This post carries on my recent exploration of how the Restorationist vision of having a church following the New Testament pattern actually works in practise. So far I have looked at liturgy, worship, and leadership. Now “communion”, which is the preferred name in Restorationist circles for the “Lord’s Supper”, “Breaking of Bread”, or “Eucharist”.

It’s obvious enough that the communion meal was important to the early church. Acts 2 and 1 Corinthians 11 indicate that it was a regular feature of church life. But as with so many other aspects of church life, we are not given precise instructions as to how to conduct the meal, and how often to hold it.

The Restorationist churches I have been to all seem to follow a typical Baptist church structure. The Lord’s Supper comes at the close of a time of worship, probably once every four Sunday meetings, and follows a fairly fixed pattern – a Bible reading (usually 1 Cor 11), a prayer, and a time of quiet contemplation as the bread and grape juice are passed around.

I can’t help wondering whether we fail to properly appreciate this meal. Perhaps it is because it is not celebrated as a meal at all – only the smallest amount of bread and wine are actually consumed, and no one speaks to one another during the whole affair. Of course it is understandable why things are done this way – the logistics of providing a meal to over 100 people are not easy.

Another issue that many new churches have with the communion meal, is that it seems too liturgical and sombre for them. We are used to a very informal meeting style, and generally trying to be upbeat and happy all the time. As a result it can seem like an awkward intrusion into the normal program - something we do because we ought to, rather than because we want to. Please don’t misunderstand, I don’t feel that it is done in an inappropriate way - just that it doesn’t seem to be something we do really well.

For some time now, I have been thinking that the communion meal is perhaps something that small groups could be encouraged to make use of more. Meeting with up to a dozen people in someone’s home is an ideal setting to enjoy fellowship together. Time in prayer, worship and Scripture reading, with maybe a short meditation on one of the many rich themes found in the meal could be included. This way it doesn’t feel like communion is being squeezed into an already busy meeting schedule.

My first attempt at this was earlier this year, and I’m hoping to make this a more regular feature of the cell group I am leading. I still think there something very important about the whole church gathering together for communion, but if we are serious about following a New Testament pattern, then there should also be times when we break bread together in our homes (Acts 2:46).