When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And he said to them, ‘I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfilment in the kingdom of God.’ After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, ‘Take this and divide it among you. For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.’ And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
Luke 22:14-20 NIVUK
British people are weird. And before you all scream at me for committing the crime of racism, let me put you straight: I'm qualified to say so because I am one.
Why am I saying such a thing? Well, it could be for any number of things. For chasing a huge cheese wheel down a hillside. For dancing about in white, bells and streamers tied around our ankles, and banging little sticks together. For normalising men wearing skirts. For inventing a complicated language and getting all upset when our simpler cousins make it easier. For inventing the rules around football/soccer and then not being any good at it. For inventing sports that don't require exercise. Take your pick.
But we are at our most strange every 5th November. You see, on 5th November, 1605, a Catholic rebel, Guy Fawkes, tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament with the king inside. He failed. He was caught and he was hanged for the crime.
As a result of his failed terror attack, what do we do? Well, we light massive bonfires, often with his effigy on them. And we let off loud fireworks that traumatise our much beloved pets.
That's right. To commemorate a failed attempt to blow stuff up, we... blow stuff up.
What a bunch of weirdos!
Now, here's the thing. The Lord's Supper, Communion, is a sacrament that commemorates an act of barbaric violence. In one sense, it succeeded. Its intended victim, Jesus Christ, died. But in another sense, it failed. Its purpose was to bring an end to Jesus and His movement. But since He rose from the dead and we are in church, it's pretty obvious that it didn't work.
For those who aren't Christians and have little knowledge of the Gospel, the Lord's Supper is strange. It's an oddity.
My mildly autistic niece observed her first communion, and as the wine was being handed round in little tiny cups, announced, "Is that all you're having? No wonder you all have tea and biscuits afterwards!"
In Communist Eastern Europe, the Communists spread a lie to put people off celebrating the Lord's Supper. They said that because Jesus likened the bread to His body and the wine to His blood, and some Christian traditions believe that the bread becomes His body and the wine His blood, then the Lord's Supper is an act of cannibalism.
Looking at our rituals and the things we do, it must be very confusing for an outsider. They literally have nothing with which to compare it. It simply has no analogy in the secular world.
Yes, there is no doubt that it commemorates an act of unjust and undeserved brutality against a religious leader, but it means so much more than that. It is among the most important rituals a church can carry out. It is critical to its existence.
But why do we do it? And what does it mean?
That is what we will seek to explore, starting with THE CHURCH'S MEMORY.
Sadly in some churches if what you are or not wearing appears unacceptable you are not permitted to receive communion. In another church if you are visiting unless you have a recommendation from your own church you cannot receive communion. Time for the church to return to biblical practice of communion.