Eliz–> The communion each year at EC would make the price of the retreat well worth it just for that alone, don’t you think? I’ve had the privilege of leading communion at the women’s retreat several times over the years and each time remains a special memory for me.

Lor –> I read your comment the other evening and went to bed thinking about what you had written; partly because I’m curious to know what’s kept you from daring to come to the table and partly because your words gave me an idea, that perhaps we might have a SisterFriends Communion here sometime in the near future. I’m mulling over how it might happen and when it does, it would be my hope that you’d dare to join us at the table, in God’s presence.

Bon–> Ha! You’re so right, unleaven bread is symbolic of the passover bread but I would imagine the bread the Israelites prepared when leaving Egypt and the passover bread Jesus shared centuries later were just a wee bit more tasty than those 3x3cm wafers. Whether wafer or loaf, each can be so packed with meaningful symbolism and so while I would never want to take away from the experience of others who receive it any other way…for me, I’m a loaf girl.

Katherine–> My guess is that in some Christian traditions (Roman Catholic for one) the unleavened wafer is chosen intentionally based on spiritual reasons however, I think for the majority of Protestant churches it’s less about the spiritual implications and more about the convenience and cost. Yes, you really buy those wafers in bulk through church supply houses and you’ll be happy to know most have a one-year shelf life. And just to ease your worry, you can also purchase a plastic dispenser that’s filled with grape juice and then with the click of a lever dispenses it in pre-measured portions into the little plastic cups. Where there’s a need, there’s an industry to provide for it though I must admit, I tend to prefer the image of a church member dusted in flour, baking the communion bread in their home kitchen rather than a wafer plant in an industrial park that turns out massive quantities of wafers to be boxes, stored and then shipped out with the next order.

Those squares were a real curiousity too. Where is the factory that churns those things out? Do they come from a magazine that sells church supplies? If so, did that magazine sell more palatable communion “bread”? And if they did, did our churchs just buy the little squares because they were the most economical? Did those little squares ever go on sale? Those were just a few of the questions that I pondered every communion.

It would be nice to receive communion with a lovely fresh baked loaf of bread. Wow! The whole experience and symbolism sounds really great. Anyway, this was a nice post. With all the childhood memories, it just made me laugh and smile.

Oh, taste and see, that the Lord is good.

Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmmeeeeennnnnnnnn

“I want risen bread.”

Anita, how appropos that the risen Lord be remembered with risen bread! I know the tastes-like-glue squares and the pease-sir-can-I-have-some-more-as-I’m-choking-on-this-glue juice of which you speak, having grown up on them myself. I guess the thinking was it had to be unleavened, but it certainly didn’t have to be without ingredients altogether!

You get me to thinking all metaphorically. Risen. With substance. Palatable. Soft. Something you’d want to eat every day. Enriching.

Much better as the rememberance of our Lord.