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

An ‘ecumenical Mass’ is impossible, says German cardinal

From Catholic Herald-

Catholics and Protestants do not have enough in common to celebrate a so-called ‘ecumenical Mass’, a German cardinal has said.

Cardinal Rainer Maria Woelki of Cologne said there is “no basis” for such a service because the denominations “do not agree on the central issues” around the Eucharist.

The cardinal explained in the Kölner Express that for Catholics, the Eucharist is not just a common meal; it is the true Body and Blood of Christ in the transubstantiated gifts of bread and wine. Protestants do not have this understanding.

The Real Presence is an “incontrovertible certainty” for Catholics, he said. As long as these differences exist, there can be no “common supper”.

More here-

http://catholicherald.co.uk/news/2017/11/03/an-ecumenical-mass-is-impossible-says-german-cardinal/

The adoration of a body snatcher

From The Living Church-

I was called to the hospital to administer last rites. Sarah was dying, and her husband, Sam, was keeping vigil. Sarah was unconscious, and I told Sam that I’d like to say some prayers together, anoint Sarah with oil, and then celebrate Communion.

And so we did. As I’ve learned to do, I broke up one of the wafers into tiny pieces, and invited Sam to place a small piece in his unconscious wife’s mouth. We stood in silence at the bedside for some time, until finally, when I felt the moment had landed, I turned to begin cleaning up the Communion supplies. Then something odd happened.

Sam cut between me and our makeshift altar; he grabbed the paten still laden with the broken host, and said, “Oh, I’ll clean this up for you, Father,” and proceeded to the sink. I panic-froze. I didn’t have the presence of mind — or, more accurately, the courage — to stop him. I winced inside, and decided to let it happen. But then something even less expected happened.

More here-

http://htl.li/44PH30fJRoo

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

Behind the Rail

From The Cafe-

They come as supplicants, lining up at the rail, hands cupped to receive the bread, some with their eyes down, some looking up at the altar, a few making eye contact. Most kneel, those with rickety knees stand, some hold infants or fuss with toddlers squirming beside them. I speak softly, gently, crouching down to allow a child to dip the wafer in the cup, instructing a visitor about what to do, clasping someone’s hands to help steady their hold on the chalice. These are intensely private moments and it’s as though we are meeting each other in a place that no one else can see.

There is nothing slapdash about communion in the Episcopal church. We are a denomination steeped in tradition, so we tend to do things properly, respectfully and with reverence. There is an exquisite beauty in the formal ritual, in the reciting of ancient words, in the vestments and organ music, in simply occupying a space that does not look like the commercial world we inhabit the rest of the week. Our church offers a brief respite from the constant bombardment of the secular.

More here-

https://www.episcopalcafe.com/behind-the-rail/

GRACIOUS ACCEPTANCE

From The Living Church-

Every now and then familiar words in the Book of Common Prayer stand out and speak to me with new force and meaning. That’s been my experience with a phrase in one of the post-Communion prayers. Here’s the prayer in its entirety:

Eternal God, heavenly Father,
you have graciously accepted us as living members
of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ,
and you have fed us with spiritual food
in the Sacrament of his Body and Blood.
Send us now into the world in peace,
and grant us strength and courage
to love and serve you
with gladness and singleness of heart;
through Christ our Lord. Amen. (1979 BCP, p. 365)

As with so many of the prayers in the BCP, there’s a lot to unpack here. But what stands out for me is the phrase you have graciously accepted us.

For some, the question remains open whether God really accepts them. They worry that if they’ve sinned and haven’t repented, what hope can there be? They live in anxiety and perhaps even fear of what awaits them on the other side of death. An assurance of salvation eludes them.

More here-

http://htl.li/uOrd30dCXfg

Vatican Says Communion Bread Must Contain Gluten

From Time-

The Roman Catholic Church will not allow its congregations to be given gluten-free wafers (called hosts), or bread, for celebrating the Eucharist during Mass, according to its latest directive at the behest of Pope Francis.

The ban comes from a letter to Catholic bishops worldwide, published Saturday by Vatican Radio. The detailed guidelines are needed, according to Cardinal Robert Sarah of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, as Eucharist bread and wine are widely available for sale nowadays, "even over the Internet."

