Divine Worship and Sacramental Life · Lecture 023
Holy Communion (Part 3)
A lecture by Dimitrios Panagopoulos · Δείτε στα Ελληνικά
3 Tap to hold An interactive player loads with JavaScript. Without it, use the direct audio link and the summary below.
Summary
In the third of these talks Dimitrios Panagopoulos defends frequent Communion. The Mysteries are given not to those already holy but to the baptised who seek sanctification within the Church, and because Christ remains a sign of contradiction the restoration of frequent participation meets resistance even among regular worshippers and clergy. Private opinion must yield to the apostolic and patristic mind of the Church. The prayers before Communion portray the communicant as an unworthy sinner approaching for forgiveness, healing, and illumination; Isaiah's coal, the paschal lamb, and the daily manna all prefigure the reception of the whole Christ as life-giving food. Drawing on Saint Basil, Saint John Chrysostom, and Saint Symeon Metaphrastes, he shows that those who keep away are left defenceless, while frequent participation strengthens against the passions.
English audio is a digitally generated narration of the translated transcript. Disclosed as such on every lecture.
The Greek original audio is preserved unchanged. It is the authoritative recording for this lecture.
Transcript coming soon.