The Eucharist: Tired Tradition or Cornerstone of the Faith?
15 Mar
I’m discussing the place of the Eucharist (Communion, Blessed Sacrament, Lord’s Supper, or whatever your tradition calls it) at our small struggling Church in a few weeks. I’m looking forward to the challenge of getting everyone as enthused about the tradition as I am… although undoubtedly I will fail. Long term I think I can wear everyone down with my incessant pestering, “Isn’t this just so cool? What an amazing tradition that has lasted all these years. Eh? Eh?” on and on I’ll go until people start to see the light.
A few years back I sat on the Porch of Potbelly’s sandwich shop on the eve of Easter and expressed to my wife that I didn’t really care anymore. It wasn’t that I hated the idea of Jesus’ resurrection. It was just that it was all so familiar and hum drum. I just couldn’t fake the enthusiasm anymore. This was also a low point in my Eucharist taking. Now I see that my perspective on the Resurrection of Jesus was directly tied to my view of the Eucharist. As one rose so did the other.
I was never a big fan of coffee. Then I read a book by Howard Schultz (founder & CEO of Starbucks Coffee) and within a few short months I became a certified coffee snob. I was never really a big fan of the Eucharist. That is until I read the likes of N.T. Wright and became a certified Communion snob. I had never heard anyone talk so passionately about the implications of the Resurrection. He says, that the Eucharist is remembering that God has promised to resurrect all of creation. That it’s full of hope. Not just that you can go to heaven one day but that at the end of all things- love will win. When you take that bread and cup in your hands you’re saying, “I remember that God gave himself up so that the world could be set right. I remember the sacrifice of Jesus. I remember with all of the Christians through the ages that there is hope.” To me that’s really beautiful.
They say that to be passionate about something you have to interact with someone who is passionate about it themselves. I hope to be that person for others when it comes to the Eucharist.
I find that studying and learning more about the Jewish culture of the Bible has really brought some “excitement” to understanding things like the passover, communion, and even why Jesus folded the cloth in the tomb after He was resurrected. Understanding the symbolism gives life and meaning and that is what causes me to get excited about the things of the Lord.
i have always kind of enjoyed communion, but I do think I am at a similar place with prayer, like i need a fresh perspective on it. I can’t help but think that while i’m praying i should “feel” God in some way. That it should be like talking to my best friend, because this is what people have been saying to me since birth. In all my life praying to God has never felt like talking to a human, and at this point i think that kind of talk is crazy. That being said I would like some handles on, what is the experience of prayer supposed to be like? ya know what i mean?
I really like communion. There is something that hits you deep in your soul thinking about the hundreds millions of people through out history that have taken the bread and the wine ( or grape juice) in remembrance of Him.
Thanks for chiming in man. Yeah I’m thinking it would be good to maybe get outside the evangelical tradition when it comes to prayer. Not that it’s all bad but there are definitely other perspectives out there.
Hey Brett, I really enojoyed reading this post. Sara J.
@Debbie I agree. Getting a feel for 1st century judiasm can be huge in understanding what Jesus was up to.
@Sarah glad you liked it
I hope you can be that guy for me. We did communion every week at the church I used to go to, and I’m still burned out on it. Communion just became this boring part of the service that I had to suffer through every week. I don’t want to view it that way, but that’s honestly where I am right now. That’s actually where I am with a lot of church and Christianity. I am burned out, and I no longer see the beauty in any of it. When I look at the sky I still remember Christ’s beauty, but that’s about all I have for the moment.
The Eucharist has never lost its sexy for me. Maybe that’s partly because I’ve always been in churches that mostly neglected it, but it’s a hugely fundamental rite, resonant with the sacredness of a shared meal, recollecting the most important event in human history and looking forward to the consummation of the marriage of the Lamb. I can’t help believing that the problem is that evangelicals (and, hey, probably most Christians) don’t really read their Bibles (and I’m not meaning to indict you, Brett, but the culture and community that I suspect you, as I, grew up in) and Evangelical doctrine is based less on the simple (but profound and powerful) narrative and imagery of the Bible than it is on Western philosophy.
Thanks for chiming in Joel. Yeah I think you’re right about the evangelical church drifting from the biblical story. It’s almost as though we said, “Sure the church has some old rituals but I’ll bet we can create better ones. I know, let’s get in small groups and share our feelings!”