The apology in the Telegraph-Journal newspaper in Saint John, New Brunswick, states that the original July 8 story “was inaccurate and should not have been published.” The story had suggested that after being offered communion at a state funeral, Prime Minister Harper “slipped the thin wafer that Catholics call ‘the host’ into his jacket pocket.” It stated that a senior priest in the Catholic diocese of Saint John had demanded that the prime minister’s office explain what happened to the communion wafer.
However, there was “no credible support” for those two items in the story, according to the July 28 apology, and the two reporters who wrote the funeral story had not included them. They were added during the editing process, reported the Telegraph-Journal. The newspaper also announced that two of its staff, Publisher Jamie Irving and Editor Shawna Richer, are no longer with the newspaper. It is unclear if they resigned or were fired.
When the incident was initially reported, it was suggested that Harper, an evangelical Protestant, slipped the consecrated host into his pocket or service leaflet, but his office said he did consume it. A video posted online at the video sharing Web site YouTube shows the prime minister accepting the host from a priest but he is not seen raising it to his mouth. Catholics believe that once consecrated by a priest, the communion host made of unleavened bread and wine are the actual body and blood of Jesus and not merely symbols of Christ’s Last Supper. The church reserves communion for Roman Catholics only.
