8 Catholic Prayers After Communion to Deepen Your Time with Jesus

The moment after you receive the Eucharist is one of the most intimate in the entire Christian life. This Catholic prayer is written to help you pray with the Church. Jesus is truly present, body, blood, soul, and divinity, and you carry Him with you as you return to your pew. The question is simply this: what do you do with that moment?

For centuries, the Church has offered her children a treasury of prayers to pray in those sacred minutes after Holy Communion. These prayers are not formulas to be rushed. They are the Church’s own words of adoration, gratitude, surrender, and love, words that have poured from the lips of saints, mystics, and ordinary believers standing exactly where you now stand.

Scripture reminds us in John 6:56 that whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. That abiding is not automatic in feeling, it is cultivated in the quiet after the altar. These prayers help you abide.

Whether you are newly returning to the sacraments or have received communion for decades, these eight traditional Catholic prayers after communion will anchor your heart to Christ and help you carry the grace of the Eucharist into everything that follows.

Prayer After Communion Catholic

Scripture Focus

I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. (John 6:51, NKJV)

These words of Jesus are the foundation of every Catholic prayer after communion. He did not offer us a symbol or a memory. He offered Himself, the living bread. When we receive Him in the Eucharist and then kneel in prayer, we are responding to a gift beyond all human language. These traditional prayers give us words equal to the weight of that gift.

Pray each of the following slowly. Let the words settle before moving on to the next. You may also choose one prayer that speaks most directly to where your heart is today and pray it daily for a season, letting it become your own.

1. Anima Christi

The Anima Christi is one of the oldest and most beloved prayers in the Catholic tradition, dating to the early fourteenth century and long associated with Saint Ignatius of Loyola. It is a prayer of total surrender to Christ, asking that His soul, body, blood, and water sanctify every part of the one who has just received Him. Many Catholics consider it the prayer after communion above all others, and it has been part of the Church’s post-communion devotion for centuries. You can find prayers for drawing close to God’s heart that echo the same spirit of surrender this prayer embodies.

Soul of Christ, sanctify me.
Body of Christ, save me.
Blood of Christ, inebriate me.
Water from the side of Christ, wash me.
Passion of Christ, strengthen me.
O Good Jesus, hear me.
Within Your wounds hide me.
Separated from You let me never be.
From the malicious enemy defend me.
At the hour of my death call me.
And bid me come to You.
That with Your saints I may praise You
for all eternity.
Amen.

2. Prayer of Saint Thomas Aquinas After Communion

Saint Thomas Aquinas, the great theologian and Doctor of the Church, composed this prayer to be prayed immediately after receiving Holy Communion. It is a prayer of profound gratitude and humble petition, asking God to let the grace of the sacrament bear fruit in a life of charity, faith, hope, and perseverance. It has been included in Roman Catholic missals for centuries and remains one of the most theologically rich post-communion prayers in existence. Its measured, careful language reflects the mind of a man who understood the Eucharist more deeply than almost any other saint.

I give You thanks, Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God, who have been pleased to nourish me, a sinner and Your unworthy servant, with the precious Body and Blood of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ: this through no merits of mine, but solely through the goodness of Your mercy. And I pray that this Holy Communion may not be for me an occasion of guilt and punishment, but an availing plea for pardon and salvation. May it be my armor of faith and shield of good will. May it root out in me all vice and evil desires, increase my charity and patience, humility and obedience, and every virtue. May it be my firm defense against the snares of all enemies, visible and invisible, the perfect calming of all the impulses of flesh and spirit. May it unite me more closely to You, the one true God, and lead me safely through death to everlasting happiness with You. And I pray that You will lead me, a sinner, to the banquet where You, with Your Son and the Holy Spirit, are to Your saints true light, full blessedness, everlasting joy, and perfect happiness. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

3. Act of Thanksgiving After Communion

This traditional act of thanksgiving is prayed as a direct response to the gift of the Eucharist, lifting the heart in gratitude before any petition or request. The Church has always understood the proper response to receiving Christ as thanksgiving first, and this short, reverent prayer helps the faithful form that habit of gratitude at the altar. It is often found in Catholic prayer books and missals as a standard post-communion devotion, and it reflects the meaning of the word “Eucharist” itself, which comes from the Greek word for thanksgiving.

