Homily 4—On Holy Communion

Our Saviour Jesus Christ offers us the cup of life and immortality, and without any exception calls all and each—whoever will, whoever is tormented by spiritual thirst, whoever is assured that this drink can quench his thirst—to come and drink. What great love! What tender, fatherly care for us! Hear, brethren, the voice of our Saviour: If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink John 7:37.

And what is Holy Communion? It is fire—burning and consuming the root and branches of sins; it is an all-healing medicine for all ailments and sorrows; and it is the foundation or cornerstone of the soul’s sanctification. Holy Communion is the sure pledge of eternal life—the very beginning of the transformation of our mortal, sinful nature into an immortal, holy, and incorruptible nature.

And tell me, brethren—is it not unreasonable of those who do not come and themselves refuse to receive the Holy Mysteries? Ah! They do not know or understand that such conduct is not only unreasonable but even ruinous. By their refusal and negligence they not only deprive themselves of everything—they even incur a new and serious guilt before God.

Many say: no, we do not despise the Holy Sacrament—but we are unworthy to approach it because we are great sinners. True, it is fearful to approach the Holy Mysteries unworthily—for he who receives the Holy Mysteries unworthily eats and drinks judgment to himself. But who, tell me, is worthy of such a great gift?

But if one judges strictly: what man is worthy of the Holy Mysteries? Who in the world can consider himself worthy to receive the most precious Body and Blood of Jesus Christ? Ascetics? Anchorites? No—even the greatest saints counted themselves unworthy. For example, John Chrysostom, in the prayer which all priests read before the Liturgy, says of himself that he is the chief of sinners.

And this means that he is in a very dangerous state—he is mortally sick in soul, he has drunk poison from the cup of Babylon; and woe, woe to him who feels no such inward spiritual thirst! Woe to him when the time of this intoxication has passed—and then, then he will feel what he has lost.

Therefore, brethren, for God’s sake, for the sake of Jesus Christ, have the desire not to refuse the reception of the Holy Mysteries—this is fearful! The ancient Christians received the Holy Mysteries every feast day, every Sunday—and therefore they were and could be true Christians. And that is why they endured so much, suffered so much, and yet remained firm in the faith!

Let me now say briefly what is needed in order to receive the Holy Mysteries worthily.

Jesus Christ says: If any man thirst — that is, if any man feels an inward thirst of soul, feels a spiritual need, sees that he is weak in soul and cannot resist sins and temptations—let him come and drink. But here is what one must observe.

1) One must believe that this sacrament was established and handed down to us by Jesus Christ Himself on the last evening before His passion. Believe that the bread you receive is the very most pure Body of Jesus Christ; believe that the wine you drink from the chalice is the very most precious Blood of Jesus Christ. Without this faith, Communion will bring no benefit.

2) Before receiving the Holy Mysteries, one must enter into oneself and examine one’s soul—whether there are sins in it; and if there are, one must cleanse oneself through confession and receive absolution from sins in the name of the Church.

And 3) The most important: one must have no enmity, no malice—but be reconciled with all and forgive all. Enmity and malice are such an obstacle to receiving the Holy Mysteries that no prayers, no fasting—in a word, no preparations can remove it. And so be reconciled first, and then come.

These are all the things one must observe when wishing to receive the Holy Mysteries worthily—beyond this Jesus Christ requires nothing more of us.

Some say they cannot receive the Holy Mysteries because they have not kept the fast. Of course, our Church commands us to fast and keep the Lenten season, for the Saviour Himself fasted forty days and forty nights; but what is a true fast? Many think that a fast consists only in not eating meat and dairy foods—but this is not the main thing. The main thing is the fast of the soul.

And so, when we are fasting, one must eat only enough not to lose one’s appetite entirely; and especially it will be best for one who has any bad habit or vice—such as cursing, judging others, or drinking—to leave it off at this time. For this is the best and most necessary fast.

Of course, it is unwise to break the fast without need—the consumption of non-fasting food is not permissible; he who can keep the fast by a choice of foods, let him do so. But the main thing is to keep and not break the fast of the soul—and then your fast will be pleasing to God. But he who observes only the external fast while allowing himself to abuse others, to judge, to quarrel, to drink—his fast will be of no benefit.

And so you see, brethren, that apart from enmity and malice, nothing forbids us from receiving the Holy Mysteries! But one must remember that one should never approach the Holy Mysteries with a cold soul and with indifference—rather, every Christian must always have a good and warm desire for the Communion of the Body and Blood of the Lord.

And even if you feel that you are trying to live very carefully and can keep the law of God—even then count yourself unworthy—for all the good you have done has been done not by your own strength, but by the power of God; and therefore this is not your virtue—and therefore you have nothing to boast of.

After all that has been said above, it is necessary to mention what one must observe after receiving the Holy Mysteries.

1) As soon as you have been counted worthy to receive the Holy Mysteries, give thanks to Jesus Christ with all your soul and all your heart for not having rejected you, despite your unworthiness; give thanks that this King of glory has condescended to enter the poor dwelling of your soul. And then beg Him earnestly not to depart from you but to abide in you forever.

2) After receiving the Holy Mysteries, strive for as long as possible to meditate upon the greatness of this sacrament, and do not immediately direct your thoughts to your ordinary occupations.

3) The most important: try at least somewhat to change your life, and thereby keep the Divine Guest in your soul as long as possible; be more careful and attentive in your actions; recall as often as possible—or at least occasionally—the grace that you have received.

Therefore, my brethren! I have told you all that those who fast and keep the Lenten season need to know! Happy and supremely happy is he who fully fulfills all the obligations of a penitent—for he will receive the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit will lead him to the Kingdom of Heaven. Happy also is he who partially fulfills these obligations; for he too will receive a measure of grace, and with grace he can and will improve.

But unhappy is the man who after confession and Holy Communion in no way wishes to change his life and in no way strives to refrain from sins. Wretched is that man who thinks not at all and does not take care that after his Lenten season his life should become somewhat better—who immediately after returning home gives himself over to his former habits.

Therefore I beseech you, my brethren! For the sake of God who created us, for the sake of Jesus Christ who shed His blood for us, for the sake of our salvation which we all desire, and for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven which is destined to be our eternal home—strive, use all your strength and all your care to come to confession and Holy Communion as often as possible—and not to remain empty and cold after them, but to strive with all your strength to change your life. And the Holy Spirit—the Comforter, the Spirit of truth and holiness—will gradually enlighten and purify and warm and strengthen you, and will lead you imperceptibly to where all the saints are.