Confirmation of Confirmation

From The Living Church-

There is no shortage these days of crises and semi-crises with which Episcopalians and other varieties of Anglicans can amuse themselves. The sexuality wars seem to have ebbed — sadly, not through reconciliation, but through one side achieving commanding victory. Continuing shrinkage of attendance and membership periodically sounds fresh alarms. The legitimacy of offering Holy Communion to the unbaptized is sure to raise hackles well into the future. Conversation around liturgical revision is continuing to grow in intensity.

In the midst of all this ferment, the subject of the “sacramental rite” (per the 1979 BCP) of confirmation remains an enduring presence, though it rarely achieves top-tier status. Lots of Episcopalians, lay and ordained, seem to think they know what confirmation is, but our canons and liturgical forms are, at best, ambiguous, and there’s nothing approaching broad agreement about how to interpret them. If one were pressed to describe a practical consensus on the issue, it would probably be something along the lines of “Confirmation is the sacrament of becoming an Episcopalian.” I suspect nobody would actually ever teach such a thing formally, but as we actually go about our life together as a church, that’s what it appears we believe.

More here-

https://livingchurch.org/covenant/2019/12/11/confirmation-of-confirmation/?fbclid=IwAR0HupsSgYgt_PTRbKV5xo8eMuKbFseduAjVX4aewc4eKt7cj5rsnUtGu0M

Why Every Church Should Have Weekly Sunday Communion Like the Anglicans Do

From Church Leaders-

There was a long period where many Anglican churches didn’t have communion every Sunday. They would have morning prayer for a few weeks, and then a Holy Communion once a month or so. But a movement called Parish Communion successfully restored the tradition around the world. Today, most (but not all) Anglican churches celebrate Holy Communion every week on Sunday. And so should you.

I’ve heard a few arguments against weekly communion, but the “rote ritual” argument is the primary one from evangelical churches.

For me, this is really a non-argument. All churches do a lot of things every Sunday, such as singing, praying and preaching. Any of these things can become rote or seem mundane. Yet we find ways to stay connected. The same goes with Holy Communion.

More here-

https://churchleaders.com/pastors/pastor-articles/332000-why-every-church-should-have-weekly-sunday-communion-like-the-anglicans-do-greg-goebel.html

German bishops deny Pope nixed their plan for intercommunion with Protestants

From Life Site-

The German bishops are denying reports that Pope Francis has rejected their plan to give Holy Communion to Protestant spouses of Catholics.

The plan, which was contained in a guide published by the German Episcopal Conference, justified giving Holy Communion to Protestant spouses of Catholics on the grounds that they might otherwise experience “serious spiritual distress.”

Following a request for a review of the material by seven German bishops, the Austrian Catholic news agency Kath.com has reported that the Holy See’s Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith has rejected the guide, and that that the decision was confirmed by Pope Francis himself. Kath.com’s report has been confirmed by the National Catholic Register’s Vatican correspondent Edward Pentin.

More here-

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/german-bishops-deny-pope-nixed-their-plan-for-intercommunion-with-protestan

also here-

http://evangelicalfocus.com/culture/3434/Doctrinal_controversy_as_German_Catholics_open_Communion_to_individual_Protestants

Where the Reformation Got it Wrong about the Eucharist

From Faith Forward (Patheos)-

On the night of the last supper of Christ, a weary group of disciples gathered at the table. The gospel writers go out of their way to describe just how inept and clueless they were. No one there had fasted or confessed their sins or had orthodox Christology. They were troubled and filled more with doubt than faith. Their leader, Peter, was about to turn apostate. Judas had already sold Jesus out. I think it’s safe to say that they were all scared for their lives. And over the next twenty-four hours, all of them will reject Jesus. All of them. One will be so desperate to get away he’ll flee naked, a pale body fading in the darkness.

This was not an elite group of the super-faithful. They weren’t even “Christian” in the way that the word is generally used today.

Nonetheless, Jesus stood before them and offered His body and blood in the form of bread and wine. The liturgy that has been passed down in the gospels and in Paul’s letters gives scant commentary on the moment, allowing the power and the mystery of Jesus’ sacrificial language to speak for itself. From day one it was understood as grace. Ultimate grace, even. For as Jesus said, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:13, NRSV).