Lord, Father all-powerful and ever-living God, I thank You, for even though I am a sinner, Your unprofitable servant, not because of my worth but in the kindness of Your mercy, You have fed me with the precious Body and Blood of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. I pray that this Holy Communion may bring me not condemnation and punishment but forgiveness and salvation. May it be a helmet of faith and a shield of good will. May it purify me from evil ways and put an end to my evil passions. May it bring me charity and patience, humility and obedience, and growth in the power to do good. May it be my strong defense against all my enemies, visible and invisible, and the perfect calming of all my evil impulses, bodily and spiritual. May it unite me more closely to You, the one true God, and lead me safely through death to everlasting happiness with You. Amen.

4. Prayer of Saint Bonaventure After Communion

Saint Bonaventure, the seraphic Doctor of the Church, composed this intimate and tender prayer to be prayed in the moments of stillness after receiving the Eucharist. It is a prayer of union, asking that the soul be consumed by love for the One who has just given Himself entirely. Bonaventure’s mystical theology understood the Eucharist as the summit of the soul’s union with Christ, and this prayer flows from that understanding. It is particularly suited for those who wish to pray with great affection and desire in the silence after communion. You may also find that prayers for restoring intimacy with God carry a similar spirit of longing for union with Christ.

Pierce, O most sweet Lord Jesus, my inmost soul with the most joyous and healthful wound of Your love, and with true calm and most holy apostolic charity, so that my soul may ever languish and melt with love and longing for You, may yearn for You and for Your courts, may long to be dissolved and to be with You. Grant that my soul may hunger after You, the Bread of Angels, the refreshment of holy souls, our daily and super-substantial bread, having all sweetness and savor and every delightful taste. May my heart ever hunger after and feed upon You, upon whom the angels desire to look, and may my inmost soul be filled with the sweetness of Your savor. May it ever thirst for You, the fountain of life, the fountain of wisdom and knowledge, the fountain of eternal light, the torrent of pleasure, the fullness of the house of God. May it ever compass You, seek You, find You, run to You, attain You, meditate upon You, speak of You, and do all things to the praise and glory of Your name, with humility and discretion, with love and delight, with ease and affection, with perseverance unto the end. And be You alone ever my hope, my entire confidence, my riches, my delight, my pleasure, my joy, my rest and tranquility, my peace, my sweetness, my fragrance, my sweet savor, my food, my refreshment, my refuge, my help, my wisdom, my portion, my possession, and my treasure, in whom may my mind and my heart be fixed and firm and rooted immovably henceforth and forever. Amen.

5. Universal Prayer (Attributed to Pope Clement XI)

This comprehensive prayer, traditionally attributed to Pope Clement XI, covers every dimension of the Christian life, belief, worship, obedience, love, repentance, and surrender. It is sometimes prayed as a post-communion prayer because it represents the soul’s complete response to God after receiving the greatest sacrament. Its breadth makes it particularly powerful for those who wish to offer their entire interior life to God in the quiet after the altar. Many Catholics have prayed this prayer regularly for generations as a way of renewing their commitment to Christ after receiving Him in the Eucharist.

Lord, I believe in You: increase my faith.
I trust in You: strengthen my trust.
I love You: let me love You more and more.
I am sorry for my sins: deepen my sorrow.

I worship You as my first beginning,
I long for You as my last end,
I praise You as my constant helper,
And call on You as my gracious protector.

Guide me by Your wisdom,
Correct me with Your justice,
Comfort me with Your mercy,
Protect me with Your power.

I offer You, Lord, my thoughts: to be fixed on You;
My words: to have You for their theme;
My actions: to reflect my love for You;
My sufferings: to be endured for Your greater glory.

I want to do what You ask of me:
In the way You ask,
For as long as You ask,
Because You ask it.