Bread and wafers used in the sacrament "must be unleavened, purely of wheat, and recently made so that there is no danger of decomposition," the letter reads. "Hosts that are completely gluten-free are invalid matter for the celebration of the Eucharist."

More here-

http://time.com/4850893/vatican-gluten-free-eucharist-communion-wafers/

No, You Can’t Have a Sip

From Huffington-

My mother, by her own admission, pretends to be an alcoholic every Sunday. She contemplated converting to Catholicism, not because Pope Francis was such an inspiring faith leader, but because forgoing the wine during communion is much more commonplace in the Catholic church, as opposed to the Episcopal. Why is she not so inconspicuously shooing it away in the first place? Germs.

Growing up, my mother forced me and my brother to dip our communion wafer in the wine, rather than take a full sip, hoping this would somehow cut down on the transference of germs. During flu season, she would tell us to “just pretend” to dip. Basically, my brother and I were encouraged to be deceitful while in the midst of taking the sacrament of communion.

More here-

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/teresa-carlton/no-you-cant-have-a-sip_b_10121238.html

Anglicans could receive Roman Catholic communion, Archbishop suggests

From The Telegraph-


The Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Rev Bernard Longley, signalled that restrictions, which can be traced back to the Reformation, might be “reconsidered” as a result of “deeper sharing” between the two churches.

Although he insisted that he was expressing a “personal view”, the Archbishop’s comments will be closely watched as he is the senior Catholic cleric responsible for dialogue with the Anglican churches.

His remarks were warmly welcomed by leading figures in the Church of England who said it was time for closer ties.

For centuries, the issue of communion was a source of some of the deepest and most bitter division between protestants and Catholics.

In the 16th and 17th centuries Christians from both traditions were put to death because of disagreements over their beliefs on transubstantiation – whether the bread and wine in Communion are the real body and blood of Christ or a symbol.

More here-

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/religion/10373268/Anglicans-could-receive-Roman-Catholic-communion-Archbishop-suggests.html

As flu outbreak spreads, faith leaders preach caution

From The Washington Post-

As the flu outbreak spreads across 48 states, some religious leaders are advising their flocks to take precautions, but others say avoiding infection is just a matter of common sense.

Several Catholic dioceses, including Manchester, N.H., Boston and New York, are advising priests to consider not offering the shared chalice of consecrated wine at Holy Communion at Masses. Communicants would only receive the consecrated wafer.

In addition, Manchester Bishop Peter Libasci had other suggestions, reported The Eagle Tribune of North Andover, Mass.

“The faithful should be encouraged to share the Sign of Peace without touching hands or kissing,” he said. “This may be done with smiles and a bow of the head in reverence to one another.”

In Boston this month Mayor Thomas Menino declared a public health emergency as hospital emergency rooms were overwhelmed with flu patients. The Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts has recommended “reasonable precautions,” such as avoiding “self-intinction” during Communion, during which congregants at the altar rail dip the wafer into the wine.

More here-

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

God’s Mission is the Eucharist

From The Living Church-

Anyone surveying the various addresses by bishops to their respective diocesan conventions, or the rhetoric employed in all sorts of ecclesiastical conferences and meetings, would be hard pressed to avoid coming upon the phrase “God’s mission.” The currency of this phrase is customarily used to purchase a rationale for the existence and purpose of the Church. For example, one will read or hear that the Church exists for God’s mission rather than for its own sake.

This emphasis is often coupled with the effort to redirect our attention away from the inner life of the Church and toward its engagement with the world. The appeal is made to stop arguing about all the contentious issues facing the Church (usually made by apologists for the contentious acts) and get on with God’s mission in the world. Such a church, the one defined by its going into the community and the world on God’s mission, is declared “missional.”

“Missional” is the adjective of approval; it is how we separate the sheep from the goats. Being missional is the way forward, the way we leave behind all those difficult disagreements with their reliance on doctrine, on the substance and authority of belief. If we could just get out there doing what we are supposed to be doing, while equipped with all the demographic studies on what baby boomers really want and what generations X and Y like and dislike, and with the imprimatur of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals, everything will be fine.

More here-

http://www.livingchurch.org/news/news-updates/2011/1/14/gods-mission-is-the-eucharist