The Eucharist Explained

A Sample Text for Celebrating Holy Eucharist with Instruction

(Note: this text was prepared several years ago for a specific congregation, St. John's, Huntington, WV, during Pentecost season. It would require adaptation in several places before it could be used intelligibly in another place or season.)

THE HOLY EUCHARIST EXPLAINED

Prelude

AN INTRODUCTION TO THE LITURGY

CELEBRANT
What we are doing together this morning is the same thing that we do almost every Sunday, and sometimes in between. It is the same thing that Christians have done together continuously over the centuries since Jesus said to his disciples, “Do this in remembrance of me.” It is the same thing that the Orthodox Christians call the “Divine Liturgy,” the Roman Catholics call “the Mass,” the Protestants call “the Lord’s Supper,” and we have often called “Holy Communion.” It is the great drama of the Eucharist, our premier act of worship and celebration in the Christian church.

ASSISTANT
All of us come to church on Sunday desiring a variety of blessings. We want to be uplifted, empowered to face the coming week with confidence and strength. We hope to be inspired, in a way re-converted to follow Christ. We want to commune with God and to have an opportunity to pray in a place that has been made holy by the prayers of many faithful people over the years, where the presence of the Holy Spirit has often been felt. We want to be with friends, to make friends, not to be alone. We want to learn about God. We seek to be fed by the risen Christ. We crave the experience of connectedness with the Divine. We ask to be healed. There is a whole complex of human needs, and all of them are met in one way or another, at one time and another. But one need we all share that we may not recognize very often is our need to worship God. If we do not worship the one true God, then we will inevitably find substitute gods, beginning with ourselves, to give our allegiance to. Our spirits will sicken, and they may die. God does not need us to worship him, though we believe he desires our company. We need to worship God. It is not only our duty, but to our benefit to do so.

CELEBRANT
The Anglican Communion is sometimes referred to as a “liturgical church.” We worship using a “liturgy.” Originally, liturgy meant “the work of the people,” and it could refer to any act of public service. What we mean by that word is that it is something we all do together, in an agreed-upon form, with everyone having a role to play. This is perhaps the most important concept to grasp in order to understand and benefit from Episcopal worship: You, the congregation, do not sit in an auditorium as an audience and listen to the ministers as they perform. Rather, you are all performers in the drama. That is why we call our book of worship the Book of Common Prayer, not in the sense of being ordinary, but meaning that it is shared by all. The vested ministers, choir, acolytes, and clergy, are at best stage hands and directors. Ultimately, the audience is Heaven itself. Therefore, we come not primarily as consumers, to get out of worship what we can; we come as participants, to put into the worship of the whole body what we can. Ironically, in so doing, we also get all the benefits ours hearts could desire.

In place of a sermon today, we are going to intersperse the various parts of our liturgy with teaching, in the hope that this Eucharist and all that follow it may become more meaningful for us all.

Entrance Hymn
Opening Versicle and Response

NARRATOR #1

At this point, we have already begun the first half of our liturgy, the Service of the Word. Several other parts of the Prayer Book could have been used for this: Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, Holy Matrimony, Holy Baptism or Christian Burial can each serve as the Service of the Word. Today we are using Holy Eucharist, Rite II, the contemporary language version in use since 1979.
First, you heard music as a Prelude, just to let everyone know that it is time to quiet themselves, body and spirit, to prepare for worship. You may have noticed that most people knelt for prayer when they entered the church. That is partly also to set the tone for worship, but it is also a matter of simple etiquette: when we enter someone’s house, we greet our host! The congregation sits in the church proper, which is called the nave, Latin for “boat.” It represents the Ark of our Salvation, carrying us through the stormy seas of life toward Heaven, represented by the Sanctuary, which begins at the altar rail.
We used an opening hymn to set the mood and theme for the day. This is Pentecost season, the “ordinary time” of the church year. The hymn lyrics are carefully selected to complement the scripture readings of the day and reinforce their overall theme. The Procession is partly just a way to get the worship leaders into their places. But it also means something. The ministers enter from the west entry vestibule, called the Narthex (like being born into the church through baptism), they walk down the aisle, representing the journey through life, the straight and narrow path. At last, they enter the sanctuary, which signifies the kingdom of heaven. This is the pattern and model for Christian living, and the whole congregation follows this same path as we come for communion. Notice who leads the way—the Crucifer, or cross-bearer, “lifting high the cross.” Most people bow as the cross passes, indicating their reverence for Christ, for the cross is his victory sign.

