Yesterday morning’s Covenant Service contained an unexpected joy: one little girl took Holy Communion for the first time ever. She and her mother didn’t know the Methodist policy. As I came to people kneeling at the rail, I wasn’t sure whether she was holding out her hands for the bread or not. I asked her, ‘Would you like communion?’ She nodded. I gave her some bread. As with other young children, I dispensed with the words, ‘The Body of Christ keep you in eternal life’ (much as I love them). Instead, I said, ‘Eat this to remember how much Jesus loves you.’
Only afterwards, over coffee, did we discover it was her first time. She had the kind of radiant smile that every disciple should naturally display from time. Simple explanation – mostly by my wife – followed.
It wasn’t the only reason to smile at the sacrament, either. Rebekah, our four-year-old, announced in her usual loud voice that the wine ‘tastes like Cola’. If only it did. Not that I’m a big Coke fan, I just can’t believe how disgusting most communion wine is. Today I heard about an Anglican church in the south of France that serves claret. (Wrong region of France, I know, but I feel like driving there, even though I’m currently on tablets that are incompatible with alcohol.) I don’t see why communion has to be tasteless or foul on the tongue. Is that an unworthy thing to say? I see Holy Communion as an attractive thing, not an act of spiritual misery.
Then Mark, our three-year-old, told the wider congregation when everyone at the front had finished. No space for that quiet reflection on them knees before the I blessed them and they returned to their seat. Mark let everybody know time was up, and they should be off. Which is theologically apt, don’t you think? Communion services end not simply with a blessing but a call to mission – words such as ‘Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.’
Afterwards, Rebekah and Mark assisted the communion stewards in washing up. Well, no, they didn’t wash up, they downed the contents of unused wine glasses, enjoying more ‘Cola’. I’ve never understood those Christians who want to limit the amount of communion they have. I’ve seen that attitude in a few different ways. I have met some Christians who have one swig of the wine, and if any remains the glass, they don’t drink it. Others won’t take the sacrament more than once in the same day – oh, the sin I committed in my first circuit when I scheduled morning and evening communions on the same Sunday one month. Apparently you need to sleep between sacraments. Perhaps a siesta would suffice. Or there are those who think that weekly communion would make it less special. While I hold a pretty low church view of the sacraments, I have to say I can’t understand those who don’t want more Jesus. We can be greedy for more of him, can’t we?
Technorati Tags: holycommunion, children, sacraments, covenantservice
Big Circumstance 
Re ‘communion tasting foul on the tongue’. Two words: grape juice. The only problem being that it’s not storeable forever and ever, amen. But I buy it and then my husband and I drink the leftovers in water like squash. And when I’m doing communion at residential homes, I can down whatever is left over without feeling like I’ve just poisoned myself with chemicals.
I also accidentally committed the crime of scheduling a morning and evening communion – admittedly by mistake. Only one person was upset, though, insisting that they couldn’t have communion twice in one day. I think this has filtered into general culture from Catholicism and I think that the ‘rule’ there is more to stop people being obsessive than any grand theology, although I stand to be corrected by someone who knows better.
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Pam,
Grape juice? Quite so. Some manufacturers manage better than others, though. Although there is then the question I think you’re alluding to when you talk about poisoning yourself with chemicals, namely the quantity of additives.
Catholicism and frequency of communion? Yes, my memory is the same. It had something to do with fasting before taking the sacrament – not something I’ve noticed our people rush to do! Especially as the church where the service happened yesterday has a weekly breakfast before the morning service!
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Dave, I’m not sure I communicated well. I’m talking about fresh grape juice from the fresh fruit juice section of the supermarket. No additives. Problem is that it doesn’t keep for more than a fortnight (depending on sell-by date, of course).
Today, I did manage to pick up some grape juice in a UHT carton in Tescos, but it will have a limited shelf-life when I open it.
When I go to residential homes, we use a common cup and I can drink whatever is left without fear of poisoning myself. (I guess not a problem for some people but I can’t bring myself to just chuck it out.)
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Ah, it makes sense now! I’ve done the same! And don’t get me started on tiny squares of bread … 🙂
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