May's Newsletter Article

Dear Friends in Christ,

This spring we are conducting a daring experiment. Well, it’s not really an experiment; it’s as old as the Church of Christ itself. Then again, it’s pretty daring in this congregation and in this world. What are we doing that’s so different, we’re celebrating the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper during every worship service from now through Pentecost. Yes, we’re having communion every Sunday through June 9^th. Seeing as how we have never done it like this before, I imagine you have some questions. I hope to answer some of them for you here.

Let’s begin with the most basic question: Why do we celebrate the Lord’s Supper at all?  According to John Calvin, “Christ is the only food of our soul, and therefore our Heavenly Father invites us to Christ, that, refreshed by partaking of him, we may repeatedly gather strength until we shall have reached heavenly immortality.”

In other words, since we are fed in Christ and the Heavenly Father invites us to feed at the table, we should be fed. This is what makes celebrating the Lord’s Supper daring. We believe the Lord feeds us spiritually by the bread and the cup. This is absolutely one of the boldest most daring things we say, but we don’t say it. Our Lord says it; we just repeat it.

Because of this, I believe it is better for us to be fed regularly.

Another question is “How often do we have to celebrate the Lord’s Supper?” Presbyterians have two answers to that question, a minimum number and a maximum number.

The minimum number of times we celebrate the Lord’s Supper is once per quarter, four times per year. The maximum number of times is every worship service. This would include services that aren’t on Sunday mornings, weddings, ordinations, installations, circle meetings, session meetings, youth retreats, trainings, and every other worship setting as approved by the Session. There’s a lot of wiggle room in there between the minimum and the maximum, but that gives each congregation the freedom to consider what is appropriate.

The next question that might come to mind is “Who decided we should have communion more often?” That decision was made by the Session as recommended by the Worship Committee. And yes, it was me that asked the Worship Committee to consider this, but it’s because I believe celebrating the sacraments is important to the Body of Christ.

So why now, why celebrate the Lord’s Supper through Easter? Why should we celebrate this sacrament more frequently at all? The Session chose to celebrate through Easter for two reasons. To start, this is the season after Jesus instituted this sacrament, so now is the best time to start. Second is that we are a sacramental people, we believe these visible signs of God’s invisible grace have power in our faith and our lives. Finally, sometimes we just need the reminder of what our Lord commands us to do, and the last thing he told his disciples to do was to take, eat, and do this in remembrance of Him.

There’s one final point that deals more with how we have interpreted the Supper over the years. Some say that they don’t want to celebrate the Lord’s Supper frequently because it makes the sacrament less special. This does make a point, familiarity breeds contempt. Some fear that if we celebrate the supper more often it will mean less. I can’t stop people from feeling this way through fancy words and rhetoric. If this is how you feel, lofty arguments won’t mean a thing, but I want to offer a different perspective.

Others say that when they celebrate the Lord’s Supper frequently, they find it difficult to see a loaf of bread or enjoy a sandwich without thinking about the Lord Jesus and the meal he shared with his disciples. To this, I say amen and amen.

Let us remember what our Lord has done for us. Let us remember the meal he instituted, the death he suffered, and the resurrected life he leads and promises we share. This is the meal we share; his life, his death, and his resurrection. So come, let us share this meal together. Let us come, taste and see, that the Lord is good.

See you in Church,

Paul