Quick Poll: Will your church celebrate Communion on Easter?
Why? Communion Sundays are more logistically challenging than other Sundays, and thus combining Easter with Communion Sunday (since it is on the first of the month) adds a another layer of considerations.
I’m curious how other churches are handling it and why.
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*EDIT* Blah, stupid poll. Just comment below or vote on the external website here. Blogger needs polls.
We take communion every Sunday so there is no additional coordination needed (except perhaps preparing for a few more people in attendance).
Glad to hear it, Matt. My former parish celebrated communion weekly so this was never a consideration. Indeed, the only Sunday we didn't have communion was Palm Sunday…since we had it on Maundy Thursday during the week.
At one Church we are not because we have a Baptism, and at my other we are. Nothing really different than any other time of the year, trying to get people to do it more often anyway.
We are PC-usa not having communion simply because it is a longer service for Easter and it is the first Sunday for our new pastor. We held communion Maundy Thursday and will have it next week.
We are first because it is Easter and a feast day of celebration and second because it is the first Sunday of the month. We would have it even if it wasn't the first Sunday.
We are celebrating Communion on Easter Sunday at Albright in Ponca. My goal? To move to weekly Communion.
As an ABC church, we are serving communion. Even though we offer communion once a month, there will be people there who may not receive communion normally because they only come Christmas and Easter.
i'm all for communion every week… the "great thanksgiving" can be very celebratory, and i'm very wesleyan – the more the better!
We're at weekly communion; have been for some time. Communion defines us – it's who Jesus people are. A couple of years ago a couple of people were hesitant, thinking it would become less meaningful. In no time they were reporting that quite the opposite had happened – it has become richer and deeper in power and meaning. Logistically it does create come challenges, especially on a Sunday that sees more people in worship. Our solution is to just have more stations, a la Annual Conference, or other large worship venues.
Theologically speaking, if we believe that the sacraments are a means of grace — which Wesley said they were & I tend to agree — it's almost an imperative for the church to celebrate the Eucharist on the "high holy days" when people who don't generally come will be present. While communion is not the only means of grace, it's importance cannot be understated. We do a disservice to those Christmas-Easter church goers if we don't do communion on Easter.
Practically speaking, "Communion Sundays" might be longer and they might be more complicated, but my recommendation is to get over it. Good planning and preparation will make it smoother. But, seriously? How difficult is it, really? And if your congregants get antcy after a set amount of time, tell them to just deal with it. We worship a timeless God, not the clock on the back wall.
(In the interest of full disclosure, I do not posses the spiritual gift of tact…)
Excellent response. I wholeheartedly agree.
We have communion monthly at both my churches, and we will be celebrating it on Easter Sunday. First, because I figure that I got about 20% of the congregations on Maundy Thursday, so there are many left who still want to commune, second because it's the first Sunday of the month and it's time for communion, third because it's Easter and I think it's appropriate especially for the 'C&E' crowd to experience, and fourth because I really could cry buckets about my service running past an hour. It's going to be meaningful and phenomenal. I've moved it to the beginning of the service as a sort of flashback to the last supper, then at one church a moment of silence recognizing the crucifixion and at the other a monologue that references it, and then we 'begin' the celebration of the service with Christ the Lord is Risen Today.
I expect it'll be less than 1:45. And it'll be sacred. Beyond that, I make no promises about time. tough bananas. 🙂
We will have communion on Easter Sunday. See no reason not to.
Isn't communion somehow more directly associated with Easter? I don't know; didn't Jesus supposedly break bread with some of the disciples after the resurrection? Does that count? Isn't it also a celebratory feast? My minister acts like he doesn't get that. Why do some people seem to act like communion is just about the death of Jesus? It has layers and layers of multiple meanings, no?…but yes, we did have communion this Easter… and yes, the service did last a long time…and yes, better planning could have helped that time situation a lot.
we will be having communion on Easter Sunday. We remember that Jesus shared the cup/bread at the last supper, he broke bread with the men at Emmaeus, ate fish next to the shore with his disciples, and we look forward to sharing a meal with him again at the great marriage supper of the Lamb.
Our church has weekly communion, which I love. I have been baffled though because for the last several years they don’t have communion on Easter Sunday. We recently hired a new head pastor, and I am truly hoping he changes this pattern.
Is there any problem in having communion on Easter Sunday? I think our church has communion every week.