Communion

For as the Word of God preached putteth Christ into our ears, so likewise these elements of water, bread, and wine, joined to God's word, do after a sacramental manner put Christ into our eyes, mouths, hands and all our sense
     Thomas Cranmer (1551)
     Martyr, Archbishop of Canterbury and Architect of the Book of Common Prayer

 
Why is Communion important?
Why do you take communion to someone who is sick and can't make it to church?

To address this question well, we need to take a few steps back and establish some necessary context for the answer to make sense.

Our corporate worship at IAC consists of two deeply interrelated ministries: Word and Sacrament. Ministry of the Word involves reading the scriptures and proclaiming the truths of Scripture through preaching. Ministry of Sacrament is evidenced in our celebration of Communion (The Eucharist) and through our commitment to Baptism. We hold to these two sacraments specifically because they were directly instituted by Jesus.

Most of us easily grasp the importance of the Ministry of the Word; we deeply value the power of the Holy Scriptures and the proclamation and exposition of God's Word. However, for those of us who weren't reared in a sacramental tradition such as Anglicanism, the fact that we celebrate Communion every week or that we take Communion to the sick might seem a little odd. But in reality, this unified Ministry of Word and Sacrament in the Christian Church is profoundly Biblical and actually the historical norm.		 Caravagio Eucharist

One of the classic understandings of the sacraments is that they are an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. The Lord takes common elements like bread, wine and water and sanctifies them in order to spiritually feed us. The sacraments, rightly understood and administered, are not mere rituals or the stuff of superstition; they are tokens of God's grace and His heart revealed to us through our senses. And they work in concert with the Word to reveal a fuller understanding of God and a deepened experience of Him.

To return to the question above, taking Communion to the sick is a ministry of grace and a way for someone to receive even if they couldn't make it to church on any given Sunday. So please don't hesitate to ask a member of the Congregational Care team to bring you Communion if you know you can't make it to church. It's a privilege, a blessing and an honor for all involved to get to share the Lord's Supper together.