By Fr. Panayiotis Papageorgiou, Ph.D.
As we are planning the reopening of our churches, and anticipating soon to approach again for Holy Communion, a lot of discussions have arisen as to the method of distribution of the Holy Gifts in the Orthodox Churches. Some people have been talking about the need for using multiple spoons, others are proposing new innovative methods. The underlying feeling of everyone is the fear of death.
These are certainly scary times, as even our scientists don’t fully understand how the coronavirus spreads and how to prevent infection, while the doctors do not yet have a good treatment for the sick or any effective preventive measures.
So, justifiably, people are concerned about the danger of the spreading of the disease while in church and even through the reception of Holy Communion.
In order to find reassurance and comfort in the spiritual treasures of our Orthodox Faith, l invite you to listen to the voice of the Holy Fathers coming to us from the depths of time; the voice of those who understood the transformation of the bread and wine to the Body and Blood of Christ as the greatest miracle occurring on the Earth. They saw it as the Source of Power against the demons, the Bread of Life, the Source of Eternal Life, the Medicine of Immortality, the Antidote against death.
St. Ignatius of Antioch (late 1st-early 2nd century) describes the Eucharistic gatherings in this way:
“Make every effort to come together more frequently to give thanks and glory to God. For when you meet together frequently, the powers of Satan are overthrown and his destructiveness is nullified by the unanimity of your faith. There is nothing better than peace, by which all warfare among those in heaven and those on earth is abolished. ”
He also describes the Body and Blood of Christ in the Eucharist as “the medicine of immortality, the antidote we take in order not to die but to live forever in Jesus Christ” (St. Ignatius’ letter to the Ephesians 20:2).
With this understanding, that Holy Communion is the Bread of Life it is important that we not approach this "antidote against death” lightly, but engage in serious preparation before receiving the Gifts of the Heavenly Banquet to which we have been graciously invited.
Receiving Holy Communion is not an individual “right” that we can claim for ourselves, but a divine privilege offered to us, which we should accept with humility. It is not for us to “take", but for us to “receive" with tears of repentance and a grateful heart.
St. Cyril of Alexandria explains this further:
“The body of Christ is holy and has the power to vanquish every illness. It was and is holy, not merely as flesh with its natural powers, but as the temple of the indwelling divine Logos, who sanctifies His flesh with His Spirit. This is why Christ vivifies the daughter of the leader of the synagogue not only through His omnipotent command but also with His bodily touch.”
But how about the shared Chalice and Spoon? Are they not a threat in the midst of the pandemic? This is a good question that deserves special consideration. Those of us old enough to remember, this issue was raised again some thirty years ago as the threat of AIDS confronted the world at that time. The issue was also raised earlier in modern times in the 1940’s and 50’s when tuberculosis and leprosy were raging in Greece and Cyprus and other countries. Yet, the Orthodox Church retained the use of the shared Chalice and Spoon as we still have it today. Why?
Here are some thoughts on this issue derived from an article by Fr. Chrysostomos Koutloumousianos (a monk priest and renown theologian from Mount Athos) “The Bread, the Wine and the Mode of Being":
Fr. Chrysostomos explains that just as Christ suffers as a human being, yet acts as God and rises from the dead, in the same way the consecrated elements (Holy Communion), though subject to ‘suffering’ and corruption themselves, act upon us as uncreated divinity in order to transform and perfect our fallen nature, not to change us from being physically corruptible, but to enable us to become partakers of the divine nature (2Peter 1:4), even in the here and now.
Therefore, to those who receive Holy Communion with faith and true repentance the Lord’s body becomes a ‘safeguard’ ‘for strength, healing and health of soul and body’, maintenance and deification of their fallen human nature.(3)
The consecrated elements in the Holy Eucharist operate as the deified body of Jesus. Through corruptible matter, God grants life uncorrupted. And although immortality is an eschatological condition, and we shall all, sooner or later, cross to the other side and receive it in its fullness, yet ‘doses’ of incorruption are given to us in this mortal life according to the measure of each one’s faith, his/her longing and godly fear and love. We are transformed into a different mode of existence by the touch of Christ’s Body and Blood. We are sanctified and deified by being united with Him.
The Chalice and Spoon of Holy Communion are also changed as they come into contact with Christ’s Body and Blood. They are transformed to a different mode of existence; they are sanctified. Their nature is not changed, but, rather, in the same way as a blade becomes fire when thrown into the fire . . . the Chalice and the Spoon are also changed and sanctified. Their mode of existence is altered so that they may transfer life to us, just as his garment heals the flow of blood in the woman when she touches it, just as the sea is calmed by the touch of Christ for the safety of the disciples, just as the daughter of Jairus and the son of the widow are brought back to life by the touch of Christ.
The Body and Blood of Christ, along with the sacred vessels (the Chalice and the Spoon) utilized to deliver it to us cannot be a threat to our bodily health if we approach with the "Fear of God with Faith and with Love.” On the contrary, they will lead us to healing of soul and body and eternal life as they deliver to us the healing, salvific touch of Christ.
Hence, as we return to Holy Communion, let us surrender in faith to God’s Mercy and Forgiveness and ask that He may restore us again in His good favor, and protect us from disease, calamity and eternal condemnation.
COVID-19 is a tribulation (δοκιμασία), a test to our faith. The only way to overcome tribulations is by surrendering to God’s Love and Mercy completely and unconditionally in faith and trust. Holy Communion is the place to do that, even as He is offered to us through the shared Chalice and Spoon.
Let us, then, begin to prepare ourselves properly to come to Holy Communion.
Just as the Parish Council members are working diligently to clean and disinfect the church buildings from the poisonous Coronavirus, which threatens to lead us to sickness and the death of our bodies, let us diligently cleanse and disinfect our hearts and souls from the poisonous sins and sinful vices, which threaten to lead us to eternal death of both soul and body.
As we prepare with prayer, turning with love to God, let us shed our rationalistic secular thoughts and fill our hearts and minds with positive spiritual thoughts of faith and trust in the Lord. He will never fail us!