Thoughts for the Day

For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took a loaf of bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, 'This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way he took the cup also, after supper, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this , as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.' For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes.

(New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

Today we give thanks for the service of Holy Communion (also called 'The Mass', 'The Lord's Supper', or 'The Eucharist') which all Christian churches celebrate. My first job as a Deaconess was to be Co-ordinator of an Ecumenical Church (made up of four denominations - Baptist, Methodist, United Reformed, and Church of England) in Gloucester. There were about 8 ministers, but all had other churches, my work was just on the 18,000 people estate.

One of our first tasks was to design the service of Holy Communion, and we started by sitting down in a small room in silence, to write down what that service needed for it to be Holy Communion for our particular denomination. The amazing thing was that when we finished we were almost shocked to realise that the only real differences were in posture (did we sit, stand, or kneel at certain times) and how did we receive the bread and wine (or unfermented grape juice) after it had been blessed (eg from a paten and chalice with wafers, or from individual glasses and bread), not necessarily in words or theology. I did spend the next few years, though, having to say everything three or four ways because each church had different words for similar things (eg Methodists have 'circuits' and Anglicans 'deaneries).

Today's reading is from the Letter of St Paul to the Corinthians and is our earliest record of Jesus' actions and words at the Last Supper. The majority of experts agree that this was written around 55 AD, whereas the first Gospel account (Mark) was probably not written until ten years later. As we take the symbols of bread and wine at Holy Communion, we celebrate a holy mystery, that through God's Grace and the power of the Holy Spirit, we are delivered from our sin. God willing, we shall be able to receive the actual bread and wine again soon. Today, we give thanks for its institution!

Thursday 11th June, follow up thoughts

Lord Jesus,
You taught Your disciples
at Your last supper with them,
to celebrate with bread and wine
and to continue doing this
in remembrance of You.
We pray that we too may
be able to continue
this precious act in the future,
and in the meantime we give
thanks for the institution of
Holy Communion.
Amen.