Changing the Words of Communion

Is it appropriate to change the words of Communion?

Although the question as posed seems to require a simple yes or no, there are several dimensions to consider before answering. First, is it appropriate to change the words of our ritual? Second, which words in the liturgy are we discussing; and third, why would a presider or liturgical planner think about changing traditional words of the liturgy? Then we can address whether or not we should change the words.

Let us recognize that changing the words of our ritual is something we may do for pastoral reasons, but that it should always be done with great care and respect for Christian tradition and with the intent to maintain the unity of the church. The General Conference provides "official" ritual resources as a living symbol of the unity of the whole of Christ's church and of our connection with all other United Methodist congregations.

Which words might we want to change? There are two places in the Lord's Supper liturgy that a local congregation or a team planning liturgical events about and with children might consider adapting because they link the food of the meal with the "body and blood" of Christ. The two places are the "words of institution" in the "Great Thanksgiving" of the Word and Table liturgies from the United Methodist Hymnal and the words spoken directly to the recipients, including children, as the bread and cup are served.

The Words of Institution
The "Great Thanksgiving," in which we find the "words of institution," is a prayer addressed to God. The prayer is the second of four ritual actions for the Lord's Supper that are modeled on the actions of Jesus on the night of his last meal with the disciples and on his actions at the table in Emmaus. The actions are: take (preparing the bread and cup); bless (giving thanks over the bread and cup); break (breaking the single loaf of bread and raising the cup); and give (the bread and cup are given to the people). Simply stated, the first part of the prayer blesses God, the second recalls Jesus, and the third part invokes the Holy Spirit. At the point where the prayer turns to recalling the Last Supper, the prayer becomes a narrative of the actions and words of Jesus. In "Word and Table I," the words about the bread are from Luke 22:19 and those about the cup are from Matthew 26:27.

On the night in which he gave himself up for us,
he took bread, gave thanks to you, broke the bread,
gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me."

When the supper was over, he took the cup,
gave thanks to you, gave it to his disciples, and said:
"Drink from this, all of you;
this is my blood of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
in remembrance of me."

These words are commonly called the "words of institution," and they are universally used with the Lord's Supper.

The Giving of the Bread and Cup
Also under discussion by some local congregations and liturgical planners are the words spoken to children as they receive the bread and cup. The fourth ritual action, giving the bread and cup to the people, is accompanied by the server speaking the individual's name, followed by "The body of Christ, given for you" and ""The blood of Christ, given/shed for you." Thus, the two places in the liturgy considered in this article are the "words of institution," which are the words that Jesus speaks over the bread and cup, as recalled in the Great Thanksgiving, and the words spoken to the individual at the point of being served the bread and cup.

Why would words sacred to the tradition be changed for children? The question grows out of our desire to help children understand the meaning of the Lord's Supper and experience the sacrament on their own level so they are welcomed into the ritual and not excluded. When children are present in worship, particularly for the Lord's Supper, we want to make every effort to invite children to participate. The church takes its responsibility to children seriously. In the United Methodist Baptismal Covenant Service, members of the congregation, as the Body of Christ, reaffirm their commitment to Christ and pledge to nurture newly baptized people and one another in the Christian life and faith. It is out of a covenantal and theological foundation that we would ask the question about how we can make the Lord's Supper inclusive of and accessible to children.

We also recognize that there are developmental concerns about young children hearing words about eating Jesus' body and drinking his blood and taking the meaning literally. These words may seem frightening to some children, especially those not grounded in the stories of Jesus. We want to welcome children to the Lord's Supper and not stir up feelings of repulsion or fear.

Having laid out which words we are talking about and the reasons why they might be changed, we can now address whether or not the words should be changed. In struggling with this question, consider the following theological and developmental factors that may indeed be in tension. Your own local church may have additional concerns that are not addressed here.

