The woman who received her First Communion in a COVID-19 ward

A priest was making his rounds visiting the sick, and found one patient who had never received the Eucharist before and longed to.

It was “a wonderful experience, a balm of love for the sick. It was the First Communion of an older woman who had never able to do it before.”

With these words, on Facebook, Mexican priest José Luis González Santoscoy wanted to tell the world about an event that filled his heart at a time when everyone seems to be feeling disheartened due to the pandemic.

The images shared by Fr. José Luis not only show an unusual experience in a hospital, but also invite us to think about the recipient of such wonderful grace.

She’s a patient who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 a few weeks ago and had been admitted to a hospital in Jalisco (Mexico). In the middle of a visit to the ward by a group of priests—something that they’d been doing frequently—he came across this woman, whom he initially asked if she wanted to go to confession.

“She responded that she couldn’t do it because for various circumstances in her life she hadn’t made her First Communion, but that she longed for it,” said Fr. José Luis, talking with reporter Melva Navarro of Desde la Fe.

After a quick evaluation, José Luis concluded that she had the necessary understanding to receive her First Communion, and she was finally able to do so at the end of June.

The images say it all. “After giving her Communion, I spoke to her and she told me, ‘Father, I feel very peaceful having received Christ in my heart,'” said Fr. Luis.

Fr. José Luis has become a channel of peace, joy and encounter with God for the sick patients he visits. He shares photos and reflections on his ministry on his Facebook page, with joy and humor, inspiring people around the world.