My understanding, can dney only if someone is in mortal sin and priest knows it-ie, pro-abort politician, active homo,etc....
It may not be pleasant to think about, but if the priest knows a man is an active homo, but it isn't publicly known, he CAN'T deny him communion.
Only a notorious public sinner can be denied Holy Communion.
is the assumption toward the receipant that he is not actively sinning? he might be a chaste homo or confessed some point unk to the priest?
If a priest learned in confession that a man was an ACTIVE homo, and he had to deny him absolution, but later saw him at the communion rail, he could not withhold Communion from him.
For that matter, if a priest saw a man enter a known ɧoɱosɛҳųαƖ bar, then present himself for communion the next day, he couldn't withhold the Sacrament either.
Long story short: the priest can often be compelled to turn Our Lord over to the torturers, to suffer the mocking and scourging, as it were, a second time. The man who thus receives sacrilegiously will be held to account for this.
And it's not the priest's job to JUDGE at the communion rail.At the communion rail, it's time for mercy and extreme benefit of the doubt, even when there is no doubt in some cases. The burden of worthiness rests upon the recipient, as St. Paul teaches (I can get you an exact quote if you need it). "He who eats the Body of the Lord unworthily..." etc.