The Words of Institution
Theologically, the "words of institution" in the Great Thanksgiving represent the core of the Christian faith and how the grace and life of the risen Lord come to dwell in us. For example, see John 6:56. Among Christian faith traditions when the Lord's Supper is celebrated, there may be differences between the structure and language of the eucharistic prayer; but the story of the Last Supper is usually told as a narrative in words close to the biblical accounts. When children hear the "words of institution" common to our various Great Thanksgiving prayers, even though their attention may have wandered, they are drawn back into the prayer through these familiar words. We both form and express our Christian identity and our sense of belonging in the faith community as we participate in sacred ritual. The hearing of the repeated words becomes familiar over time, shaping and forming people of all ages — but particularly young children in their formative years as they come to see themselves as an integral part of the Body of Christ.

These "words of institution" are more than retelling a story. The presider is doing more than presenting a reenactment. The words "re-present" the self-giving gift of new life in Jesus Christ for us in the present each time we celebrate the Lord's Supper. These words from the writings of the early Christian witnesses unite us with the communion of saints past, present, and future and unite us with the Christian church worldwide. Children, just as all people coming to the Table, are included in this work of the Holy Spirit through the Lord's Supper. We must think seriously and carefully about the consequences to our children in their formation of Christian identity and Christian unity if we change core words of the Christian faith in the Great Thanksgiving.

Developmentally, preschoolers and young children may take literally the institution narrative and the words spoken when receiving Communion. Semi-logical thinking emerges around age seven and then continues to develop more fully. Children, ages seven through eleven, develop the ability to think abstractly about situations they are familiar with. It is not until around ages eleven through fifteen that the ability to think about more complex hypothetical and abstract situations develops. This tells us that it may be difficult for young children and early elementary children to relate to the abstract concept of the bread and cup as symbols of the presence of Christ that point to a divine encounter with God. Yet they do, however, vividly appreciate the richness of the ritual action with the bread and cup and the act of sharing the bread and cup. They do know the encounter of being included in the sacramental meal.

The Giving of the Bread and Cup
The United Methodist Book of Worship (page 29) provides the option of saying "the bread of heaven" and "the cup of salvation" as the bread and cup are served. These phrases may be less frightening and more invitational for young children. However, the phrases are metaphors that many young children may not yet be able to understaand if they have not heard the biblical and faith tradition stories out of which these phrases grow. People of all ages, including children, can find different meanings foro the sacred symbols of bread and cup, even within the same liturgy, hearing and praying the same words. The Holy Spirit works within each individual, perhaps especially young children, nurturing our spirits as we eat the bread and drink the cup in a way that meets the needs of our hearts.

Finally, after struggling with the theological and developmental concerns, the question comes down to determining what your presider will say for the "words of institution" and what servers will say when giving the bread and cup in the Lord's Supper. In the "words of institution." out of our prayers for Christian unity around shared words at the Table and our call to form and express our Christian identity in the historic core words of the Christian faith, let us affirm the use of the "gift" received from the Christian tradition. For the giving of the bread and cup, we can use this moment to expand the images around the bread and cup, particularly for younger children, while considering how children relate experientially to the images and how the images relate to the Lord's Supper.

How can the church and parents help children grow spiritually from the words they hear and see enacted in the Lord's Supper? We can help children make connections between the bread and cup and their own lives by providing opportunities to hear, explore, and respond to the story of the Last Supper — in the resurrection food stories and the other "feeding stories." Thus, we enable them to enter more fully into the sacrament when they receive the bread and cup in their eager bodies and spirits.

For Further Reading:

Faithful Change: The Personal and Public Challenges of Postmodern Lifeby James W. Fowler (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1996).

Mighty Stories, Dangerous Rituals,by Herbert Anderson and Edward Foley (San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Inc. Publishers, 1998).

Storytelling, Imagination, and Faithby William J. Bausch (Mystic: Twenty-third Publications, 1984).

The United Methodist Book of Worship (Nashville: The United Methodist Publishing House, 1992). See pages 54-80 for "Great Thanksgivings" for various occasions.

The Worship Resources of the United Methodist Hymnal: Introduction to the General Services, Psalter, and Other Acts of Worship,edited by Hoyt Hickman. (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998). See particularly Chapter 5, "Services of Word and Table."

Cheryl T. Magrini, O.S.L.,at the time of this writing wasa Ph.D. student at Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary in Evanston, Illinois.