Miscellaneous Canonical Prescripts

What terrible thing have we suffered, save perhaps this sad thing, that we have suffered nothing, and that we have not counted ourselves worthy to suffer for Christ (Acts 5:41)? And if it grieves you that wickedness has seized the house of prayer, and you must pray to the Maker of heaven and earth in the open, consider that the eleven disciples too were once shut up in a single room, while those who crucified the Lord carried on the Jewish service in the renowned temple. And Judas, who chose rather to die by hanging than to live in shame, is perhaps better than those who today are not ashamed of any evil they do to men, and are therefore shamelessly ready for every wickedness. Only do not let yourselves be deceived by their lies, when they claim to preach the true faith. These are not Christians, but men who sell Christ, for to a life ordered by truth they always prefer whatever brings them advantage in this present life. When they thought they would gain for themselves an unjust primacy, they made common cause with the enemies of God; and now, seeing the people risen up in anger, they again make a show of believing rightly. I do not know him as a bishop, nor would I ever count among the priests of Christ a man who received the primacy from unclean hands in order to overturn the faith. So I judge. And if you have any part with us, it is plain that you will judge in the same way as we do; but if you wish to judge for yourselves, then everyone is master of his own opinion, and we are not guilty of his blood.

This is an excerpt from a letter (240, al. 192) of Basil the Great, addressed in the year 816 to the presbyters at Nicopolis. A certain Fronto had been unlawfully installed as bishop there and was determined, whether by force or by cunning, to establish himself in the church of Nicopolis, and for this reason persecuted the presbyters who refused to recognize him. Basil encourages these presbyters not to lose heart, but to hope in the help of God, which will free them from this man, whom Basil says he does not recognize as a bishop.

It is good and most profitable to commune every day and to receive the divine mysteries, for Christ Himself says: He that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood hath eternal life (John 6:54). But we ourselves commune four times each week: on the Lord’s Day, on Wednesday, on Friday, and on Saturday, and also on other days when the memory of some saint occurs.

And that it is in no way sinful when someone, compelled during a time of persecution, communes with his own hand, there being no priest or other minister present—this would scarcely need proving at all, for long-standing custom confirms it in many instances. It is known that all those who spend their lives in solitary places, where there is no priest, keep communion in their own house and commune themselves. And in Alexandria and in Egypt, for the most part, every layman has communion in his own house and communes himself whenever he wishes. For once a priest has performed and delivered the offering, then he who receives it and communes must believe that he is communing from the priest. And indeed even in the church itself the priest gives the particle, and the one who receives it holds it entirely by himself and with his own hand brings it to his mouth. Accordingly it is the same thing whether one receives a single particle from the priest, or several particles together.

This too is a letter (93, al. 289) of Basil the Great, which he wrote around the year 372 to a certain Caesaria. He mentions two questions in it: first, how often one ought to commune of the holy Body and Blood of Christ; and second, that in time of persecution, when there is no priest, a man may commune himself with his own hand. — On this second question one should also consult the commentary on canons 58 and 101 of the Council in Trullo.

Take care, O priest, to be a blameless minister and one who rightly divides the word of truth. Never come to the church service if you are at enmity with anyone, lest you cause the Paraclete to withdraw on the day of service. Do not engage in judgment or quarreling on that day, but remaining in the church, pray and read until the hour comes when you are to perform the divine mystery, and then approach the holy altar contritely and with a pure heart, and do not look about you, but stand with trembling and fear before the heavenly King. Do not, for the sake of pleasing men, hasten or shorten the prayers, nor have regard to a man’s person, but look only to the King who is present, and to the heavenly powers that surround Him. Be a worthy performer of the holy canons. Do not serve together with those to whom this is forbidden. Take heed before whom you stand, how you serve, and whom you commune. Do not forget the commandment of the Lord and of the holy Apostles, which says: Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast ye your pearls before swine (Matt. 7:6). Beware of dogs and of the rest. Take care not to fall, fearing man, nor give the Son of God into the hands of the unworthy. In that hour do not shrink back before earthly magnates, nor even before one who wears the diadem. Those who are worthy of the divine communion, commune them freely, as you yourself received it freely; but those whom the divine canons forbid, do not commune, for they are as unbelievers, and if they do not turn, woe both to them and to those who commune them. Take heed—this is not my task but yours—that through your neglect a mouse or something else does not touch the holy gifts, that they not spoil, that they not be blackened by smoke, that they not be touched by the hands of the unclean and unworthy. If you always keep this before your mind, and act well, you will be able to save both yourself and those who hear you.

This instruction (in Migne’s edition entitled Verba ob sacerdotum instructionem [παράγγελμα]) of Basil the Great is addressed to the priest when he is about to celebrate the holy Liturgy. Basil the Great composed this instruction in the year 375, and a copy of the same instruction was given to every new priest as soon as he was ordained.

