Transforming Eucharist

Reimagining Communion in a Contactless World

by An Ecumenical Anthology

Transforming Eucharist
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Transforming Eucharist

Reimagining Communion in a Contactless World

by An Ecumenical Anthology

Published Jan 31, 2021
120 Pages
Genre: RELIGION / Christian Living / Leadership & Mentoring



 

Book Details

COVID-19 has changed everything, including how, and even if, we meet Christ at the Communion table. Spiritual leaders are wrestling with how to feed the souls of God’s people while keeping the body of Christ healthy and safe. As a gift to the Church, this collective of cutting-edge Christian leaders, ministers, and scholars invites you to witness our struggle and join us in:

• Asking hard theological questions;

• Offering practical, real-life solutions rooted in different traditions;

• Casting a prophetic vision amid challenging and changing realities.

We never expected to face this future, and the good news is, none of us has to face it alone. Together, we can still come to the table in response to Christ’s invitation: “Do this in remembrance of me.” Are you in?

 

Book Excerpt


Jesus has called the Church to celebrate with the bread and the cup, a Christian ritual commonly called Communion, or Eucharist, or simply the table. Through the ages, the words, practices, and even languages have varied, but the invitation to the table has remained. In today’s global and digital world, the Church faces new opportunities and challenges related to gathering for this meal. Particularly in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, how can we feed souls this life-giving meal while keeping our bodies healthy and safe?

We are a collective of cutting-edge Christian thinkers, leaders, ministers, and scholars who feel called to speak into this changing, challenging reality. Our story began when the COVID-19 pandemic upended everything we knew about church. In the blink of an eye, worship went online. Our faith communities went virtual. And that left churches everywhere wrestling with whether, and how, to offer Eucharist/Communion, one of the core practices of Christian faith. 

Some churches took a leap of faith and began offering Eucharist online.

Other traditions chose to suspend the Eucharist, trusting that the Spirit would nourish her people in other ways.

Others have inhabited a space of uncertainty and wrestling.

Still others modeled what it looks like to faithfully and responsively change course as the pandemic spanned not weeks, but months and counting.

Rooted in each of our traditions, we have come together to ask and answer hard questions and to cast a vision for what it means to be faithful here and now to Christ's command, "Do this in remembrance of me."

We offer this ecumenical anthology as a gift to the church so that others can learn from our faithful attempts to address the long-term implications of current events on sacramental theology and practice. It is our hope that by sharing these visions of Eucharist, others might feel more free to think creatively about the decisions facing their own communities. Ultimately, we hope that our sharing helps others to feel less alone in this uncharted territory.

 

About the Author

An Ecumenical Anthology

You don’t want to miss this cutting-edge book featuring the following authors, representing diverse Christian traditions and perspectives: Rev. Dr. Joseph L. Boysel, Diana Butler Bass, Ph.D., Rev. Dr. Mindy Johnson-Hicks, Katie Kuntz-Wineland, M.Div., Rev. Steve North, Rev. Wil Ranney, Kurt Struckmeyer, Professor Deanna Thompson, Ph.D.

Also by An Ecumenical Anthology

The Wealth of Poverty
A Bias Toward Action