What is Communion, and is that different from the Eucharist?
The Eucharist is the same as Communion or the Lord’s Supper or Mass. The word Eucharist is from a Greek word meaning, "thanksgiving." The Eucharist is the principal act of Christian worship and reminds participants of the Last Supper when Jesus shared bread and wine with his disciples. We believe that we are united to Christ through the Eucharist, and the prayers and actions of the Eucharist follow the four-fold action found in the New Testament: take, bless, break and share.
Episcopalians believe in the Real presence of Christ in the bread and wine shared at the Eucharist. Real presence does not imply that we know how Christ is present, or that the bread and wine cease to be bread and wine.
The Eucharist is the same as Communion or the Lord’s Supper or Mass. The word Eucharist is from a Greek word meaning, "thanksgiving." The Eucharist is the principal act of Christian worship and reminds participants of the Last Supper when Jesus shared bread and wine with his disciples. We believe that we are united to Christ through the Eucharist, and the prayers and actions of the Eucharist follow the four-fold action found in the New Testament: take, bless, break and share.
Episcopalians believe in the Real presence of Christ in the bread and wine shared at the Eucharist. Real presence does not imply that we know how Christ is present, or that the bread and wine cease to be bread and wine.
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The Catechism (teaching of the Episcopal Church) notes that the inward and spiritual grace given in the Eucharist is “the Body and Blood of Christ given to his people and received by faith” (BCP, p. 859). Christ is present in the elements of the Eucharist as well as the community gathered to participate in the celebration. |
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