NARRATOR #2

While we are talking about the symbolism of architecture in the church, let us notice some other details. In many Episcopal churches, the baptismal font is at the west door, representing the entrance into the kingdom of God through baptism. Ours is not there, simply because it will not fit, and would not be consistent with the period of our building’s design. We have our font at the crossing of the aisle, however, in the center of the aisles to proclaim the centrality of the importance of baptism, and on this side of the altar rail, because baptism is the admission rite to receiving communion. The altar is also in the center of the sanctuary, raised on a dais, the most prominent item in the church, because Holy Communion is the very heart of our gathering. The pulpit and the lectern are in the sanctuary, but at the sides, because preaching and reading God’s word are important, but not the focus of our worship. Flowers discreetly acknowledge the beauty and perfection of God’s creation, but they also are not at the center. The traditional color for the season after Pentecost is green, the color of creation. The two candles on the altar remind us of the Word of God in Old and New Testaments. Most visible of all is the Cross, our reminder and proclamation of Christ’s victory over sin and death through his own death and resurrection. In fact, it is not an accident that the church building itself is traditionally in the shape of a cross when viewed from above.

NARRATOR #1
Since this is Pentecost season, the first words of the celebration itself are the greeting for ordinary time, “Blessed be God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.” The people respond in agreement. Then we say the Collect for Purity as a preparation for our worship. In most Episcopal churches, the celebrant says this prayer on everyone’s behalf. Here at St. John’s we say it together. Next we move to a seasonal hymn. The oldest and most traditional one would be Kyrie Eleison, “Lord, Have Mercy,” which we use in Advent and Lent. In this season, it is common to sing another ancient hymn, the Gloria in Excelsis. We stand throughout this section of the liturgy, because it is primarily about praise.

Gloria in Excelsis.

NARRATOR #2
Now the Celebrant leads us in the Collect of the Day. There is a different one of these for every Sunday of the year, and more for other occasions as well. They are printed in the Prayer Book, but we print ours with our scripture inserts for convenience. At the end of the Collect for the Day, we will sit to listen to the readings from Holy Scripture.

Collect of the Day

The first lector comes to the lectern.

NARRATOR #1
It is appropriate for lay people, male or female, young or old, to read the scripture lessons. These volunteers are called Lectors, and they read from the Lectern. The first lesson is normally from the Old Testament, except during Eastertide, when it is from Acts. At the end of the lesson, they usually say, “The word of the Lord,” and the people respond, “Thanks be to God.” Following the first lesson, there is a “Gradual Psalm,” originally a song to transition to the next lesson, because Psalms were the first hymns of both Judaism and Christianity. The Psalm is often read, as we are doing, either in unison; or responsively by whole verse or half verse; or antiphonally, from side to side. We also sometimes chant the Psalm using an ancient Gregorian chant tone, perhaps being led by a cantor. This congregation also is familiar with Anglican chant, which allows for singing in harmony. Chant is different from metrical hymns. If you are not familiar with it, perhaps the easiest way to participate is to listen and read for a couple of verses, then just jump in and give it a try. You will quickly learn to feel the tone changes even if you do not read music. Chant is not about performance. It is about participation--quiet, meditative, communal, and attentive.

First Lesson

Psalm

The second lector comes forward

NARRATOR #2
We have two lectors just to share the opportunity to serve. The second lector reads the second lesson, which is always an Epistle, and later he or she will lead the Prayers of the People. The selection of readings is not arbitrary. They are from a three-year cycle of readings which cover almost the entire content of the Bible. This is year A of the Common Ecumenical Lectionary, which we share with the Roman Catholic Church and all of the mainline Protestant denominations. That means your friends in other denominations are likely to be hearing the same lessons that we are, with just a few occasional exceptions. This lesson ends with the same response as the first lesson.

The Epistle

NARRATOR #1
After the second lesson, we will sing a hymn called the Sequence Hymn to transition us to the Gospel Reading. This hymn focuses particularly on the Gospel text. It is our custom to sing half before the Gospel, and half after. This way we have music to cover the Gospel Procession as is goes into the nave and as it returns. There are several reasons for the Gospel Procession. First, it is left over from an ancient time, before microphones, when there was a platform called the Ambo in the center of the congregation from which lessons were read. In most Jewish synagogues, a platform like that still exists. Secondly, the procession dramatizes the idea that Jesus brings the Word of God among the people. Finally, it gives the Gospel reading prominence as the most important scripture reading of the day. We never celebrate Eucharist without a reading from one of the gospels. The gospel is properly read by a deacon, but the celebrant or an assisting priest may also take that role, since every priest is also an ordained deacon. It is not read by lay persons at a Eucharist. The deacon introduces and concludes the gospel reading with its own chanted versicle and response.

