Communion Changes

FROM THE RECTOR

Although our Communion liturgy has evolved significantly since Jesus broke bread in the upper room with his disciples, its defining characteristic is its enduring continuity. “Do this in remembrance of me,” Jesus said. Whenever we break bread and share the cup in Jesus’ name, we participate in a sacred remembrance that we recognize as the last meal Jesus shared with his disciples. The bread and wine may not taste the same, and the words and gestures that accompany the meal are clearly later elaborations, but the sacrament of Holy Eucharist has more or less been the same for all these years.

During the pandemic, we have had to modify our Communion practices a number of times, and, each time, those changes have rubbed against what is importantly familiar. Some of those changes have, in my opinion, gone so far as to call into question the continuity upon which we depend, yet we have made them out of necessity. Years from now, perhaps, we will look back and assess the ways in which those adaptations were theologically sound, but, in the moment, they have felt meet and right.

Now that Covid cases are on the rise and hospitals are near capacity, we need to change yet again. Starting this week, wine will be offered from the common cup but only by the clergy, who will carefully intinct the bread into the wine before dropping it into your hand. Then, as you move away from the Communion station, you are asked to remove your mask in order to consume the elements before quickly replacing it. This will minimize contact with the chalice and the amount of time that masks are off, and it allows clergy to ensure that no one’s fingers accidentally dip into the wine.

One of the unfortunate consequences of this change is the loss of freshly baked bread by our Bread Guild. Besides also reducing the necessary physical contact required during administration, the relatively non-porous wafers provide a much easier and tidier substrate for dipping into the wine before dropping into someone’s hand. Ideally, the amount of wine left on the wafer will offer us a meaningful reception of Christ’s blood without also leaving a puddle in our hands, but I admit some uncertainty about how best to accomplish this balance. Hopefully, we will figure it out together very quickly.

If you do not want the wine, you are asked to cross your arms over your chest before extending your hands to receive the bread. As we have stressed throughout the pandemic, receiving Communion in one kind is as spiritually full and sufficient as receiving in both. Those at home are still encouraged to worship online and pray the Prayer for Spiritual Communion as the congregation comes forward. 

This practice, while new to us, has been used during the pandemic by many across the Anglican Communion, including the Church of England, as a way to ensure that the people are offered both the bread and the wine. As I have written before, one of the central principles of our tradition is that the common cup be made available not only to the clergy but to everyone. Earlier in the pandemic, we suspended the use of the common cup entirely, and I lamented that decision and felt the theological and practical dissonance that it represented as a heavy burden. This new approach will be strange in other ways, but I think it will help us maintain more fully our connection with this ancient practice.

There may well be other difficult changes ahead. We will continue to monitor infection rates and hospital capacity. So far, we know of no one in our parish who has been hospitalized because of Covid—thanks be to God!—but, if our parishioners become seriously ill and begin to contribute to the strain on the health care system, we may need to stop meeting in person. Because so many in our parish are under twelve, we may consider offering an outdoor service for those who do not feel safe worshipping inside. Ultimately, we know that widespread vaccination is the only way to move beyond the crippling and deadly effects of the pandemic, and I urge anyone who is eligible and not vaccinated to get the shot today, and I ask you to pray for all who are at risk and for the speedy and safe availability of the vaccination for all ages.

Yours Faithfully,

Evan