On Communion Frequency

Ecumenical Patriarchal Synod 1819

With regard to Divine and Holy Communion, be assured and know that the faithful are obligated, at every Divine Liturgy, to come forward and partake of the life-giving Body [and Blood of Christ], for which reason they are invited to do so by the Priest when he says: “With fear of God, with faith and love, draw near.” However, on account of man’s propensity to sin and his incapacity for daily reception of Communion, the Church has reviewed this matter and has enjoined that each and every Christian should come forward to commune whenever, after confessing to his spiritual father, he finds himself worthy of Divine Communion and receives permission for this from his spiritual father. But if anyone has sinned openly and has been placed under penance, let him first carry out the penance imposed on him in repentance and tears, and then let him approah his spiritual father to receive permission, and in this way let him be vouchsafed Divine and Holy Communion. There is no predetermined number of days for receiving Communion, nor is it necessary for forty days to elapse after one has communed. Since there is no hindrance or impediment in this matter, he who wishes and obtains permission from his spiritual father, as being free of reproach, may commune every week; there are no Apostolic decrees and Canons on this subject. (The Oecumenical Synods of the Orthodox Church: A Concise History by Father James Thornton pg. 147)