Lord, enlighten my understanding,
Strengthen my will,
Purify my heart,
And make me holy.

Help me to repent of my past sins
And to resist temptation in the future.
Help me to rise above my human weaknesses
And to grow stronger as a Christian.

Let me love You, Lord, and serve You
In whatever way You want.
And I will try to do it faithfully.
Amen.

6. Act of Love After Communion

The Act of Love is one of the three classical acts prayed after communion in the traditional Catholic devotional life, alongside the Act of Faith and the Act of Hope. It is a simple but powerful declaration of love for God, offered at the moment when the soul is most immediately united to Christ. This prayer has been a fixture in Catholic catechisms, missals, and prayer books for generations, and it reflects the Church’s teaching that love is the highest response to the gift of the Eucharist. Praying it slowly, with genuine intention, turns the moments after communion into an act of pure worship.

O my God, I love You above all things, with my whole heart and soul, because You are all good and worthy of all love. I love my neighbor as myself for the love of You. I forgive all who have injured me and I ask pardon of all whom I have injured. Amen.

We love because he first loved us. (1 John 4:19, NKJV)

7. Prayer for the Grace to Live the Eucharist

This traditional prayer asks God not only for the grace of the sacrament received at Mass but for the courage and strength to carry that grace into daily life, to become what we receive. It is rooted in the ancient understanding, expressed by Saint Augustine, that we are to become the Body of Christ we consume. This prayer is particularly suited for those returning from communion with a desire for their lives to be transformed by what they have received, not simply spiritually enriched in the moment but permanently changed in their habits, choices, and love. You can continue this spirit of daily offering through a morning prayer of praise and worship that carries the Eucharistic heart into your whole day.

Lord Jesus, You have given Yourself to me in this most holy sacrament. I have received You, the Author of life, the Bread come down from heaven, the One who is love itself. Now I ask You, do not let this grace remain only in this moment. Carry it into my words today, into my patience, into my charity toward those who are difficult to love. Let me become what I have received. Let my life be a living extension of what You have placed inside me at this altar. May I walk from this church as one who has truly encountered You, and may every soul I meet today feel, in some small way, the warmth of what You have given me here. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

8. Prayer of Saint Richard of Chichester After Communion

This short, luminous prayer from Saint Richard of Chichester has been prayed by Catholics and other Christians for nearly eight centuries. It is perhaps best known today through its adaptation in the musical Godspell, but its origins are deeply sacramental, it was composed as a prayer of desire and dedication in the presence of Christ, and it belongs naturally in the quiet after receiving the Eucharist. Its three petitions, to know Him more clearly, love Him more dearly, and follow Him more nearly, make it one of the most complete post-communion prayers in any tradition. It is brief enough to be memorized easily and profound enough to sustain a lifetime of prayer. Those who wish to deepen the spiritual communion that follows the sacrament may also benefit from a dedicated spiritual communion prayer for times when Mass is not possible.

Thanks be to You, my Lord Jesus Christ,
for all the benefits You have given me,
for all the pains and insults You have borne for me.
O most merciful Redeemer, Friend, and Brother,
may I know You more clearly,
love You more dearly,
and follow You more nearly,
day by day.
Amen.

Closing Encouragement

The moments after Holy Communion are not meant to be rushed. They are a gift, a window of grace in which the soul rests in the presence of the One who gave everything. The Church’s treasury of post-communion prayers exists precisely so that you never have to fill that silence with your own inadequate words alone. These eight prayers carry the weight of centuries of Catholic faith, and they are offered to you now as an inheritance.

Return to these prayers again and again. Let one become yours for a season. Carry it in your heart before Mass so it is ready on your lips when you return to your pew. And know that every time you kneel in thanksgiving after receiving Christ, you are joining your voice to the prayer of the whole Church, saints and sinners alike, who have knelt in that same silence and said, simply and completely: Thank You. You may also find that building a habit of offering and worship throughout your week deepens the fruit of the Eucharist in your daily life.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.