Read more at

http://www.patheos.com/blogs/faithforward/2015/10/where-the-reformation-got-it-wrong-about-the-eucharist/#jWbqKu8dphOVjlwt.99

Cardinal Sarah, Bishop Schneider Respond to Pope’s Comment on Intercommunion

From Catholic Citizen-

Earlier this month, Pope Francis stirred controversy when he expressed  comments about intercommunion while addressing a gathering of Lutherans in Rome.

Responding to a question from a non-Italian Lutheran woman who voiced her regret that she couldn’t receive Holy Communion with her Catholic husband, the pope said that while he would never dare give permission for her to receive the Eucharist because it’s not his competence or jurisdiction, he said she should “talk to the Lord and then go forward.”

Owing to confusion over the pope’s words, we asked Cardinal Robert Sarah, Prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, and Bishop Athanasius Schneider of Astana, Kazakhstan, for their opinion on the matter.

More here-

http://catholiccitizens.org/news/63408/cardinal-sarah-bishop-schneider-respond-to-popes-comment-on-intercommunion/

Breaching seal of confession won’t stop abuse, says Forward in Faith

From The Church Times-

ANY attempt to allow priests to breach the confidentiality of sacramental confession would be wrong, and could lead to priests’ being imprisoned, the traditional Catholic organisation Forward in Faith (FiF) has warned.

FiF’s formal submission to a Church of England working party on the seal of the confessional urges the House of Bishops, the Archbishops’ Council, and the General Synod not to remove the ban on revealing what has been said in confession.

In the sacrament of reconciliation, or penance, a priest is obliged never to disclose what is confessed by a penitent. Canon 113 of the Code of 1603 expresses this, but, the FiF submission says: “The obligation was not created by Canon 113 . . . The Seal is intrinsic to the sacrament.”
More here-

http://www.churchtimes.co.uk/articles/2015/30-october/news/uk/breaching-seal-of-confession-won-t-stop-abuse-says-forward-in-faith

Why the effort to make gay marriage sacramental won't work

From Catholic News Agency-

Dissenting Catholic groups have called for gay marriage to be recognized as a sacrament, but Catholic theology has a clear priority: marriage is God's creation – and not even the Church can change that.

Dr. John Grabowski, a professor of moral theology at Catholic University of America, said that the push for “sacramental equality” by groups such as Dignity USA shows “a lack of understanding of what the Church is and the nature of the Church and what the sacraments are.”

“'Marriage equality' made for a good slogan, but in the Church's understanding, marriage is not something that can be 'redefined'; if you will, by interest groups, by government, or even by the Church itself,” he told CNA July 29.

More here-

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/why-the-effort-to-make-gay-marriage-sacramental-wont-work-48124/

Church's Online Communion: Sacrament or Sacrilege?

From North Carolina-

A North Carolina church's new plans for breaking bread are also breaking with its denomination's wishes.

Central United Methodist Church in Concord, northeast of Charlotte, earlier this year said it would launch a "virtual campus" complete with streaming services, webcam Bible study, counseling via live chat and a dedicated online pastor.

The church also planned for virtual users to be able to regularly take Holy Communion when it is being offered during services: Online users can simply grab some grape juice and any bread or crackers they have in the house, and consume them after the pastor, in the sanctuary, blesses the juice and bread as representing the blood and body of Christ.

The practice, common in many evangelical churches, could help make Christianity more accessible, especially to young people who read the Bible on an app, if at all, the century-old church says. "We believe that God is not bound by space and time," said the Rev. Andy Langford, Central's senior pastor. "We believe that when we bless the bread and the cup in one place, if there are others who are worshiping with us, God will bless that bread and cup wherever they are."

But Central has run afoul of the United Methodist hierarchy. On Friday, the denomination's leading body, the Council of Bishops, declared a moratorium on all online sacraments, including communion, and called for further study of which practices would be acceptable online. The moratorium was declared at the request of an influential group of United Methodist ministers and theologians, who said in a statement that communion is understood to be celebrated "within a physically gathered community."

