Bringing you the "Good News" of Jesus Christ and His Church While PROMOTING CATHOLIC Apologetic Support groups loyal to the Holy Father and Church's magisterium
Home About
AskACatholic.com
What's New? Resources The Church Family Life Mass and
Adoration
Ask A Catholic
Knowledge base
AskACatholic Disclaimer
Search the
AskACatholic Database
Donate and
Support our work
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
New Questions
Cool Catholic Videos
About Saints
Disciplines and Practices for distinct Church seasons
Purgatory and Indulgences
About the Holy Mass
back
About Mary
Searching and Confused
Contemplating becoming a Catholic or Coming home
Homosexual and Gender Issues
Life, Dating, and Family
No Salvation Outside the Church
Sacred Scripture
non-Catholic Cults
Justification and Salvation
The Pope and Papacy
The Sacraments
Relationships and Marriage situations
Specific people, organizations and events
Doctrine and Teachings
Specific Practices
Church Internals
Church History

Barbara wrote:

Hi, guys —

I have a relative whose name is June. Her last Confession was a little over a year and a month ago. She reports no mortal sins. She is currently home bound. 

  • Can she receive Holy Communion? 

Thank you!

Barbara

  { Can a relative who hasn't been to Confession in a while and is home bound receive Communion? }

John replied:

Barbara,

Thanks for your question.

This sort of pastoral question would be best addressed by June to her priest. 

We are not priests, rather we are apologists. We help people defend the faith (and/or) assist people (who are outside the Catholic Church) to understand Her doctrines and practices. So, we deal with general teachings, not specific pastoral issues.  We can only give you general advice.

As a general rule, unless we commit sins that have grave matter, we are free to receive Communion. 

I distinguish between grave matter and mortal sin.

For a sin to be mortal:

  1. it must be grave matter
  2. it must be done with full knowledge, sufficient time to reflect on the actions prior to taking it, and
  3. done with full consent of the will. 

The Church tells us that if we are aware that we've committed sin that constitutes grave matter, we need to go to Confession before receiving Communion. 

So, if June is home bound, we must assume someone is bringing her Communion. But it's been (1 year and a month) since her last Confession. That’s a significantly long time. It would be ideal if she could arrange for her parish priest to visit her so she can go to Confession and in addition receive the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick.

Priests have busy schedules, especially since, in many cases, priests are now responsible for more than one parish in town. But it should be possible to schedule a visit from a priest. 

In the meantime, all things being as you described, she can continue to receive Communion. She should examine her conscience daily and ask for God to forgive her of any sin of commission or omission. 

Under His Mercy,

John DiMascio
Please report any and all typos or grammatical errors.
Suggestions for this web page and the web site can be sent to Mike Humphrey
© 2012 Panoramic Sites
The Early Church Fathers Church Fathers on the Primacy of Peter. The Early Church Fathers on the Catholic Church and the term Catholic. The Early Church Fathers on the importance of the Roman Catholic Church centered in Rome.