Spiritual Communion
Spiritual Communion is a Christian practice of desiring union with Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist. It is used as a preparation for Holy Mass and by individuals who cannot receive Holy Communion.
This practice is well established in the Lutheran Churches, Anglican Communion, Methodist Churches, as well as in the Catholic Church, where it has been highly recommended by many saints, according to Pope John Paul II. He explained that practicing this constant desire for Jesus in the Eucharist is rooted in the ultimate perfection of Eucharistic communion, which is the ultimate goal of every human desire.
The practice of Spiritual Communion has been especially used by Christians in times of persecution, such as during the era of state atheism in the Eastern Bloc, as well as in times of plagues, such as during the current COVID-19 pandemic, when many Christians are unable to attend Mass, and therefore not able to receive the Eucharist on the Lord's Day.
Doctrine
St. Thomas Aquinas defined Spiritual Communion as "an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Holy Sacrament and a loving embrace as though we had already received Him."The basis of this practice was explained by Pope John Paul II in his encyclical, Ecclesia de Eucharistia:
Thus, the passionate desire for God, whom the saints have seen as the Sole Satisfier, and who in the Eucharist is the "summit and source of the Christian life", is at the root of this practice. The experience of St. Padre Pio illustrates the compelling desire felt by the saints in the face of the drawing and attracting power of God's love: "My heart feels as if it were being drawn by a superior force each morning just before uniting with Him in the Blessed Sacrament. I have such a thirst and hunger before receiving Him that it's a wonder I don't die of anxiety. I was hardly able to reach the Divine Prisoner in order to celebrate Mass. When Mass ended I remained with Jesus to render Him thanks. My thirst and hunger do not diminish after I have received Him in the Blessed Sacrament, but rather, increase steadily. Oh, how sweet was the conversation I held with Paradise this morning. The heart of Jesus and my own, if you will pardon the expression, fused. They were no longer two hearts beating but only one. My heart disappeared as if it were a drop in the ocean."
St. Jean-Marie Vianney compared spiritual communion to blowing on fire and embers that are starting to go out in order to make them burn again: "There are some who make a spiritual communion every day with blessed bread. If we are deprived of Sacramental Communion, let us replace it, as far as we can, by spiritual communion, which we can make every moment; for we ought to have always a burning desire to receive the good God. Communion is to the soul like blowing a fire that is beginning to go out, but that has still plenty of hot embers; we blow, and the fire burns again. After the reception of the Sacraments, when we feel ourselves slacken in the love of God, let us have recourse at once to spiritual communion. When we cannot go to the church, let us turn towards the tabernacle; no wall can shut us out from the good God."
St. Josemaría Escrivá taught spiritual communions improve presence of God: "What a source of grace there is in spiritual Communion! Practise it frequently and you'll have more presence of God and closer union with him in your life." He also taught: "Do not neglect to say, 'Jesus, I love you', and make one spiritual communion, at least, each day, in atonement for all the profanations and sacrileges he suffers because he wants to be with us."
According to Catholic theologians, the value of a spiritual can be as great as Holy Communion itself. "Spiritual Communion, as St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Alphonsus Liguori teach, produces effects similar to Sacramental Communion, according to the dispositions with which it is made, the greater or less earnestness with which Jesus is desired, and the greater or less love with which Jesus is welcomed and given due attention," stated Father Stefano Manelli, O.F.M. Conv., S.T.D., in his book Jesus our Eucharistic Love.
"A special advantage of Spiritual Communion is that we can make it as often as we like — even hundreds of times a day — when we like — even late at night — and wherever we like — even in a desert, or up in an airplane," Fr. Stefano continued.
The Church of England, mother Church of the Anglican Communion, teaches with regard to Spiritual Communion that "Believers who cannot physically receive the sacrament are to be assured that they are partakers by faith of the body and blood of Christ and of the benefits he conveys to us by them."
The Methodist Church teaches that "Spiritual Communion is a practice where we entrust ourselves to God in prayer, pledging ourselves to God once
more as disciples and praying that God might give us spiritually the same grace we share when we physically receive Holy Communion." The practice is consistent with Methodist theology, which holds that God can impart grace "with or without physical means: God can work through anything or indeed nothing."
Examples
According to the official Catholic handbook for indulgences, "an Act of Spiritual Communion, according to any pious formula, is enriched with a partial indulgence."It also specifically mentions this Act of Spiritual Communion, which was recommended by St. Alphonsus Liguori:
Cardinal Rafael Merry del Val composed this Spiritual Communion:
Another example is:
Piarist fathers have taught this short act of Spiritual Communion, popularized by St. Josemaria Escriva:
Prayers taken from the A Form of Spiritual Communion of the Diocese of Malaita of the Anglican Communion are as follows:
Mitchell Lewis, a Methodist elder, authored an act of Spiritual Communion for use in the Methodist tradition:
St. Stephen Evangelical Lutheran Church, a congregation of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America in Pompano Beach, published the following act of Spiritual Communion:
Usage
The practice of Spiritual Communion is used by Christians, especially Lutherans, Catholics, Anglicans and Methodists, when they have been unable to receive the Holy Communion, especially in times of sickness and during persecution by states hostile towards religion. Anglican priest Jonathan Warren Pagán cited the joy Walter Ciszek experienced by making spiritual communion during the era of state atheism in the Soviet Union that resulted in the persecution of Christians in the Eastern Bloc.Referencing theology related to the Body of Christ and the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, Anglican priest Jonathan Warren Pagán wrote that "Gathered worship in word and sacrament is therefore not an optional add-on for Christians" though the COVID-19 pandemic rendered it necessary to move to online formats for the common good. He encouraged the practice of Spiritual Communion amidst the pandemic, especially during the Anglican service of Morning Prayer. Pope Francis also suggested that the faithful say Spiritual Communion prayers during the COVID-19 pandemic, which renewed interest in the practice; Methodist clergy have also encouraged Spiritual Communion.