What is spiritual communion and how to do it

For the most part by reading this, you have been a victim of COVID-19 (coronavirus). Your masses have been canceled, the Lenten observances of Good Friday, the stations of the cross and ... well ... all the Columbus fried fish have been canceled. Life as we know it has been turned upside down, shaken and left on its side. It is during these times that we must remember the truth of spiritual communion. It is in spiritual communion, just as in physically receiving the Eucharist, that we will maintain our strength to resist.

What is spiritual communion? In my opinion, it is an often overlooked aspect of our faith that was important to many of the saints and that should be taught more in our parishes and catechism classes. Perhaps the best definition of spiritual communion comes from St. Thomas Aquinas. St. Thomas Aquinas taught the forms of communion, including spiritual communion, in his Summa Theologiae III when he said that it is "an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and embrace him lovingly". Spiritual communion is your desire to receive communion when you are prevented from doing so, as in cases of mortal sin, having not yet received your first communion or by canceling masses.

Don't get discouraged or get a false impression. Mass is still held all over the world and the Holy Sacrifice on the Altar is still taking place all over the world. It is not held in public with large congregations. The absence of a parish full of parishioners does not make the Mass less effective than if it were full. The Mass is the Mass. Indeed, spiritual communion can instill as many graces and impacts on you and your soul as if you received the Eucharist physically.

Pope John Paul II encouraged spiritual communion in his encyclical entitled "Ecclesia de Eucharistia". He said that spiritual communion "has been a wonderful part of Catholic life for centuries and recommended by the saints who were masters of their spiritual life." He continues in his encyclical and says: “In the Eucharist, unlike any other sacrament, the mystery (of communion) is so perfect that it brings us to the heights of everything good: this is the final goal of every human desire, because we achieve God and God unite with us in the most perfect union. Precisely for this reason it is good to cultivate in our hearts a constant desire for the sacrament of the Eucharist. This was the origin of the practice of "spiritual communion", which has been happily established in the Church for centuries and recommended by the saints who were masters of the spiritual life ".

Spiritual communion is your access to communion during these unusual times. It is your way of receiving the graces of the Eucharist by joining sacrifice all over the world. Perhaps, due to the absence of being able to attend Mass, we will grow and even more desire and appreciation to receive the guest physically when we are able to do it again. Let your desire for the Eucharist increase with each passing moment and let it be reflected in your spiritual communion.

How do I do spiritual communion? There is no established, official way to have a spiritual communion. However, there is a recommended prayer that you can pray whenever you feel the desire to want communion:

“My Jesus, I believe you are present in the Blessed Sacrament. I love you above all and want to welcome you into my soul. Since at this moment I cannot receive you sacramentally, at least spiritually come to my heart. I embrace you as if I were already there and I join you entirely. Never allow me to be separated from you. Amen"

Does it really matter? YUP! Many could say that spiritual communion is not as effective as important as physically receiving the Eucharist, but I disagree, and so does the teaching of the Church. In 1983, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith declared that the effects of Holy Communion can be received through spiritual communion. Stefano Manelli, OFM Conv. STD wrote in his book "Jesus, our Eucharistic love" that "spiritual communion, as taught by St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Alfonso Liguori, produces effects similar to sacramental communion, according to dispositions with which it is made, greater or lesser seriousness with which Jesus is desired, and the more or less great love with which Jesus is received and given due attention ".

The advantage of spiritual communion is that it can be done as many times as you want, even when you are able to return to Mass, you can always make spiritual communion every day when you are unable to attend daily Mass and several times during a certain day. .

I think it is appropriate to conclude only with St. Jean-Marie Vianney. St. Jean-Marie said, referring to spiritual communion, “when we can't go to church, we turn to the tabernacle; no wall can exclude us from the good God ”.

Dear brothers and sisters, there is no virus, no closed parish, no canceled Mass and no restriction that can prevent you from entering God. It is through the obligation to use spiritual communion, as opposed to physical communion, that we unite more often to sacrifice and to Christ as we were before the virus hit. Let spiritual communion nourish your soul and your life. It is up to you to receive more communion during this period, not less, despite the canceled Masses. Spiritual communion is always available 24 hours a day - even during a pandemic. So go ahead and make this the best Lent ever: communicate more with God, read more, pray more and let your faith grow as graces flow