THEOSISJohn Cassian
With utmost care, we should strive to maintain the sanctity of chastity untainted, particularly when we seek to approach the sacred altar. We must be watchful to ensure that the purity of the body, which has been guarded at earlier times, remains intact, especially on the eve of our communion. If, however, the greatest adversary, seeking to rob us of the heavenly grace, entices our slumbering spirit in such a way that it remains untainted by any wrongful desire or consent to sinful pleasures, but departs due to natural causes or through the influence of the adversary without any pleasurable experience, thereby hindering our sanctification, we can and should proceed with confidence to partake of the saving food.
Read more (343 words)
Yet, if we stumble through our own actions, we should heed our conscience and remember the Apostle’s warning: Whoever eats this bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will be guilty of sinning against the Body and Blood of the Lord. Let each person examine themselves, and in doing so, partake of the bread and drink from the cup. For whoever eats and drinks unworthily brings judgment upon themselves, failing to recognize the body of the Lord, which means not distinguishing this heavenly sustenance from ordinary food, nor accepting it with a truly pure body and spirit. The Apostle continues: Therefore many are weak and sick among you, and many sleep; such spiritual weaknesses and deaths result from improper communion. Those who receive Holy Communion unworthily find their faith and spirit weakened, become susceptible to the frailties of their passions, and fall into a sinful slumber from which they do not awaken for the sake of salvation. He then states: For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged; this means that had we recognized our unworthiness to receive the sacraments in the face of sin, we would have sought to prepare ourselves through genuine repentance and would not have faced the harsh discipline of physical ailments from the Lord, in hopes that our afflictions might lead us to seek healing. Otherwise, if we are deemed unworthy of even a brief admonition in this life, we shall be judged alongside the worldly sinners in the age to come. This principle is underscored in Leviticus: Every clean person may partake of clean meat, but if a soul with uncleanness eats from the Lord's peace-offering, that soul shall be cut off from their people. Similarly, in Deuteronomy, it is commanded to keep the unclean apart from the camp: If a man becomes unclean due to nighttime events, he must leave the camp and not enter until evening, when he has washed in water, and after the sun sets, he may return.
This discourse engages with the challenges faced during the night.