Am I a Catholic or a Protestant - wrt Communion?

[IfYouCantSeeMyMirrors]

I was brought up very firmly as a Catholic - without outright bigotry, but always knowing that Protestants were completely wrong in all their life choices! (To this day, I can identify a 'Protestant' biscuit from a 'Catholic' one, for example....)
I now live in a small town hundreds of miles away, where the Catholic church is pretty much non-existent, but the Protestant/Anglican church is a lovely, thriving community, which embraces the whole community too. Many Catholics that I know of attend certain services at this Anglican church, and I have started to as well.
But I wonder - can I take communion there? I know the rules vary - but my question is really quite specific. I understand that you can only take communion at an Anglican church if you have been confirmed. As a confirmed catholic, I am eligible in that sense (or so a friend's vicar tells me). However, I am no longer eligible to take communion in the Catholic church itself (haven't been to confession for 20 years, for example; use contraception; married in a registry office). So if I can't take it in the Catholic church, do I still have a 'pass' to take it in an Anglican church? I suspect not.
Obviously, all this is just a matter of rules, rather than proper religion. But I'd like to know where I stand...and would be interested to hear from anyone else who has crossed over to the 'other side'.

I think if everyone taking contraception denied themselves Holy Communion in the RC church there would be a dearth of females of child bearing ages taking communion, I see lots of women of this age receiving (neither do they all have 15 kids) so the maths tells me that people are doing what they feel accords with their conscience. There are traditional teachings in the church that many ordinary RCs struggle with and I think, with Pope Francis at the helm these things are changing - slowly!!!!

For me the key issue is that of transubstantiation, this is key to the RC Eucharist ie the miracle that Holy Communion becomes the body and blood of Christ. I understand that most Protestants do not believe this (although found out on here some High Church Anglicans do) so the reason they can't take Communion is because they are unable to view it as the literal body and blood of Christ. I understand Christians from the Orthodox Churches can receive as they do believe in transubstantiation.

As for RCs receiving in a Protestant church I understand that the official line is no (from the RC church although protestant churches seem more accepting), I think in reality lots of people have done and do. Again I guess it is between them and God. Personally not sure I would as, for me, the Eucharist is such a powerful part of my faith that to receive communion as a symbolic representation of the body and blood of Christ doesn't seem to strengthen my faith in the same way, but that's just a personal view.

In summary, if I am honest, I think all of these things are between individuals and God and I would never see it as my place to judge another's decision based on their conscience.

Receiving inter denominational biscuits would however be a different story . In the words of Father Jack 'that would be an ecumenical matter'.

IfYouCantSeeMyMirrors Anglicanism is neither Protestant nor Roman Catholic but something that grew out of the Reformation in the sixteenth century. A friend of mine who grew up in NI found it hard to explain that she was neither RC or Protestant but Church of England.

I'm just hoping they leave me something edible on Sunday.

We quite often have coconut creams and coconut rings because one of the nuns likes coconut. I can't imagine coconut in a Protestant church but the rings seem more Catholic than the creams. I think Coconut creams may be Anglican. I've never eaten either outside of a church hall.

treacle, oh yes, anything at all can be either Protestant or Catholic. Television channels, colour of school uniforms, car-breakdown-membership. Biscuits is perhaps the most important one, though. I love the gateau suggestion.

So sorry to hear from the various vicars that you don't get to eat the biscuits. I know that nuns are unstoppable where biscuits are concerned.

I think I may have to work the more serious bits out myself. I may buy a Foxes Selection Pack of biscuits and see if they can help me.

Anglicanism is a compromise - it has deacons, priests and bishops, and has the apostolic succession. Most Protestant denominations simply have ministers or pastors, and don't see any need to trace their ministries back to Peter. But the CofE split from Rome, so their orders aren't seen as 'valid' by the RC church.

Likewise communion - Protestants generally don't believe in transubstantiation. But Anglican services leave a certain amount of vagueness in the wording, so you can believe in transubstantiation if you want, or just trans-signification. "May they be to us the body and blood of Christ" - leaves a lot of room for interpretation.

Because CofE is the biggest 'Protestant' denomination in England, I'm not surprised about the amount of confusion about it. Up here, the main church is the Church of Scotland, which are thoroughly Protestant. Scottish Episcopal (Anglican) are small and cause confusion, being neither one thing nor the other.

OP, you are completely welcome (not technically okay) to receive communion in the Church of England.

Fox's Viennese Fingers are definitely High Anglican.

I have a good Anglo-Catholic friend who thinks of himself very much as a Catholic (but not Roman Catholic) rather than a Protestant. But of course the RCs would disagree and think he's a schismatic heretic.

Personally I am an Anglican agnostic... I'm sure I'm not the only one out there. Perhaps Choco Leibniz can be our signature biscuit.