I've become increasingly annoyed this week as I visited my blog and was reminded of my experience in a church down the road.
It's possible you may have as well, hence this new post and photo.
Sarka Valley Community Church (SVCC) in Prague, Czech Republic is a community of Christ followers who have a very different (and dare I say much more scriptural!) understanding and practice of the Eucharist than the church I attended this past Sunday.
My final Sunday with SVCC in February 2010 was a day which I hope to never forget. Following a heartfelt sermon from a dear friend, our full attention was drawn to the wine and bread which sat on the table in front of us.
It was a morning which as a church community we gathered around the table to share the Eucharist together. We stood in one circle as was our custom. This allowed me to see and love each sister and brother whom I had worshiped with and befriended over my seven years in Prague.
The prayer and blessing over the bread was beautifully and eloquently made as the loaf was broken and passed from believer to believer. This, followed by the chalice of wine.
A miscommunication regarding the children that Sunday kept them in the service rather than having them dismissed as they normally would have been. Happily, this allowed me to see my Prague Christian family in its fullness around the table of fellowship one final time.
I was honoured to bring before each child a bowl prepared with a mixture of milk and honey. They would not drink the wine as it was passed, but could dip their piece of bread into the milk and honey as a sign of their journey and the promise that they are welcome to into the Kingdom; symbolic of the promise to the Israelites of a Land flowing with milk and honey.
Tears filled my eyes as I moved from child to child, holding the small yellow bowl. My hands trembled from emotion as I encouraged each child to dip their piece of bread in the sweet mixture. Peter, whom a few years back I had visited in the hospital after his birth; Anna, whose family was recently baptised and became members; Maggie, Leo and Marcela who visited faithfully with their parents once a year when their dad came to study at the seminary; Selina, a young girl, who quite quickly moved from a 6 year old in pink ruffled skirts to a teenager with braces and wearing skinny jeans.
These children will never remember that Sunday, but I will never forget it as together with their parents and others in that chapel, we embodied the love and shared the peace of communion together in and with Christ.
The Eucharist is a celebration! It is the very essence and the clearest sign of our Christian communion together, our sharing of the peace and embracing sisters and brothers in genuine love, and of our recognizing and remembering Christ, our Redeemer. It cannot be approached and received in this 'fast-food' manner, as a dear friend below has stated. It's not the hasty distribution of plastic two-for-one cups, to be consumed quickly so as to not take time away from the worship songs and the message.
The Eucharist is the message.
I was delighted to be asked to participate in the opening chapel service for Calvin Seminary this autumn. Worshiping as a community has become very meaningful to me and I appreciated very much the opportunity to draw people's thoughts together in prayer for the coming year.
