Sen. Lowen Kruse has decided to sidestep a controversy created by his proposal to eliminate all instances where teens can legally drink. Kruse will offer an amendment to assure teens can drink wine at communion.

But his bill would still ban minors drinking at home.

The Omaha senator said he welcomed the uproar around his bill, LB261, because it meant people were paying attention to teen drinking.

And he never really intended for teens to be arrested for sipping wine as a part of communion when he proposed all exceptions to teen drinking be removed from state law, he said.

Kruse said he assumed common sense would prevail — and the tiny amount of alcohol offered at communion would not rise to a criminal offense.

But people responded as if the senator intended no minor should be allowed to take wine with communion.

His revised version would likely allow minors to consume up to two ounces of alcohol as a part of a religious ceremony.

That would expand the exemption to Jewish ceremonies conducted at home, said Kruse, a retired minister in the Methodist Church, where grape juice is used in ceremonies.

It would accommodate the little glasses Lutherans use, he said, and the communion cup for Catholics.

But Jim Cunningham, who represents the Nebraska Catholic Conference, said the simplest solution is to keep the current language allowing youth to use alcohol at a place of worship in a religious ceremony.

“I cannot imagine there is a shred of evidence that young people receiving holy communion have caused any problem relating to consumption of alcohol,” he said. “Without any evidence of that I cannot fathom on what basis there is a need to eliminate that exception.”

“It is a reasonable, respectful accommodation that has a long history behind it, and it ought to be left alone,” he said.

Kruse said his amended bill would still ban minors drinking in their own home, even with their parents’ permission.

“What remains is a well-supported effort to stop teen drinking,” he wrote in an opinion piece supporting his stand.

Kruse also pointed out a companion bill, LB336, increases penalties for adults who procure alcohol for minors.

Reach Nancy Hicks at 473-7250 or nhicks@journalstar.com.