From our Pastor
What is the Sacrament of Communion … and Why is it so Important?
By Pastor Kristen Buchs
Sunday, October 4, is World Communion Sunday. The sacrament of Holy Communion invites us to focus on the holiness of communion with God and one another. On World Communion Sunday United Methodists, together with other denominations and believers worldwide, celebrate communion to recognize our unity in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. There are actually six major themes present in Holy Communion: thanksgiving, fellowship, remembrance, sacrifice, action of the Holy Spirit, and eschatology, according to This Holy Mystery: A United Methodist Understanding of Holy Communion, which was adopted by the 2004 General Conference of The United Methodist Church.
But first, what is a sacrament? In her book, Worship for the Whole People of God, author Ruth C. Duck writes, “In a classic definition ascribed to Augustine, a sacrament has been called an outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible grace.” John Wesley, in accordance with Anglican beliefs, endorsed Augustine’s definition and “viewed the sacraments as [a] crucial means of grace, ‘an outward sign of inward grace, and a means whereby we receive the same,’” according to By Water and the Spirit, A United Methodist Understanding of Baptism. It is in the celebration of the sacraments that believers have the most tangible experience of faith, since the celebration of the sacraments involves actual, physical elements: water in the sacrament of Baptist; bread and wine, or juice, in Holy Communion. For these reasons, and others, the sacraments play a major role in Christian ministry and worship. The fact that Jesus Christ Himself received the sacrament of baptism and instituted the sacrament known as Holy Communion give these rites their significance. Baptism initiates us into Christ’s church and the Lord’s Supper sustains and nourishes our faith as we journey through life together as His body, the church.
I believe we can all agree with Duck who writes “sharing meals is a central theme in the Gospels,” and “was at the heart of the day-to-day ministry of Jesus and of the earliest church.” It is in His blessing and breaking of the bread at one such shared meal that the risen Jesus revealed Himself to two of His disciples who were on their way to Emmaus. Jesus’ disciples had seen Him bless and break bread time and time again during the three years they lived together, at meals in many different settings and with widely diverse groups of people. The church has continued to celebrate this meal and has sought to strengthen the connection between the sacraments and everyday life. In other words, Jesus is present with us not only when we celebrate the sacrament of Holy Communion at church; the sacrament reminds us that He is present with us in our daily lives and whenever we sit down to share a meal together. “Through Jesus Christ and in the power of the Holy Spirit, God meets us at the table. God, who has given the sacraments to the church, acts in and through Holy Communion.” 1 Christ Himself invites us to the table which is open to all people; our sin reserves us a seat at His table. Please join us at His table this Sunday, October 4!
1(This Holy Mystery: A United Methodist Understanding of Holy Communion. Copyright 2003, 2004 The General Board of Discipleship of the United Methodist Church, PO Box 340003, Nashville TN 37203-0003.)