“For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, “This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.” (1 Corinthians 11 v 23 – 26 – please see note at foot)
“Do this in remembrance of me,” is a clear instruction from Jesus to his followers during the Passover meal, or Last Supper, and immediately before the events which would lead to his death. And so, as followers of the resurrected, living Jesus we too follow that instruction and together we eat bread and drink wine in remembrance of him. Remembrance is subtly different from ‘remembering.’ It means honouring the memory of a person or event. But for the Christian there has to be the element of bringing the past into the present. The bread and the wine are symbols - signs that just as Jesus was present with those first disciples 2000 years ago, so he is present with us now.
At EMC we celebrate Holy Communion once a month, usually on the first Sunday of each month, but check ‘What’s Happening’ to confirm. (Depending on your device e.g. phone, tablet or lap-top, hovering over or clicking on the service title e.g. Morning Worship, will display whether the service includes Holy Communion) Again usually, but not always, we follow the liturgy set out in the Methodist Worship Book so the words become familiar and more meaningful.
Anyone who sincerley believes in the Risen Jesus is welcome at our communion table.
Note. The quote, from Paul’s letter to the church at Corinth, is just one of 4 accounts of the commandment of Jesus to “do this in remembrance of me.” It is probably the earliest account having been written around 56 A.D. and pre-dating the earliest Gospel (probably Mark) by some 13 to 15 years. (1)