The Sequence Hymn and Gospel Procession

The Gospel

2nd half of hymn


ASSISTANT

Now we would normally have a sermon, which is intended to be a response to the Gospel reading of the day, though it might well take into consideration the other readings or the season or occasion as well. All the clergy are expected to preach, and some laity may be licensed by the bishop to preach also, if they have completed training which the bishop considers to be satisfactory preparation. We also have Lay Readers, who are licensed to lead public worship such as Morning or Evening Prayer or even Burial. Faith Balshaw and Dr. Tom Wilkinson are licensed Lay Readers here. They lead worship in the absence of clergy, but do not preach original sermons.
Immediately after the sermon comes the Nicene Creed, which summarizes the content of our faith in response to both the gospel reading and the sermon. Then the lector leads us in the Prayers of the People, in which we lay forth our intercessions, petitions, and thanksgivings to God in order. Everyone is invited to add their own prayers, either silently or aloud, in each category. This month, we are using Form Two. During Pentecost season, we generally rotate choices by month.
The General Confession in our tradition replaces private confession prior to receiving communion in the Roman Catholic tradition. The Celebrant pronounces God’s absolution, which is understood to come from God, not from the priest himself. Then comes the Exchange of the Peace, a very ancient part of the liturgy. It once involved kissing on both cheeks! At St. John’s, we’re usually satisfied with a friendly handshake, or maybe a hug. Notice where the Peace occurs: it is only in the moment of receiving absolution, after confessing our sins, that we are qualified to greet our sisters and brothers in Christ without fear of barriers between us. The Peace is exchanged with our neighbors, whoever they may be.

CELEBRANT
The Passing of the Peace marks the end of the Liturgy of the Word and the transition to the second half of the liturgy, the Great Thanksgiving. In between, we have our welcome and announcements.

Nicene Creed

Prayers of the People

Absolution

Peace

Welcome

Announcements



NARRATOR #1

The Offertory is the first act of The Great Thanksgiving. In it, we offer the bread and wine for the communion and also the gifts of money we have pledged for the support of the mission of the church. The choir sings an anthem while the offering is being collected in order to preserve the atmosphere of reverence. Also, while this is going on, the deacon or celebrant sets the table for communion. At the end, a server pours water over the fingers of the celebrant. This is not so much a matter of hygiene as an act of prayer for purification, and it is left over from Jewish rites. The celebrant puts on an outer garment called the Chasuble. These vestments cover the person of the celebrant and signify the assumption of a specific role as representative of the whole congregation.

The Offertory

The Anthem

The Presentation Hymn

NARRATOR #2
The Eucharistic Prayer today is Prayer C, the most contemporary one we have. It has several parts. First, there is the Sursum Corda, Latin for “Lift your hearts.” This is a very old exchange between celebrant and people. Notice that we are actually told by the celebrant that we should be happy while we do this! It is our great act of celebration and thanksgiving, and it is to be joyful. During some seasons, our celebrant may chant the opening of the Eucharistic prayer as a very traditional and festive celebration. The people respond.
Eucharistic Prayers A and B have a Proper Preface inserted for the season. These are also printed in the Prayer Book and vary according to the day or season. But Prayers C and D do not include that prayer. In all of the forms, we continue with the Sanctus (“Holy, Holy, Holy”) and Benedictus (“Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord…”) combined. We stand for the first section, and may remain standing for the whole Eucharistic Prayer, but at St. John’s we follow the traditional custom of kneeling at the end of the hymn for the remainder of the prayer. Standing indicates joining in participation. Kneeling signifies reverence. The Eucharistic Prayer includes remembrance of God’s action in creation and redemption of the world, the Words of Institution when Jesus established the sacrament of Holy Communion, and the Epiclesis, or blessing. Our communion does not specify exactly how or when the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Christ. We simply acknowledge the mystery that they do. If you listen carefully to the Eucharistic Prayers, over time you hear and notice some statement of virtually every doctrine of Christian theology.

