World Religion: The Sacrament of Holy Communion

The Sacrament of Holy Communion is the third of the Sacraments of Initiation. Although we are asked to receive Communion at least once a year (our Easter duty) and the Church urges us to receive Communion frequently (even every day, if possible), it is called the sacrament of initiation because, like the Baptism and Confirmation brings us to the fullness of our life in Christ.

Who can receive Catholic communion?
Normally, only Catholics in a state of grace can receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion. (See the next section for more details on what it means to be in a state of grace.) In certain circumstances, however, other Christians whose understanding of the Eucharist (and of the Catholic sacraments in general) is the same as that of the Catholic Church can receive Communion, even if they are not in full communion with the Catholic Church.

In their Guidelines for the reception of communion, the United States Bishops' Conference notes that:

"Eucharistic sharing in exceptional circumstances by other Christians requires authorization according to the directives of the diocesan bishop and the provisions of canon law".
In such circumstances,

Members of the Orthodox Churches, the Assyrian Church of the East and the Polish National Catholic Church are invited to respect the discipline of their own Churches. According to Roman Catholic discipline, the Code of Canon Law does not oppose the reception of Communion by Christians of these Churches.

In no case are non-Christians allowed to receive Communion, but Christians beyond those mentioned above (eg Protestants) can, according to canon law (Canon 844, Section 4), receive Communion in very rare circumstances:

If the danger of death or other serious need is present, in the judgment of the diocesan bishop or of the conference of bishops, Catholic ministers can licitly administer these sacraments to other Christians who do not have full communion with the Catholic Church, who cannot approach a minister of his own community and alone ask for it, provided that they manifest Catholic faith in these sacraments and are adequately disposed.
Preparing for the Sacrament of Holy Communion
Because of the intimate connection of the Sacrament of Holy Communion with our life in Christ, Catholics who wish to receive Communion must be in a state of grace, that is, free from any serious or mortal sin, before receiving it, as St. Paul explained in 1 Corinthians 11: 27-29. Otherwise, as he warns, we receive the sacrament unworthily and "eat and drink damnation" for ourselves.

If we are aware that we have committed a mortal sin, we must first participate in the Sacrament of Confession. The Church sees the two sacraments as connected and exhorts us, when we can, to join the frequent Confession with the frequent Communion.

To receive Communion, we must also abstain from food or drink (except water and medicine) for an hour earlier.

Make a spiritual communion
If we cannot physically receive Holy Communion, both because we cannot reach Mass and because we must first go to Confession, we can pray for an act of spiritual Communion, in which we express our desire to be united with Christ and ask him to come to our soul. A spiritual communion is not sacramental but prayed devoutly, it can be a source of grace that can strengthen us until we can receive the Sacrament of Holy Communion again.

The effects of the sacrament of Holy Communion
Receiving Holy Communion worthily brings us graces that influence us both spiritually and physically. Spiritually, our souls become more united to Christ, both through the graces we receive and through the change in our actions that these graces give. Frequent communion increases our love for God and neighbor, which is expressed in action, which makes us more like Christ.

Physically, frequent Communion relieves us of our passions. Priests and other spiritual directors who advise those who struggle with passions, especially sexual sins, often solicit frequent reception not only of the Sacrament of Confession, but of the Sacrament of Holy Communion. By receiving the Body and Blood of Christ, our bodies are sanctified and we grow in our likeness to Christ Indeed, as Fr. John Hardon emphasizes in his modern Catholic dictionary, the Church teaches that "A final effect of Communion is to remove the personal guilt of venial sins and the temporal punishment [earthly and purgatory] due to forgiven sins, both venial and mortal".