Dear Friends,

In conversations the topic of fasting before receiving Holy Communion often comes up. Thus I am pleased to share with you an article on this topic by the Very Reverend Father Krikor Maksoudian, author of “Frequently Asked Questions about the Armenian Church.”

Must I Fast Before Taking Holy Communion?

The answer to this question is YES! St. Paul has the following to say about this matter in 1 Corinthians 11:27 and 29:

Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord. For any one who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment upon himself.

The pious Christian must approach the Holy Altar with a clean mind, body and heart. Confession, penance and fasting are the tools for cleansing one’s insides.

In his Winter Sermons St. Gregory of Datev (14th century) urges all Christians to confess or admit the sins they have committed every Sunday, while they still remember what they have done or said during the week. Failing to confess or admit one’s sins leaves one in his/her sinful state. Receiving Holy Communion is such a state indicates that the person treats the Holy Sacrament as a formality.

According to the fathers of our Church, such irresponsibility and lack of reverence turns the Communion that the person receives from being the life-giving body of Christ to a “judgment upon” oneself. This point is emphasized in their writings. In fact, verse 27 from 1 Corinthians is quoted in a homily attributed to the fifth century Armenian theologian Catholicos Hovhannes Mantagoonee.

If a person is required to eat breakfast for health reasons, he/she may do so before receiving Holy Communion. The dietary rule also does not apply to people who are bedridden or hospitalized.

Note: My recommendation for those who for health reasons must eat breakfast before coming to the holy Badarak is that they keep to the spirit of pre-communion preparation by observing a lenten vegan diet.

May we all continue to grow in our loving piety and holy reverence toward the great sacrament of the precious Body and Blood of Christ our God.

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With prayers.
Hayr Simeon
August 26, 2007