Holy Communion (con't.)

The Lord’s Supper forms the church into a community of evangelism that reaches out to preach, teach, baptize, and make new disciples of Christ.  Through the grace received in continual participation in the Lord’s Supper, the community of faith reaches beyond itself to proclaim and exemplify the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ.  As members of the congregation partake of the Lord’s Supper, the bonds of love within are strengthened and the worshiping community is empowered to reach out in dynamic and meaningful ways to evangelize and to work for peace and justice.

As followers of Jesus, who ate with sinners and reached out to the marginalized, the church must intentionally concern itself about those who are absent from Christ’s Table – those who feel unworthy, the poor, the unconverted, victims of prejudice, and others who are oppressed or neglected.  The church is to consistently identify and seek out those who feel unwelcome, even excluded, from its congregations, and to invite them to become part of the body of Christ and join in its celebrations of Holy Communion.

The sacraments are God’s gifts to the gathered body of believers to form the church into Christ’s body in ministry to the world.  Through Holy Communion, the Holy Spirit works to shape our moral and ethical lives.  In the ongoing process of conversion, we grow in personal and social holiness and are empowered to work for healing, compassion, reconciliation, justice, and peace.

Thus Holy Communion is to be conducted in ways that make apparent the inherent link between the Table and holy living, both individual and corporate.  Participation in the Eucharist should bear fruit in the world in attitudes and actions of personal and social holiness.  As we eat and drink, we are motivated to act compassionately for those whose physical, emotional, and spiritual needs are unmet.

Receiving the bread and wine as products of divine creation reminds us of our duties of stewardship of the natural environment in a time when destruction and pollution imperil the earth, and unjust distribution of the planet’s resources destroys the hopes and lives of millions.