Partaking in the Holy Communion in the Orthodox Church: Frequent or Rare Communion?

This article proposes the reader a reflection on the practice of the Holy Communion in the Orthodox Church. At the same time, it underlines the necessary conditions for the laymen in order to get closer to this Holy Sacrament. The reader is invited to discover the pastoral complexity existing in the Orthodox parishes, which practice either a frequent Communion, or a rare one. When talking about the former, one knows that it has been acknowledged by both the Primitive Christian Church and the Holy Fathers. Nowadays, we can notice that the Christians, for the most part, partake in the Holy Communion only during the four fasting seasons of the Church Year; others, only once a year. Such being the case, one question is unavoidable: does rare partaking really have its roots in the Church Tradition? Our paper will analyze the theological conceptions of several theologians and spiritual fathers doing their mission both in the Diasporas and in the traditional Orthodox countries.