Holy Communion in the Episcopal Church

This is intended to explain how and why we celebrate Holy Communion at St. Philip’s each Sunday. We hope it will familiarize you with our service before you visit, or, if you are a life-long Episcopalian, you may still learn more about the service.

We begin each Sunday with the Liturgy of the Word, which includes the singing of hymns, reading scripture and the sermon. Most of you are familiar with these elements of the service. We begin our explanation with the second half of the service, called the Liturgy of the Table.

The Liturgy of the Table, or the Holy Communion, contains four parts: the Offertory, the Prayers, the Fraction and Communion.

The Offertory
The first of these four parts is the offertory. From the earliest history in the Christian church, the sharing of possessions formed an integral part of the liturgy of the Eucharist. As St. Ambrose says, “Everything belongs to God – both the seeds and the seedlings that grow at his nod, and are multiplied for the use of humankind. It is God, therefore, who gives all things, and God who orders them to be shared with those who need them…this is justice: that we restore to the needy because it is God who gives.”

When we offer our gifts, we are giving back to God what is already God’s. This includes our gifts of bread and wine that we use in the service. These are fruits of the earth, and the work of human hands. They will be returned to God in the Great Thanksgiving, to become the Body and Blood of Christ. In our offerings of bread and wine, we are giving ourselves back to God – all that we have, all that we have done, all that we are. We, too, will become the Body and Blood of Christ.

Liturgy always does three things: it remembers the past, it proclaims what is happening in the present, and it looks forward in hope to the future. The Eucharist is at once a memorial of Christ’s life and death, participation here and now in his resurrection, and a foretaste of the heavenly banquet of the Reign of God. You will hear all of these themes reflected as we pray over the bread and the cup.

We pray together over the gifts. Although most of the Eucharistic Prayer is said by the priest alone, it is said in the name of, and as the prayer of, the whole assembly. This is why we stand for this prayer, indicating that we are all active participants, or concelebrants, of the Eucharist.

The Prayers
Prayer is the second part of the Liturgy of the Table. Our prayer is called The Great Thanksgiving because “Eucharist” means “to give thanks”. It opens with a dialogue in which we all take part.

Celebrant:          The Lord be with you.
People:              And also with you.
Celebrant:          Lift up your hearts.
People:              We lift them to the Lord.
Celebrant:          Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
People:              It is right to give him thanks and praise.

It is right, and a good and joyful thing, always and everywhere to give thanks to you, Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth.

Preface:
Therefore we praise you, joining our voices with Angels and Archangels and with all the company of heaven, who for ever sing this hymn to proclaim the glory of your Name:

Then we all join in singing the acclamation, “Holy, Holy, Holy Lord.” This is called the “Sanctus.” It is the song of unity of the whole Eucharistic community: past, present, and future, reminding us that communion in the body of Christ knows no boundaries of time or space.

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.

The prayers of Consecration which follows the Sanctus, are based on the Jewish blessing over bread and wine and include three essential parts: the words of institution said by Jesus at the Last Supper; the anamnesis, Greek for “memorial,” which recalls the passion, resurrection and ascension of Christ; and the epiclesis, the petition which asks God to send the Holy Spirit upon the bread and wine and on all of us gathered as the body of Christ.

Holy and gracious Father: In your infinite love you made us for yourself; and, when we had fallen into sin and become subject to evil and death, you, in your mercy, sent Jesus Christ, your only and eternal Son, to share our human nature, to live and die as one of us, to reconcile us to you, the God and Father of all.

He stretched out his arms upon the cross, and offered himself, in obedience to your will, a perfect sacrifice for the whole world.

On the night he was handed over to suffering and death, our Lord Jesus Christ took bread; and when he had given thanks to you, he broke it, and gave it to his disciples, and said, “Take, eat: This is my Body, which is given for you. Do this for the remembrance of me.”

After supper he took the cup of wine; and when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, and said, “Drink this, all of you: This is my Blood of the new Covenant, which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Whenever you drink it, do this for the remembrance of me.”

Therefore we proclaim the mystery of faith:
Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.

We celebrate the memorial of our redemption, O Father, in this sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. Recalling his death, resurrection and ascension, we offer you these gifts.

Sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of your Son, the holy food and drink of new and unending life in him. Sanctify us also that we may faithfully receive this holy Sacrament, and serve you in unity, constancy, and peace; and at the last day bring us with all your saints into the joy of your eternal kingdom.

All this we ask through your Son Jesus Christ. By him, and with him, and in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory is yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

We have said with one voice the Great Amen, ratifying and making our own the words spoken by the leader of our assembly. Now we prepare to share the gifts over which we have given thanks, praying together in the words of Christ whose body we are.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy Name, they kingdom come, they will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, bur deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Fraction
The third part of the Liturgy of the Table is the Fraction, the breaking of the Body of Christ, reflective of his sacrifice for us on the cross. Therefore, we spend a moment in silence in honor of his gift to us. The bread is broken that it might be shared, and in this broken bread there is a symbol of ourselves.

[Alleluia.] Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us;
Therefore let us keep the feast. [Alleluia.]

The Gifts of God for the People of God.
Take them in remembrance that Christ died for you, and feed on him in your hearts by faith, with thanksgiving.

Communion
The final part of the Liturgy of the Table is communion. And so, we come to the sacrament as a grace-filled people, singing with one voice and standing around Christ’s table as a gathering of persons in community, friends of Jesus and so, friends of one another. We each answer “Amen” to the words of the ministers as we receive the bread and the wine. We become what we receive.

The Body of Christ, the bread of heaven. [Amen.]
The Blood of Christ, the cup of salvation. [Amen.]

Here at St. Philip’s, all baptized Christians are welcome to receive communion at our table. To receive the bread, place the palm of the right hand over the palm of the left. When the chalice is presented, grasp the base to assist in guiding it to your lips. If you do not wish to drink from the chalice, continue to hold the host in your hand and the person administering the chalice will take it from you, dip it in wine, and place it on your tongue. If for whatever reason you are unable to receive the bread and wine, but you would still like to be recognized as a member of this body of Christ, you can come forward to receive a blessing. Simply place your arms across your chest and we will know to pray for you.

We join together in song as a reflection of the joy we feel at having been filled with the presence of Christ. Out of that joy, we give thanks for the gift that has been given to us through Christ by praying the words of the prayer of thanksgiving following communion.

Eternal God, heavenly Father,
You have graciously accepted us as living members
Of your Son our Savior Jesus Christ,
And you have fed us with spiritual food
In the Sacrament of his Body and Blood.
Send us now into the world in peace,
And grant us strength and courage
To love and serve you
With gladness and singleness of heart;
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Having prayed that what we have shared may bear fruit in our lives, our celebration is complete. We prepare now to be sent out into the world by the dismissal, to be in all our activities, together and separately, what we have become through our sharing of this sacrament, to work for the coming of Christ’s reign in all the world, that it, too, may be lifted up to become Christ’s body, united in the bonds of love and peace.