Some parents and godparents wonder whether it is necessary to give communion to their child after Baptism. In order to give a correct and comprehensive answer to this question, you need to reflect on the meaning of the Sacrament of Baptism itself. According to the teachings of the Orthodox Church, during this Sacrament a person becomes a member of the Church of Christ. During the interview before the Sacrament of Baptism, the priest usually tells the parents and godparents about the great responsibility that is entrusted to them when baptizing a child. They must make every effort to ensure that their child is worthy of his Christian calling. It is impossible to imagine the life of a Christian who does not participate in church services. Therefore, from the moment of Baptism, the child is brought to the Sacrament of the Eucharist or Communion.
It will be wonderful if his parents and godparents participate in this Sacrament along with the baby. When a priest, during the celebration of the Sacrament of Communion, gives a child, under the guise of bread and wine, a particle of the very Body and Blood of Christ, a real miracle occurs. This miracle cannot be described in human words, since during the Sacrament of the Eucharist a person unites with God himself. Therefore, it is not surprising that after participating in this holy Sacrament of the Church, many incurably sick and near-death people received complete healing. If parents and godparents are unable to bring their child to the Holy Chalice with Communion on the day of his baptism, then this needs to be done as soon as possible. Many priests recommend that the child participate in the Sacrament of Communion every Sunday.
The mother’s prayer after the child’s baptism is an integral part of fulfilling her maternal duty. Mother's love is one of the most sacrificial types of love that exists on earth. During Baptism, a person is given special spiritual and physical strength for life in Christ, and it becomes more difficult for him to agree with unkind thoughts. At the same time, Christian virtues, such as love, loyalty, friendship, respect, mercy, faith and many others, can more easily develop in him. When the baby’s parents and his godparents decide what to do after the child’s baptism, then first of all they should think about his first Eucharist in life. The baby will not be able to tell you about this, but he will feel the special grace and inexpressible love of God, which will be poured into his heart during the celebration of the Sacrament of the Eucharist. His first Eucharist should be the first step in his active church life.
Infant Communion
Infant Communion
According to the custom of the Church, after their baptism, infants up to the age of seven can receive communion very often, not only every week, but every day, moreover, without prior confession and fasting.
Starting from 5-6 years old, and if possible, from an earlier age, it is useful to teach children to take communion on an empty stomach. You should come to church with babies not for the communion itself, but in advance, calculating the time so as not to be late for communion, but at the same time so that the child can attend the liturgy to the best of his ability and age. Of course, everyone has their own measure here, but children must be taught to pray in the Church. This should be done gradually so as not to tire the baby and not cause disturbance to those praying in the temple. Children 6–7 years old, if they have been properly accustomed to the service, can be present at almost the entire liturgy. Until a child is seven years old, he can receive communion without confession or fasting. From the age of three to four, infants are usually given communion on an empty stomach. From about the age of three, children together with their parents on the eve of communion can read two or three prayers known to them. Of course, a lot depends on what kind of life the parents themselves live, whether for them the temple is the home of a longed-for meeting with God, and whether prayer is a second wind. Many parents bring their children to the beginning of the service, pray with them, receive communion themselves and bring their children to the Cup of Life, and do not face the question of when to bring their child to communion. If the situation in the family is somewhat different, then you can bring small children to the beginning of the Eucharistic canon or directly to the very moment of communion.
But it is necessary to accustom your child to a gracious church atmosphere, then there will be fewer problems with the child’s behavior at the Holy Chalice. The decision on what to do if a child cries and does not want to receive communion should be made by the priest who at that moment himself sees the child’s behavior. The child must also be prepared for communion. Read a canon, an akathist, a passage from Holy Scripture over his crib. All this will contribute to the spiritual growth of your child.
When approaching the holy chalice, infants should be held horizontally, with their head on their right hand. The handles should be held so that the child does not accidentally push the bowl or grab the spoon. Infants should not be fed tightly before the liturgy, so that after communion they do not vomit.
Parents, when giving communion to their children, should also try to begin the holy mysteries, thereby setting an example for their children. A family is a small church where people go to God together, are saved together and partake of the same cup.
Young children are usually given communion under one form (only the blood of Christ). But if the baby receives communion often and behaves calmly at the chalice, the priest can give the child (not the infant) a small particle.
At the Liturgy of the Presanctified Gifts, infants who do not receive a particle are not given communion, because at this liturgy the body of Christ, watered with blood, is in the chalice, and wine is poured, which has not been transformed into the blood of the Savior.
Some parents, due to their foolishness and lack of faith, are afraid to give communion to their children, thereby depriving them of saving and strengthening grace. They explain this by saying that a child, taking communion from the same spoon and cup with everyone else, can become infected with some kind of disease.
