May 2020 Pastor’s Corner – What to do about Communion?

We are about to begin our second full month under quarantine, and under normal circumstances we would be celebrating the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.  As we all know, however, these are not normal circumstances.  How do we celebrate the sacrament in these times?  Should we celebrate the sacrament during these times? Is it possible to celebrate the sacrament “virtually”? These are questions pastors and elders have been wrestling with over the past month.

As the kids say these days, the “TL;DR” (too long; don’t read) answer that your Session has come to, is that for right now we, once again, will not be celebrating the Sacrament  this month.

Now for the (slightly) longer version.

As said, these are unusual times.  Someone commented to me the other day how much they appreciated the online worship service, as it provided a sense of ‘normal’ in very abnormal times.  That’s one of the key reasons why we are doing our best to keep the order of service as much as normal as possible.  But, these are nevertheless unusual times, and there are some things we might normally do that we hold off on until we get back to normal, and the Lord’s Supper is one of those things.  Our “virtual worship” is a blessing, but it is not a replacement for the real thing.

The Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper is inherently communal and physical.  As a visceral, physical experience it is one of the most tactile moments in our worship service.  It involves all of our senses – taste, touch, smell, sight, and sound.  It is also communal; it is an act of the community.  While we are symbolically together through Facebook Live, yet we are not physically together.  It’s like when traveling for work.  I can still FaceTime my wife and kids, which is better than a phone call, but it’s not the same as being physically present with them.

Much like the spiritual discipline of fasting is meant to remind us of our deeper longing and need for God, it is our hope that as we “fast” from communion, it would remind us of how the sacrament serves as a ‘sign and seal’ of our salvation.  As one theologian said regarding this absence, “the practice of the sacrament is an aid to our faith, it’s absence is not a detriment.”  It is our hope and prayer that the absence of the sacrament will foster in each of us a longing for that wondrous day when we, once again, gather together as a congregation to worship our Savior and celebrate this sacrament once again.

Blessings,

Rev. David Garrison