My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive You into my soul. Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.
Act of Spiritual Communion, attributed to St. Alphonsus Liguori (EWTN), in modern English.
A spiritual communion is an ardent desire to receive Jesus in the Holy Sacrament and a loving embrace as though we had already received Him. One good time to make a spiritual communion is while we are adoring Our Lord in the Most Blessed Sacrament, but we can make them at any time of the day or night, multiple times a day! Spiritual communions are yet another way to “pray constantly” as St. Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. They help us to stay focused on our dear Lord throughout the day–and night, if we are awake.
Pope St. John Paul II in his landmark encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia encourages spiritual communions: “…[I]t is good to cultivate in our hearts a constant desire for the sacrament of the Eucharist. This was the origin of the practice of ‘spiritual communion,’ which has happily been established in the Church for centuries and recommended by saints who were masters of the spiritual life.
St. Teresa of Jesus wrote: ‘When you do not receive Communion and you do not attend Mass, you can make a spiritual communion, which is a most beneficial practice; by it the love of God will be greatly impressed on you’” (#34). (Of course, St. Teresa is not referring to avoiding Sunday Mass through your own fault.)
This highlights the value of a prayer of spiritual communion — a heartfelt act uniting our souls to Christ even when we cannot receive Him sacramentally.
And Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI wrote in Sacramentum Caritatis: “Even in cases where it is not possible to receive sacramental communion, participation at Mass remains necessary, important, meaningful and fruitful. In such circumstances it is beneficial to cultivate a desire for full union with Christ through the practice of spiritual communion, praised by Pope John Paul II and recommended by saints who were masters of the spiritual life” (#55).
You can make a spiritual communion using your own words (or even without putting your desire to receive Our Lord into words), or you can use one of the beautiful traditional prayers, such as the Act of Spiritual Communion of St. Alphonsus Liguori above.
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Please know that every prayer request shared here is kept strictly confidential. Your request will go to the Brothers, who will intercede for you. We will place your intentions before our Eucharistic King during our daily hours of adoration.