This fear is a lack of faith in the saving power of the sacrament. As a rule, non-church people and people with little church, who know nothing about the life of the Church, reason this way. The Eucharist is the greatest miracle on earth, performed constantly, and another proof of the truth of this miracle is that the liturgy was not interrupted even during terrible epidemics of plague, cholera and other contagious fatal diseases.
answer
Dear Olga, parents often ask the question of how to prepare a child for Communion. It is best to take a blessing for this or that measure of preparation from the priest in the church where you give communion to the child, but I will also present my thoughts. As for children emerging from infancy, just as we little by little begin to teach them to pray, we also need to prepare them for Communion. The evening before and in the morning before Communion, you need to pray with your child, either in your own words or with the simplest church prayer, or at least “Thy secret Supper this day, O Son of God, accept me as a communicant,” explaining its meaning.
As for abstaining from food and drink from twelve at night, you need to approach it wisely and tactfully and at first simply limit the amount of food you eat. And, of course, there is no need to restrain a two-year-old child from eating and drinking before Communion, because he cannot yet consciously perceive the meaning of this Eucharistic fast. However, you don’t need to have a big breakfast. It is better to accustom him early to the fact that the day of Communion is a special day. At first it will be a light breakfast, when the child grows up, you can only drink tea or water until he understands that he needs to give up this too. Bring him to this gradually. And here everyone has a different measure: someone is ready for such abstinence at three years, someone at four, and someone at five.
For some children it is simply physiologically impossible to remain without a piece of bread or a glass of tea until twelve o’clock in the afternoon, if we give them communion at a late liturgy. But do not refuse a child to receive the Holy Mysteries of Christ because he cannot stand at the service until he is five years old without drinking water in the morning! It’s better for him to eat something that doesn’t please his larynx at all, chew a piece of bread, drink some sweet tea or water, and then go take communion. Twelve hours of abstinence before Communion will make sense when the child can cope with it voluntarily, consciously and by overcoming himself. When, in order to receive communion, he overcomes his habit, his weakness, his desire to eat something tasty, and when he himself decides not to have breakfast that day, then this will already be the act of an Orthodox Christian. How many years will this happen? God willing, it will be sooner.
The same can be said in relation to the days of fasting. I don’t think that with the modern practice of frequent communion, it is necessary to encourage children to fast for a week or even several days. But the day before or at least the evening should be set aside not only for a boy or woman, but even for a child of five to seven years old. It is very important to understand that on the evening before communion you do not need to watch TV, indulge in too much wild entertainment, or overeat on ice cream or sweets. And this understanding also needs to be brought up in your children, and not so much as forcing them to do this, but putting them before this alternative every time. And at the same time, it’s not just about helping them cope with temptation, encouraging them to make the right preferences, but the main thing is to cultivate in them the will to take an independent step towards God. We will not bring them to church every time, but we must help them learn to go to church.
What is Communion
Communion (Eucharist) is the main Sacrament in Orthodoxy, during which a person, through partaking of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ, is united with God. “Body and Blood” is not a figurative expression.
“Eucharistic bread is the medicine of immortality, the guarantee of non-dying in eternal life in Jesus Christ” (Eph. 20).
According to the dogmas of the Orthodox faith, bread and wine are in an incomprehensible way to the human mind into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. For a Christian, spiritual life without the Eucharist is unthinkable. Therefore, every Orthodox parent tries to unite their children with Christ through Communion.
For a person far from the teachings of the Church, this seems incomprehensible and impossible. However, this is not a matter of rational knowledge and factual evidence. This is a matter of faith, it is through the eyes of faith that this Great Sacrament is revealed. The Sacrament of Communion was established by Jesus Christ himself at the Last Supper. The Lord took the bread, blessed it and, distributing it to the apostles, said: “Take, eat: this is My Body.” Then he took a cup of wine and, giving it to the apostles, said: “Drink from it, all of you, for this is My Blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.”
Communion of a child
Communion of children is the concern of parents
Communion of children is the most important part of spiritual life and raising a child as an Orthodox Christian.
Christ said: “Let the children come to Me and do not hinder them, for to such is the Kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the Kingdom of God like a child will not enter it. And he embraced them, laid his hands on them and blessed them.” (Mark 10:14 – 16)
Orthodox parents try as often as possible to bring their child to the Savior through Communion. The participation of children in church sacraments also creates a strong moral foundation for the individual. In the future, this will serve as a strong support for the formation of moral values and spiritual development of children.
Should children be given communion? And how often should this be done?
Should children be given communion? And how often should this be done?
Good afternoon, our dear visitors!
Should children be given communion? And how often should this be done? What to do if a child resists Communion: he is capricious, breaks out and clenches his teeth?
