From the weekly bulletin 3-17-19 of the Anglican Church of the Holy Trinity
Throughout the ages, Christ's followers have gathered
to hear God speak through Scripture, praise Him in psalms, hymns and
spiritual songs, offer prayers of petition and thanksgivings, and of course, participate with Him in the Lord’s Supper, obeying Jesus' commandment to "do
this in remembrance of me."
The
liturgy of the Lord’s Supper, however, is more than remembering; it is
participating in this event in the present.
As surely as Jesus was present with his disciples 2000 years ago, Jesus
is present with us at our celebration of that event. Jesus promised us that He would be present. Christ is not only with us the Lord's Supper, He is touching us,
nourishing us, blessing us and changing us as we gather around His Table.
The liturgy of the Lord’s Supper is known by various
names, but in our tradition it is most commonly known as The Holy Eucharist. Eucharisto is a Greek word meaning
Thanksgiving, and if you understand Christianity at all, you know that we
indeed have much for which to be.
The word Liturgy from it Greek root means, “Work
of the People;" so, in the Eucharist Liturgy we are not observers of worship, we are doers of worship.
Jesus’
institution of the Lord’s Supper infuses new meaning in another table
celebration, the Jewish Passover Meal. Passover
is a remembrance of the deliverance of God’s people
from the Angel of death and into a new life of hope and promise. In the Eucharist we celebrate the reality
that Christ is our Passover. Through
Christ, death passes us over and we are given new life in Him. We
eat the broken bread and share the common cup as a sign of our unity in faith
and belief under this reality. The Eucharist is God's family gathered around God’s table, a reality that last forever.
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