More here-

http://m.us.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702304868404579194423734251960?mobile=y

Rethinking Community and the Sacraments

From St. Louis-

Have you ever read something that was so striking that you can literally remember where you were sitting and what was going on around you when you first read it, even after many years have passed? A few years ago, my spiritual director recommended a book called Reconciliation: Preparing for Confession in the Episcopal Church by Martin L. Smith. I remember taking a tea break in the cafeteria one afternoon, book in hand, thinking I could just plow through the reading and finish the assignment.

Then I got to the following passage:

“We cannot under any circumstances baptize ourselves. Someone who is baptized has to baptize me. There is always community involved. Reconciliation with God cannot leave me in my solitude, with my individuality and autonomy unaffected, as if my relationship with him were a purely private affair. God’s act of reconciliation in Christ established a reconciling community of the reconciled—the church.”

The words hit me with such force that I got a little light-headed and I felt tears slip down my cheeks. I remember feeling that I had to sit very still and close my eyes, as if the world might simply fall away around me if I weren’t very careful to hold on tight. I believe I was, to borrow a phrase from my evangelical friends, convicted.

More here-

http://www.stltoday.com/lifestyles/faith-and-values/civil-religion/pamela-dolan/rethinking-community-and-the-sacraments/article_dc075c8a-488f-11e3-9159-001a4bcf6878.html

Author Reconnects God with Intimacy in Divine Communion

From RNS-

What can sexual intimacy tell us about God?  Why and how has the subject been downplayed in Christian formation and regulated in Bible study? What dimension of faith have we tossed under the bed and how can we restore the link between food, sexual intimacy, and the longing for God as the hoped-for promise of Divine Communion? Dr. Jay Emerson Johnson, a Berkeley professor and priest celebrating 25 years of service to the church, has written one of the first books to place sexual ethics and intimacy in a liturgical context. “I’m hoping to broaden the scholarly discussion and offer a guide for both clergy and laity to explore the sacramental significance of sexual intimacy,” he said. “Before debating rules and policies, Christian communities ought first to reflect on sex itself, its theological and spiritual significance. The Eucharistic Table provides the best location for Christians to prayerfully engage in that reflection – the Table where the Church has always proclaimed the hope and promise of “divine communion.

More here-

http://pressreleases.religionnews.com/2013/10/18/author-reconnects-god-intimacy-divine-communion/

Online Communion? Methodist Church Debates Offering Virtual Service

From Huffington-

As online worship becomes more common in some churches, leaders within the United Methodist Church are debating whether the denomination should condone online Communion.

About 30 denominational leaders met last week after Central United Methodist Church in Concord, N.C., announced plans to launch an online campus that potentially would offer online Communion. Some nondenominational churches already offer online Communion, according to United Methodist News Service, but leaders urged the denomination’s bishops to call for a moratorium on the practice and do further study of online ministries.

The majority of the leaders agreed with the statement that Communion “entails the actual tactile sharing of bread and wine in a service that involves people corporeally together in the same place.” Not everyone, however, agreed that congregants must be in the same place.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/10/11/online-communion-methodist-debate_n_4084854.html?utm_hp_ref=religion&ir=Religion

No Eucharist before baptism, bishops affirm

From Canada-

Meeting in Niagara Falls, Ont., Apr. 11 to 15, the House of Bishops of the Anglican Church of Canada unanimously reaffirmed that the sacrament of the holy Eucharist is to be given only to those baptized in the Christian faith. “We do not see this as changing for the foreseeable future,” the bishops said in a statement released Apr. 15.

The affirmation came out of a discussion, led by the Right Rev. James Cowan, bishop of British Columbia on the concept of the "open table," in which Holy Communion is made available to everyone who wishes to participate, whether baptized or not.

After the discussion small working group developed the statement to reflect the mind of the House. It acknowledged that “open table” is already being practised in some parts of Canada and that the practice “arises out of a deep concern to express Christian hospitality.” According to the release, “the bishops will discuss and offer guidance to the church on Christian hospitality and mission and how these relate to the Table of Christ” at their fall meeting, scheduled for October in Halifax.

http://www.anglicanjournal.com/nc/news-update-items/article/no-eucharist-before-baptism-bishops-affirm-9693.html