NARRATOR #1
During the Eucharistic Prayer, the bread and wine are elevated and shown to the people, and a bell called the Sanctus bell may be rung. This is an ancient sound effect that reminds us to pay attention, for what is happening is important. It is left over from a time when the prayers were in Latin, and little understood by the congregation. But even now, minds can wander. Our worship uses all the senses—color, movement, spoken word, music, even smell, taste, and touch--in one way or another to help worshipers to participate fully. The Eucharistic Prayer concludes with the Lord’s Prayer, which we all say together. Then the bread is broken, signifying Christ’s body broken for us.

Sursum Corda
Proper Preface
Sanctus
Lord’s Prayer
Fraction

The Celebrant and Deacon prepare other vessels

NARRATOR #2
In the Episcopal Church, we recognize the baptism of all the Christian communions, and baptism is the one qualification to receive communion. Therefore, we invite all baptized Christians who are admitted to communion in their own church to receive the Body and Blood of Christ with us. What we share at the Lord’s Table does not belong to St. John’s or to the Episcopal Church: if you belong to Christ, then this sacrament belongs to you. There was a time when children did not receive communion until they reached the age of ten or twelve. Now we give communion to baptized children when they are old enough to ask for it. We wouldn’t want their earliest memories of church to be about getting rejected from the family meal. Also, in doing this we acknowledge that understanding the sacrament is not essential to receiving benefit from it. None of us really comprehends how Christ is present to us in the sacrament. We only know that he is.
There was a time when many Episcopalians complained that having communion every Sunday was too much, and we would get tired of it. Now we find that on those Sundays when we don’t offer communion, attendance drops off sharply. If we don’t receive communion on Sunday, we feel as if our worship is not finished.

NARRATOR #1
To take communion, come down the aisle following the people in front of you, and take a place at the rail on the same side of the church as your pew. You may kneel or stand. Place your right hand atop your left hand, palms up and open, to receive the host. If you are going to drink from the chalice also, or if you are going to decline the cup, go ahead and eat the bread. But if you want to dip the host into the chalice, which is called intinction, hold the host until the chalicist comes by to serve the wine. You may offer the chalicist your host to dip into the chalice and return to you, or you may hold the host and dip it yourself into the small intinction cup. We prefer that you not dip your own host into the large chalice to keep fingers out of it.

NARRATOR #2
The use of the common chalice is a centuries-old tradition in our church, dramatically symbolizing our one-ness in Christ. While it is considered good manners to decline the cup when we have any kind of known infection, out of consideration for others, it should also be noted that in all of our church’s history, no illness has ever been known to have been spread by the communion chalice. Episcopalians, and especially Episcopal clergy, who drink after everybody in the congregation, have no more colds or other illnesses than any other segment of society.
We generally sing a hymn while communion is being distributed. There is also plenty of time for individual prayer. If you need some suggestions for something to pray about, don’t forget the congregation’s prayer list, the people who are receiving and distributing communion, and the whole congregation.
At St. John’s we also offer the sacrament of Unction, an ancient Christian practice rooted in scripture. Unction is anointing the head with oil, which has been blessed for the purpose of healing. It is accompanied by laying on of hands and prayer for a gift of healing. If you wish to receive anointing, you may go to the side chapel after you receive your communion.

The distribution of communion



NARRATOR #1

After everyone has received communion, the deacon attends to cleansing and putting away the communion vessels. Then we re-unite in a final prayer, said together, called the post-communion prayer. This prayer gives thanks for what we have received and asks for God’s help in our ministry in the world as we depart.
Some of our members are unable to attend Eucharist because of illness or frailty. Therefore, we send communion directly to them, via trained and licensed Lay Eucharistic Visitors. After they are sent forth, the celebrant blesses the congregation, often with a seasonal blessing, to equip us for our service and ministry.

Post Communion Prayer

NARRATOR #2
We have carefully avoided using the word “service” to name our worship, although that is the common term in the larger Christian community. What you have just attended is not the church service. Rather, the service of the church begins when you walk out the door. Our service is not in the church, it is in the world. The world also is our mission field, and it, too, begins at the church door.
We will sing a final hymn to inspire us for our mission as the ministers lead the way out, again led by the cross. Finally, the deacon or a priest dismisses us. It is fitting that the congregation gets the last word: “Thanks be to God!” Our Great Thanksgiving for the Lord’s Day is now complete.