told me that back in the Middle Ages this happened sometimes and it forced the Catholic Church to forbid chewing of the host for a time. Needless to say, it did happen to me and it was something that strengthened my faith in the Eucharist and in Christ's Church.[/quote]

Something like that happened to me a long time ago when I was converting. I just thought someone made the hosts wrong. Tasted really salty. I always wonder about it though to this day.

[lilac_angel]

That is interesting!!

I just found this on some page.

"Perfumed Oil

The odor of your ointments is fragrant; your name is like perfume poured out. Therefore do the maidens love you. Draw me! We will run after you! Song of Solomon 1:3.

The anointing oil, as opposed to the oil for the lamps, was perfumed and fragrant. [b]The oil is still representative of the Holy Spirit but the perfume and fragrance of the anointing oil is specifically symbolic of Christ; He was anointed with perfume for burial[/b]. There are two instances in the New Testament where Jesus Christ was perfumed, A woman came with an alabaster jar of ointment perfume of pure nard, very costly and precious; and she broke the jar and poured the perfume over His head. Mark 14:3. A similar incident is in Luke 7:37 where His feet were anointed with perfumed ointment. This ointment is a different Greek word than that used for anointing oil, this was an embalming, burial ointment and so was heavily perfumed for obvious reasons!

The Hebrew word for anoint is 'mashach' and means 'to smear with oil' and the Hebrew word for Messiah is 'Mashiach' and means Anointed One! [b]Christ (Christos) is the Greek word for Anointed. HE is our Anointing and only HE can impart His fragrance to us through our close relationship with Him.[/b] [i][...and The Eucharist creates a very close relationship![/i]] When you hug someone who has perfume on, it rubs off on you and you too become fragrant with that perfume. [b]Christ is the Head of His Body, we are simply members of His Body and anointed by our association and contact with Him who is our Head and Anointing.[/b]"

"[b]When we are close and intimate with Him, His fragrance, the anointing which is upon Him, will permeate our lives and will rub onto us (which is how the anointing oil was put on, it was rubbed or smeared on). We then are also ‘perfumed’ and anointed by our association and relationship with Him (Christ’s ones or Christians)."[/b]

[url="http://unveiling.org/Articles/anoint2.htm"]http://unveiling.org/Articles/anoint2.htm[/url]

Pretty neato occurrence/coincidence, if nothing else.

Edited June 12, 2008 by lilac_angel

[EricTheRed]

[quote name='lilac_angel' post='1569234' date='Jun 12 2008, 12:26 AM']That is interesting!!

I just found this on some page.

"Perfumed Oil

The odor of your ointments is fragrant; your name is like perfume poured out. Therefore do the maidens love you. Draw me! We will run after you! Song of Solomon 1:3.

The anointing oil, as opposed to the oil for the lamps, was perfumed and fragrant. [b]The oil is still representative of the Holy Spirit but the perfume and fragrance of the anointing oil is specifically symbolic of Christ; He was anointed with perfume for burial[/b]. There are two instances in the New Testament where Jesus Christ was perfumed, A woman came with an alabaster jar of ointment perfume of pure nard, very costly and precious; and she broke the jar and poured the perfume over His head. Mark 14:3. A similar incident is in Luke 7:37 where His feet were anointed with perfumed ointment. This ointment is a different Greek word than that used for anointing oil, this was an embalming, burial ointment and so was heavily perfumed for obvious reasons!

The Hebrew word for anoint is 'mashach' and means 'to smear with oil' and the Hebrew word for Messiah is 'Mashiach' and means Anointed One! [b]Christ (Christos) is the Greek word for Anointed. HE is our Anointing and only HE can impart His fragrance to us through our close relationship with Him.[/b] [i][...and The Eucharist creates a very close relationship![/i]] When you hug someone who has perfume on, it rubs off on you and you too become fragrant with that perfume. [b]Christ is the Head of His Body, we are simply members of His Body and anointed by our association and contact with Him who is our Head and Anointing.[/b]"

"[b]When we are close and intimate with Him, His fragrance, the anointing which is upon Him, will permeate our lives and will rub onto us (which is how the anointing oil was put on, it was rubbed or smeared on). We then are also ‘perfumed’ and anointed by our association and relationship with Him (Christ’s ones or Christians)."[/b]

[url="http://unveiling.org/Articles/anoint2.htm"]http://unveiling.org/Articles/anoint2.htm[/url]

Pretty neato occurrence/coincidence, if nothing else.[/quote]

Sweet find. regardless of what it was God Luvs Ya!

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='EricTheRed' post='1569258' date='Jun 11 2008, 11:36 PM']Sweet find. regardless of what it was God Luvs Ya![/quote]

Thanks... and THANKS! That's encouraging to me to hear; even hearing simple things like that are faith-affirming to me, as strange as that may sound. Every little bit helps!

[EricTheRed]

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='EricTheRed' post='1569282' date='Jun 11 2008, 11:46 PM'][/quote]

Kittens help, too. Especially dancing ones.

[EricTheRed]

i personally dont like cats except this one

Edited June 12, 2008 by EricTheRed

[CatholicCid]

One experience I had not too long ago was during daily Mass. After recieving the Host, I returned to my seat, and was reflecting. I had what could be described as a taste dwelling in my mouth which tasted distinctly like the Blood of Christ (sweet wine taste). I normally don't recieve the Precious Blood and had not that day, so I poked around my mouth with my tongue and realized I had not consumed all of the host. A small piece had lodged itself where one's wisdom tooth would normally be.

[lilac_angel]

i don't have a cat. they're okay though. baby kittens are adorable, you have to admit. though they did kind of sell out with the whole lolcats thing.

Edited June 12, 2008 by lilac_angel

[lilac_angel]

[quote name='CatholicCid' post='1569336' date='Jun 12 2008, 12:18 AM']One experience I had not too long ago was during daily Mass. After recieving the Host, I returned to my seat, and was reflecting. I had what could be described as a taste dwelling in my mouth which tasted distinctly like the Blood of Christ (sweet wine taste). I normally don't recieve the Precious Blood and had not that day, so I poked around my mouth with my tongue and realized I had not consumed all of the host. A small piece had lodged itself where one's wisdom tooth would normally be.[/quote]

Wow..... I really love hearing things like this.

The interesting Eucharistic occurrences are varied, yet they all point to Christ in their own cool way....

Edited June 12, 2008 by lilac_angel