While Pope Francis needed the help of Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernandez to compose a declaration opening the possibility of allowing a “blessing” for couples in sinful unions; a priest in Cebu, Philippines, without anyone’s help, scandalously declared in his homily that unmarried Catholics who do not receive communion because of their status are wasting their time.

During a Mass on January 14 at the Basilica Minor de Santo Niño in Cebu, the priest has said the following statements in his homily. (Note: Below is my own translation from Cebuano to English)

That is why when you go to Mass, you need to receive Communion if you arrive before the distribution of the Sacred Hosts.
Some would say, “we can’t do it because we were late, we could not make it before or during the homily”. That is okay. You need to receive communion at Mass!
There are some who will not do it because of the time it passed since their last confession. They have sins that have not been confessed and so they opt not to receive the Holy Communion.
Others also would say that when we receive Holy Communion without confession, we sin.
Think of it, you took a lot of efforts in going to Mass here because of the crowd, why would you think that when you receive Holy Eucharist you would sin? What a bitter situation!
Getting yourself closer to God (in the Eucharist) is always good. You sin only when you don’t attend Mass anymore. When you do not obey the ways of God. When you cease to be kind, or to pray, or to admit that there is God.
There are some who would not receive Holy Communion because of they were not married in the Church for ten years. Does this mean that they have not received communion for ten years? What a waste of time! What a waste of the power of the Body of Christ. It’s not just a spiritual food but it’s also a food for the body, that is why it’s a real flesh. It’s a food. We do not know the limitations of the power of God. There is nothing impossible with God.
If God tells you he will forgive you now when you commune, wouldn’t you be forgiven? For sure we cannot contradict what God wants. If God decides to heal all your ailments when you commune now, will that happen? Of course, he was able to create the earth and the universe, and so there is no doubt he can heal everyone.
If God tells you that if you commune now your supplications will be granted… that you’ll be more handsome or pretty, (more jokes and the congregation laughs), that you’ll find a partner, an old foreigner (more laughs)…

The priest’s main message is that the limits of the power of the God through the Holy Eucharist are unknown. So, everyone SHOULD partake of the Holy Communion even if the soul is in a state of sin. Because for God nothing is impossible.

In my opinion, there is no way the priest can be right. He is wrong. Instead of promoting the sacraments of the Church for the salvation of souls, he tolerates sins that offend God and undermines the teaching of the Church on the reception of the Blessed Sacrament. There is a lot that can be said against the priest’s declaration about Catholics in active sinful unions but here is the official teaching of the Church with regards to receiving Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist in a state of mortal sin.

To respond to this invitation we must prepare ourselves for so great and so holy a moment. St. Paul urges us to examine our conscience: “Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a man examine himself, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.” Anyone conscious of a grave sin must receive the sacrament of Reconciliation before coming to communion.

Catechism of the Catholic Church 1385, 1 Corinthians 11:27-29

Those who have been excommunicated or interdicted after the imposition or declaration of the penalty and others obstinately persevering in manifest grave sin are not to be admitted to holy communion.

A person who is conscious of grave sin is not to celebrate Mass or receive the body of the Lord without previous sacramental confession unless there is a grave reason and there is no opportunity to confess; in this case the person is to remember the obligation to make an act of perfect contrition which includes the resolution of confessing as soon as possible.

Code of Canon Law 915-916

Scandals like this nowadays probably won’t incur canonical punishments because the priests words and Fiducia Supplicans go along with each other. Pope Francis might actually be happy with this priest. Nowadays, only the holy, “rigid,” and traditional leaning clerics are penalized and canceled.

If you know the priest, please tell him that many of the faithful are concerned about his ministry and the souls of those to whom he administers the sacraments. You can also send a letter to his bishop denouncing his words. Finally, let us pray for the priest and not condemn him.

[Added 23Jan24]

Thanks to the Most Reverend Dennis Cabanada Villarojo, former auxiliary bishop of the archdiocese of Cebu and the current bishop of Malolos, for correcting the errors of the priest in a homily the prelate delivered on 21Jan24, the Feast of Sto Niño de Cebu.