The Mystery of the Eucharist: Part 5

The Holy Eucharist is not a common meal, but the Holy Body and Precious Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. How, then, should we prepare to receive this sacred gift? What does the Church teach us about approaching the Holy Mysteries, and what should our hearts be like when we receive them? Let us explore the preparation, repentance, humility, and reverence required to partake of the heavenly King’s banquet (ግብዣ).

What Preparation Is Required to Participate in the Eucharist?

Even when a person is invited to an earthly king’s banquet (ግብዣ), he prepares himself as much as he can. How much more, then, should a Christian prepare to partake of the Holy Body and Precious Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ at the banquet of the heavenly King?

Matthew 22:11 says, “ንጉሡም የተቀመጡትን ለማየት በገባ ጊዜ በዚያ የሰርግ ልብስ ያለበሰ አንድ ሰው አየና፦ ወዳጄ ሆይ፥ የሰርግ ልብስ ሳትለብስ እንዴት ወደዚህ ገባህ? አለው እርሱም ዝም አለ።”

We should therefore prepare ourselves carefully, so that we are ready to stand before the heavenly King.

When preparing to receive Holy Communion, we should guard all our bodily senses so that sinful thoughts do not enter our hearts. We should wash our bodies and, as much as possible, wear clean, pure (white) clothing (Revelation 6:11). We should eat a light meal on the eve of Communion and then abstain from food for 18 hours. Married couples should abstain from sexual intercourse for three days before and two days after Communion.

Men should be free from night emissions (ሕልመ ሌሊት / ዝንየት) on the eve of receiving Holy Communion, while women should not receive Communion during menstruation or any other bleeding or discharge. Anyone with a bleeding or flowing wound should likewise refrain from receiving Communion. After childbirth, women should complete 40 days for a boy and 80 days for a girl. Finally, all those receiving Communion should be present from the beginning of the Divine Liturgy on the day they receive Communion.

Why Was the Priest’s Declaration, “I Am Innocent of Your Sins—እኔ ከበደላችሁ ንጹሕ ነኝ!” Necessary??

In the Divine Liturgy, the priest formally warns those approaching Holy Communion, saying:

“ንጹሕ የሆነ ከቁርባኑ ይቀበል፤ ንጹሕ ያልሆነ ግን አይቀበል፤ ለሰይጣንና ለመልእክተኞቹ በተዘጋጀው በመለኮት እሳት እንዳይቃጠል፤ በልቡናው ቂምን የያዘ ልዩ አሳብም ያለበት ቢኖር አይቅረብ፤ እጄን ከአፍአዊ ደም ንጹሕ እንዳደረግሁ እንዲሁም ከሁላችሁ ደም ንጹሕ ነኝ፡፡ ደፍራችሁ ወደ ክርስቶስ ሥጋና ደም ብትቀርቡ ከእርሱ ለመቀበላችሁ መተላለፍ የለብኝም በደላችሁ በራሳችሁ ይመለሳል እንጂ፡፡ በንጽሕና ሆናችሁ ባትቀርቡ እኔ ከበደላችሁ ንጹሕ ነኝ”, and he washes his hands.

The deacon then continues, saying:

“ይህን የቄሱን ቃል ያቃለለ ወይም የሳቀና የተነጋገረ ወይም በቤተክርስቲያን በክፋት የቆመ ቢኖር ጌታችን ኢየሱስ ክርስቶስን እንዳሳዘነው በእርሱም እንደተነሣሣ ይወቅ ይረዳ ስለበረከት ፈንታ መርገምን ስለኃጢአት ሥርየት ፈንታ ገሃነመ እሳትን ከእግዚአብሔር ዘንድ ይቀበላል”.

This proclamation is not intended to frighten us, keep us away from the Holy Body and Precious Blood, or make us mere spectators (ተመልካቾች). Rather, it reminds us to repent, prepare ourselves according to the guidance of our spiritual father, and approach the Holy Mysteries with purity and reverence.

If we receive the Holy Body and Precious Blood of our Lord without first cleansing ourselves from sin through repentance, they will bring judgment upon us. However, the enemy, the devil, can distort this warning in our minds, causing us to see the priest’s proclamation as a threat: “You are not worthy to receive the Body.”

Its true message is the opposite: repent, seek guidance from your spiritual father, and then draw near to Christ’s Holy Body and Precious Blood.

What Is Expected of Us When Receiving Holy Communion?

The Holy Eucharist is a mystery through which our weak flesh is strengthened by the grace of God. Our bodies, weakened by sin, must be cleansed through repentance so that we may receive the Holy Body and Precious Blood of Christ. Such repentance must be accompanied by deep humility, like that of the Roman centurion (መቶ አለቃ).

When our Lord Jesus Christ entered Capernaum (ቅፍርናሆም), a centurion ((መቶ አለቃ) came to Him, pleading for the healing of his servant. When our Lord told him He would come and heal his servant, the centurion humbly replied:

“ጌታ ሆይ፥ በቤቴ ጣራ ከታች ልትገባ አይገባኝም፤ ነገር ግን ቃል ብቻ ተናገር፥ ብላቴናዬም ይፈወሳል።” (Matt. 8:8)

Likewise, when we understand that through the Holy Eucharist we receive the glorious Body and Blood of Christ, we should not approach Christ with pride, like the scribes (ጸሐፍት) and Pharisees (ፈሪሳዊያን), but with humility, following the example of the Roman centurion. We should humble ourselves and pray:

“አቤቱ! አንተ በእኔ በኃጢአት በረከሰ ሰውነት ልታድር አይገባህም፣ እንደ ቸርነትህ አንጻኝ፣ ቀድሰኝ።”

To help us prepare ourselves in this way, our fathers, inspired by the Holy Spirit, have prepared prayers that lift our hearts above earthly thoughts and faithfully preserve the teachings of the Church as we approach the Holy Eucharist. The faithful should first recite the prayer appointed for before Communion.

The main priest offers the Body of Christ in his hand, while the assistant priest offers the Blood to the priests using the holy spoon (ዕርፈ መስቀል). The deacon offers the Blood to the faithful using the same holy spoon (ዕርፈ መስቀል). The assistant priest does not offer the Body, nor does a subdeacon offer the Blood.

Priests, children, virgins, laypeople, and other faithful receive the Holy Eucharist according to the order established by the Church.

The order of receiving Holy Communion is as follows: in the sanctuary (ቤተ መቅደስ), archbishops, bishops, monks, priests, and deacons receive Communion first. In the Qiddist (ቅድስት), infants, boys, girls, adult men, and adult women receive Communion in that order.

Immediately after receiving the Holy Eucharist, the faithful are given holy water. They then recite the prayer appointed for after Communion.

Conclusion:

Receiving the Holy Eucharist calls us to sincere repentance, deep humility, and reverence for the sacred Mysteries. We must neither approach carelessly nor allow fear to keep us away from Christ, but prepare ourselves through repentance and the guidance of our spiritual fathers. May we always approach the Holy Body and Precious Blood of our Lord with purified hearts, trusting in His mercy and seeking the transformation of our lives.