First Confession and First Communion in the Ukrainian Catholic Church

• In the Ukrainian Catholic Church, the sacraments of First Confession and First Communion are significant milestones in a child’s spiritual journey. These sacraments are typically received from the age of 6 or 7 and older, when children are considered to have reached the age of reason and are capable of understanding the significance of these sacraments.

• First Confession is the preparation for receiving the Holy Eucharist. This sacrament allows them to reflect on their actions, seek reconciliation, and understand the importance of living a life in accordance with Christian values. First Communion follows the First Confession, where children receive the Holy Eucharist for the first time with full awareness.  It is a profound moment when children are fully initiated into the life of the Church and the community of believers with a new level of personal understanding.

• In our Church, infants are also given the Holy Eucharist during the sacrament of Baptism, as it is a long-standing practice in the Eastern Christian tradition. According to the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches (CCEC), canon 710 §1, “Parents are to see that infants are baptized as soon as possible after birth; they are also to see that they are nourished with the divine food of the Eucharist.”

• Therefore, children in our Church receive Holy Communion from infancy until the age of moral responsibility. We refer to this moment around age 7 as their “First Communion” not because it is their first time receiving the Eucharist, but because it is the first time they receive it with full awareness and personal responsibility. From this point forward, having reached the use of reason, they are also responsible for preparing themselves through the sacrament of Confession, since they can now discern right from wrong and understand the need for repentance.