Archpriest Alexander Lebedev answers:
“ For me, the answer to this question is obvious: “Let the little children come and do not hinder them from coming to Me, for of such is the Kingdom of Heaven” (Matthew 19:14). These are the words of Christ, you cannot argue with Him. Therefore, children need to be given communion; this should be started as early as possible and repeated as often as possible, as circumstances allow.
Usually, when women ask me about this, I answer that non-lazy mothers give communion to their children once a week, and lazy ones - once every two weeks, then I suggest that they decide on the category to which they want to classify themselves, and act accordingly.
In Communion, God Himself unites with man. Naturally, this does not pass without a trace: God influences both the soul and the body of a person, his character, his behavior.
Childhood is the time of personality formation. A wise observation is known: a person can be taught while he lies across the bench, and not along. Next, the time of education is replaced by the time of reaping the fruits of this education. And how important it is that at the most crucial time of his formation in life, a person (still small) is not deprived of God’s strengthening help.
If a person does not receive something in childhood, the consequences of this affect throughout life. I undertake to affirm the validity of this in relation to Holy Communion: if the human soul from infancy has not had the experience of communion with the shrine, this will have consequences in the future. Favorable or not - guess for yourself.
Sometimes they say: “Children cannot be given communion, because a person approaching Communion (as well as any other Sacrament) must understand what is happening to him, what he is about to begin. Is a young child capable of understanding what Communion is?” I answer firmly and decisively: Yes! Capable! To the extent of its development.
I remember an incident that struck me with my son. Children at the age of one or two years are explained who God is, pointing to icons, and then they are touched when asked: “Where is God?” - the child points his finger at the image. My son did not escape this either; he, too, touched my wife and me in this common way: he babbled “God” and pointed to the icons.
One day he and I were looking at photographs. Children love this, and it is useful for them to fixate their attention on the details of the image. Here we open a photograph of a priest standing in the Royal Doors with the Chalice in his hands, the son points to the Chalice and says: “God.”
I was amazed: we, the parents, didn’t teach him this, so this is his personal discovery! This is his personal faith! I don’t think that my son is any special, a child marked from childhood with the stamp of piety and knowledge of God, and he himself supports my opinion with his whims, stubbornness and disobedience. This means that such faith is available to any child. And how can we then say that children are not able to understand the Sacrament of Holy Communion?!
In addition, we will try to answer the counter question: “Are adults able to understand what happens in the Sacrament of Communion?” Can any of us claim to understand how bread and wine become the Body and Blood of the Creator? And how do they become our body and blood in Communion?
That is why the Sacraments are called that way because they are inaccessible to human understanding. And how do we differ from children in this respect, and how do they differ from us? Nothing. We are also capable of understanding something and believing only to some extent. So let's leave this conversation. Children can and should be given communion.
But! Parents need to make every effort to ensure that their children receive communion with dignity. It is known that Communion can cause troubles and misfortunes if performed unworthily. Let me remind you of the words of the Apostle Paul: “Whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord unworthily will be guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord... whoever eats and drinks unworthily eats and drinks condemnation for himself, without considering the Body of the Lord. This is why many of you are weak and sick, and many are dying” (1 Cor. 11:27-30).
We, of course, do not wish this for our children, so we must try to ensure that our children are prepared for Communion, again, to the extent of their development. We need to tell children about what awaits them, we need to directly call the Body and Blood of Christ body and blood, without filling the little man’s head with nonsense about sweet water or “the compote that your uncle will give you.”
Yes, the reality of the presence of Christ in the Holy Gifts cannot be explained to children, but there is no need to - they generally take all the words of adults on faith, and they will take these too, especially if the parents themselves firmly believe in what they are talking about.
Older children need to read aloud at least one prayer for Holy Communion, or together with them, in their own words, ask God to be worthy of Communion. It is necessary to make Communion dependent on the child’s behavior, so that he feels that he can be unworthy of Communion.
Finally, the parents themselves need to receive communion, otherwise bewilderment and even distrust will arise between them and the children: how can it be that they push me to the Chalice, but for some reason they themselves do not receive communion. There should be no disunity in the family, which means we should strive to receive communion with the whole family.
What to do if a child resists Communion: he is capricious, breaks out, clenches his teeth? Pray intensely for him, try to go to church with him more often, so that the church environment becomes familiar and familiar to the child, so that he sees how other children receive communion, and finally, you yourself need to set an example for the children.
It is not necessary to forcibly give Communion to children, holding them hand and foot, otherwise they will have a feeling of violence for a very long time, and in the future their resistance to Communion will only worsen, because it is human nature to resist violence.
The impressions we receive in childhood may be unconscious, but they are very stable, and we run the risk of establishing a certain negative stereotype of perceiving everything churchly for the rest of our lives. Perhaps most often, children’s resistance is explained by a lack of understanding of what is happening. After all, any of us is wary of encountering something unfamiliar and incomprehensible.
