As a family we have been using video calls to connect and to
spend time together. The other evening Hannah and I cooked dinner together. She
in Ashland, Oregon and me here in Kenmore, Washington. It was a lot of fun. We
chatted and gossiped like we would have if we had been in the same kitchen. She
cooked an amazing curry and potato dish while I prepare crockpot pulled pork.
It was fun to compare what we were making. Yet, I could not taste her dish, nor
she mine. No matter all the connections and fun and kidding and camaraderie, we
could not really share a meal together. There was still something missing.
As we worship together online, I know some have been
wondering about Holy Communion. While I understand people’s desire to share in
the Lord’s Supper in the way we are sharing God’s word, we must be careful in
how we understand Holy Communion.
The first thing we must consider is whether we think Holy
Communion is magical. For some the Pastor is the only one who can preside at
the Lord’s Supper, as if this person has some magical power that others do not.
No, for the sake of good order we set aside someone in our community to lead us
in the sacramental life of our gatherings. The second is whether we think that
Holy Communion is something that can only be shared in a church building or in
a special setting. Again, this is not true. In fact, if you would like to share
the Lord’s Supper in your home you may do that yourself. If you would like
guidance please email me and I would be glad to help.
A third consideration is the very act itself. What
constitutes the Lord’s Supper? Here I will quote from the Book of Concord
and the “Solid Declaration,” Article 7:
But this “blessing” or the
recitation of the Words of Institution of Christ by itself does not make a
valid sacrament if the entire action of the Supper, as Christ administered it,
is not observed (…) On the contrary, Christ’s command, “Do this,” must be
observed without division or confusion. For it includes the entire action or administration
of this sacrament: that in a Christian assembly bread and wine are taken, consecrated,
distributed, received, eaten, and drunk, and that thereby the Lord’s death is
proclaimed, as St. Paul presents the entire action of the breaking of the bread
or its distribution and reception in 1 Corinthians 10:16. (Kolb, Robert and
Wengert, Timothy, J. “The Book of Concord: the confessions of the Evangelical Lutheran
Church” (Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 2000), 460)
So, just as Hannah and I mimicked cooking together we could
not embody the meal together. The physical sharing is absent, the “here you go,
eat up” is missing.
It haunts me that we are not sharing in this important sacrament
together, but we have, throughout history, taken time away from the sacrament
for the sake of our neighbor. This is nothing new. For me, this is a time in
our own wilderness like Jesus and his 40 days away from his community. And in
this time of isolation for the sake of our neighbor it is good for us to long
for the day when we will be together again celebrating and eating and drinking
the life God has given us.
But I also want to let you know that through our online
worshipping community the Gospel and the Word of God is indeed being shared. It
is also conveying the other sacramental reality of our lives – our baptisms.
Through Baptism we have been joined forever as siblings in Christ. This reality
is what we celebrate online when we sing together, pray together, hear God’s
word together, and yes even laugh and cry together.
So, please know that we are living out our communal life together
in online worship and that you are still a precious child of God. Let us all
look forward in hope to the time we can gather around the Lord’s table
together!
If you are interested in reading more on this, please check
out this article by Prof. Dr. Dirk Lange: Digital Worship and Sacramental Life in a Time of Pandemic.