In imposing penances, one ought to look not so much at the magnitude of the sin as at the disposition of the sinner, and this so that, in the intention of mending what is torn, one does not make the tear still worse, and so that, wishing to raise up what has fallen, one does not cause it to collapse still further; for those who are sick and dissolute and altogether given over to worldly pleasures, as well as those who can boast of their lineage and their power, will only little by little be willing to think about their sins, and will only slowly be able to free themselves from the troubles into which they have fallen. And whoever wishes to bring them to the right path all at once and with severity may easily fail to bring them even to partial repentance. For the soul, once brought to the point of being no longer sensitive, falls into despair, and no longer heeds even gentle words, nor is frightened by threats, nor strengthened by kindness, but becomes worse than that city of which the prophet speaks with contempt: Thou hadst a whore’s forehead, thou refusedst to be ashamed. For this reason the pastor needs much knowledge, that he may be able to discern from every side the inclinations of the soul. For just as many fall into madness and despair of their own salvation because they could not bear bitter remedies, so there are some who, because they were not subjected to punishment in proportion to their sin, pay no more heed to their soul and become still worse and sin still more. Accordingly, the priest must give heed to all of this, and, having examined everything diligently, must employ what is necessary, so that his effort not be in vain.

This instruction to confessors was issued by John Chrysostom. We have already mentioned the same instruction (I, 39), and we have also cited it in the commentary on canon 11 of the Council of Nicaea.

I see that many commune of the Body of Christ carelessly and however it happens, and that they commune following custom and rule rather more than reflection and pure discernment. When the time of the holy forty days [Lent] and of Pascha comes, whatever state a man may be in, he communes of the holy mysteries all the same. But feasts may be observed or not observed, whereas the conscience must be purified, and only then should one commune; for whoever is unclean and unworthy has no right to commune of the holy and most fearful Body even on a feast day. Consider only that those who partook of the sacrifices of the Old Testament took great care in this regard: they saw to it that they were first purified, and showed themselves cleansed in every way and in all respects; but thou, when thou drawest near to the sacrifice before which even the angels tremble, reducest the matter to a mere occurrence of the calendar, and with defiled hands and lips approachest without hesitation the Body and Blood of Christ. Why, thou wouldst not even wish to kiss a king when thy mouth is afflicted, and yet thou kissest the Lord of heaven with a soul that reeks with foulness. This is an insolent thing. Accordingly, if thou art not worthy of communion, then thou dost not belong even among those who are merely worthy of prayer and of the church service. But hearken to the Lord, who says: They that repent, they also draw near; but they that do not commune, neither do they repent.

This canonical prescript, on how one ought to approach holy communion, is taken from a homily of John Chrysostom on the Epistle of St Paul to the Ephesians.

Many commune of the holy sacrifice once a year, others twice, and some often—and it is to all of these together that we address our word; not only to those who are here, but also to those who dwell in solitude and who do this once a year. Which, then, ought one to commend—those who commune once, or those who do so often, or those who commune rarely? Neither those who do it once, nor those who do it often, nor those who do it rarely, but those who commune with a pure conscience and whose life is blameless. Let such approach always, and let those who are not such not approach even once. And why? Because such men bring upon themselves judgment and condemnation, chastisement and punishment. And do not marvel at this; for just as food, which by its nature nourishes, if taken by one who is too weak, destroys and corrupts everything and causes sickness, so too do the holy mysteries. Thou enjoyest thyself at the spiritual table, and yet again defilest thy mouth with mire; thou anointest thyself with fragrant myrrh, and yet again fillest thyself with stench; and thou communest but once a year. Thou thinkest forty days sufficient to cleanse the sins thou hast committed the whole year through, and yet after a single week returnest to thy former life. Tell me, if in forty days thou recoverest from a long illness, and then again eatest the foods that caused thee the illness, hast thou not thereby lost all thy former labor, and done thyself yet greater harm? For if everything physical changes in this way, how much more does that which depends on the will? Thou givest forty days for the health of thy soul, and dost thou expect not even forty for the propitiation of God? Tell me, art thou not ashamed? For this reason too the deacon proclaims, saying: Holy things for the holy—that is, whoever is not holy, let him not approach; he does not say merely: whoever is clean of sin, but: whoever is holy.

This canonical prescript too is from the same John Chrysostom, taken from one of his homilies on the Epistle of Paul to the Hebrews.

Question. Is it better to commune often, or more rarely?

Answer. Since the Apostle says: Let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup; for he that eateth and drinketh unworthily eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep; for if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged; but when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world (1 Cor. 11:28-32)—it is plain that we must first cleanse ourselves and show ourselves free of every wrong deed, and only then approach the divine mystery, lest it prove to the ruin of our soul and body; for God says to Israel through Moses: Whatsoever man of your seed among your generations that hath his uncleanness upon him and cometh near unto the holy things which the children of Israel hallow unto the Lord, that soul shall the Lord cut off (Lev. 22:3). And again: Ye shall put out from the camp every leper and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled, that they defile not their camps, in the midst whereof I dwell (Lev. 15:31). For this reason the Apostle himself says of those who commune unworthily, as was said above: For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep (1 Cor. 11:30), that is, they are sick and they die. For this reason too, when the divine David and those who were with him desired to eat the shewbread, which served as a type of the Body of Christ, the high priest at once asked whether the young men were clean from women, and only then gave them the loaves (1 Sam. 21:4-5).

This canonical answer was written by holy Anastasius, patriarch of Antioch (from the year 561). This answer, as may be seen, concerns the same subject—namely, when and how one ought to receive the holy communion—as do the canonical prescripts which we have cited under nos. 2, 5, and 6.