A Connections article I wrote some time ago, about Communion, brought an unusual number of responses. Almost all were enthusiastic. Several readers liked the whole issue so well that they made copies and distributed them to church groups they were in.
In that article, I wrote about my most memorable experiences of Communion on three very different occasions.
The three experiences this reader was referring to were:
None of these experiences was in a church building. I didn't kneel at any altar. On one of the occasions, no one else was physically present. On two no clergyperson was present, and the traditional words, bread, and grape juice were missing. Yet for me, these experiences, more than the hundreds of times when I’ve taken Communion in traditional settings, were true Communion. I think God was present in all of them. What do you think? When has Communion meant most to you? What makes Communion Communion?
One reader, however, objected to my calling some personal experiences Communion. He wrote, "Of the three significant spiritual experiences you listed, only one would qualify as Communion." The others, he said, in which no clergyperson officiated and the standard words were not spoken, "were not in the technical sense Communion."
Jesus wasn't prescribing a method. I doubt that "the technical sense" matters to God. When Jesus said "Do this in remembrance of me," I don't think he was defining a precise method for us to follow. We don't know the exact words he said, and they were in a language we don't speak, so their basic intent is all we can hope to duplicate. He evidently used the ordinary food and drink that happened to be available, and an ordinary room. And he often berated groups like the scribes and Pharisees for emphasizing procedural technicalities instead of intentions.
Christian tradition includes a wide variety of religious practices, and there's no reason to see tradition as a universal or perpetual rule. So although we need some consistency in how we present Communion in our worship services, I don't think God cares whether our individual experiences qualify as Communion in what anyone else defines as "the technical sense."
Have you ever had a profoundly spiritual moment in life that seems to have stuck with you much more strongly than “technical” church sacraments?
Whether you’re a longtime Connections reader or a newly connected friend who shares some of my concerns about the church and the world, I’d love to hear from you. You can email me or visit my website to get in touch.