So is a child: if he was suddenly snatched from a stroller, instantly destroying his usual cozy little world, dragged through a crowd of strangers, uncles and aunts, thrust into the presence of some bearded monster (thanks to the fact that most of the male population now go “bare-faced”, many have a beard children perceive as an anomaly), then what reaction will be natural? Rejection.
So there is no need to place the blame on the child, attribute to him almost demonic possession. You just need to prepare your children for Communion in advance, explaining to them the meaning of what is happening and setting a personal example, which, as we know, is the most effective means of education.”
How to prepare a child for Communion
In Orthodoxy, a child under 7 years of age is considered an infant. The rules for Communion of infants have been significantly simplified. Very young children under 3 years of age can be brought directly to Communion, gradually increasing the time spent at the service. It is important that the child gets used to church singing and being in the temple of God, and is not afraid to begin the sacraments. The child may cry the first time before Communion. There's nothing wrong with that. The main thing is to participate with your child in the Sacrament as often as possible (preferably on Sundays). It’s even better if the parents take communion with the baby; for the baby this is the best example of the parents’ faith.
But children’s preparation for communion is special, individual.
As you know, you need to prepare for Communion and Confession, but children’s preparation and children’s confession are completely special, incomparable to adults. The task of a Christian, including a young Christian, is to benefit from Confession and Communion, therefore it is important that the preparation for the sacrament and the confession itself are effective and not overloaded. If the priest is experienced, this issue can be discussed individually, if the priest requires reading all the canons, strict fasting for the child, then the big question is whether this is useful... At this stage, in my opinion, an individual approach is important, if a child has been in the Temple since infancy - This is one thing, if from time to time it is another.
Preparation for Communion after 7 years
How to prepare a child for Communion after 7 years? The age of 7 is the starting point, after which parents must explain to the child what confession is, what sins exist, what repentance is, what the meaning of fasting is and help prepare for it. Do not forget that a child at this age must take responsibility for his actions, and should not prepare a list of sins instead.
It is important to note that each child is individual. If he is not ready to confess at the age of 7, you should not force him. The same applies to the rule of prayer and fasting. By forcing a child to mechanically follow the rules, there is a chance for a long time to discourage him from any desire to participate in the Sacraments and worship. A fragile young soul requires a softer and more tactful approach. Whether children can eat before Communion after reaching the age of 7 should be checked with the priest. There is no single rule for all cases in this matter.
The main thing that parents and the adults around him must do is set a worthy example of Christian life. If you regularly bring your child to Communion, then you yourself must lead a meaningful church and spiritual life, regularly participate in the Sacraments and, first of all, receive communion.
How does children receive communion in church? There is an unspoken rule that children receive communion without waiting in line. Parents carry babies to the Chalice in their arms. Older children, folding their arms crosswise across their chests, walk on their own. Parents should explain that in line before Communion, the child should try not to talk, not push, and approach the Sacrament with reverence.
“Should a child fast before communion?”
– Again: if fasting is a burden for parents, then a problem arises with the child. And if this is the natural life of a family, then such questions do not even arise. The child eats what adults give him. Fasting is not a hunger strike. This is a change in your habits and lifestyle. The main thing in our life is not the number of prayers, not fasting - all this is just a means.
It is necessary not to prohibit, not to force, but for the child to voluntarily accept such a lifestyle. If he was forced, he will break out from under his parent’s wing and still do it his own way, that’s what’s terrible. The Holy Fathers advise raising a child in such a way that when he grows up, when at the age of 7 he goes to confession for the first time, he feels himself a Christian, so that he takes the yoke of Christ voluntarily.
It is impossible to force someone to do this. The beauty of such a life can only be shown. And when children become interested in spiritual life, they discover a wealth that is incomparable with all the riches of the world. As in the Gospel: I found a pearl, went and sold everything for it. So it is with spiritual life: if you find it, you will give up everything in order to live this life. We need to help the child discover this wealth within himself, so that he does not think that it is all just external.
Why is Children Communion necessary?
Among baptized but unchurched parents there is a widespread belief that a child should be given communion “so that he doesn’t get sick,” “for healing,” “from the evil eye,” “so that everything is fine.” This is a deep misconception. Of course, God preserves and protects his beloved children, but Communion is a great Sacrament. By receiving communion, a child unites with God and is filled with joy, which in turn leads a person to true happiness. The sacrament can be seen as medicine and vital food. But medicine and food are not only for the body, but primarily for the soul. Communion is the unity of a person with God; it is vital for the spiritual healing of a person and the salvation of the soul.
“May the Lord forgive you your sins, just do not refuse to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ more often - this is the great help and mercy of God.” (Reverend Ambrose of Optina).
