Prayers Before Holy Communion
Before receiving the Holy Mysteries, the faithful prepare through prayer and fasting. These prayers help ready the soul to receive Christ in the Eucharist.
Prayer of St. John Chrysostom
O Lord my God, I know that I am not worthy nor sufficiently pleasing that Thou shouldst come under the roof of the house of my soul, for it is entirely desolate and fallen in ruin, and Thou wilt not find in me a place worthy to lay Thy head. But as Thou didst humble Thyself for our sake, so now humble Thyself for my sake. And as Thou didst deign to recline in a cave and in a manger of dumb beasts, so now deign to enter into the manger of my dumb soul and my soiled body.
As Thou didst not disdain to enter and eat with sinners in the house of Simon the Leper, so also deign to enter into the house of my humble soul, leprous and sinful. And as Thou didst not cast out the sinful woman who came to touch Thee, so also have compassion on me a sinner who comes to touch Thee. Amen.
Prayer of St. Basil the Great
O Lord and Master Jesus Christ, our God, the Fountain of Life and Immortality, the Creator of all things visible and invisible, the Co-Eternal Son of the Eternal Father: I know that I have sinned more than all men and am unworthy of Thy divine Mysteries. But trusting in Thine infinite mercy, I draw near, for Thou hast said: "He who eats My Flesh and drinks My Blood abides in Me, and I in him."
Have mercy on me, O Lord, and do not reject me, a sinner, but deal with me according to Thy mercy. Let these Holy Things be for me unto healing, cleansing, enlightenment, protection, and salvation of soul and body, and unto the driving away of every fantasy, evil deed, and diabolical activity. Amen.