Category Image Frequent Reception of Communion


A friend sent me a link to an LCMS radio show about Luther and frequent reception of communion. I had the following comments:

Of course, he fails to qualify his statements with the fact that he is referring to the Western Church.

That being said, he is correct with the statement that people started receiving the Eucharist less often.  This would actually be true throughout the entire Church (East and West).  That lowering the frequency of reception was due to some new concept that this was simply a priestly sacrifice, is a bit off.  There was likely some element of this, in that the people in the West began to view this as merely something the priests did, but the sense that this was a sacrifice is very ancient*.  It is clearly present in the Eastern Liturgies, as well as the West, long before the 6th century.  That Luther removed this language is, uh, a bit cheeky on his part.

Throughout both East and West, there have been struggles with a bit of clericalism, where people began to participate less.  Unfortunate, and both the Catholic and Orthodox Churches have been pushing over the years to have people re-engage.

One of the elements in less frequent participation is an interesting problem.  That is, there is an understanding that one needs to prepare, and to be in a proper state to receive the mysteries in a worth manner (per St. Paul).  This included regular confession, fasting before reception, etc. etc.  So, people would be lax in preparing and so wouldn't present themselves to receive.  This is good, in the sense that they are not eating and drinking to their condemnation, but bad in the sense that they are not participating in that which gives us eternal life.  The solution is to focus more on preparation.  Still a problem to this day (you'll have people who will only show up for Easter/Pascha, just like the C&E Christians in the Protestant/Catholic Churches).  The best solution is for everyone to have a spiritual Father, part of whose job is to help them work through the issues around the readiness to receive.  Some of the bits I've heard from Athonite Elders is that they stress frequent reception, but also ensure that their spiritual children are participating in fasting, prayer, and confession on a regular basis.

The multiple masses in a day is a uniquely Catholic silliness.  In the East, the rule is 1 priest/1 altar/ 1 day/ 1 liturgy.  To do 2 liturgies in a day requires a separate altar (there are other ways around this, I believe it is a canon) and a separate priest, so it is largely not done.  You certainly could not do several in a day.  Also, a Priest is not permitted to say the Liturgy if he is alone.  No such thing as a private Liturgy.  Hard to have the work of the people be done by 1 person :).  Our previous priest on a couple of occasions switched to a Matins service if he thought nobody was going to be present (and between the Greek need to be late for everything and traffic, sometimes we'd all show up 5 or 10 minutes late).

So, in a rare case of defending Luther, I think he was quite correct in pushing for much more frequent celebration, reception, and participation by the people - provided proper preparation was involved.  Its too bad he didn't go further and fix the multiple Masses in a day problem (or maybe he did, and it just reappeared for other reasons).

I just think the historian was being a bit simplistic, as can easily happen if you're trying to discuss 1000 years in 10 minutes.

I didn't listen very long to the Luther vs. Zwingli elements.  I think Luther in some ways was being Eastern in his view.  However, he couldn't resist the Western urge to clearly delineate so he came up with really present along with the bread and wine.  The Eastern view is more really present, don't know how :).  Its a mystery!:  

*From the Liturgy of St. Mark.  Rarely celebrated now, but was the Liturgy of Alexandria.  In 1928 a late 4th century copy of this was found.  I believe that this is the basis of the following translation:

O Master, Lord our God, Who didst elect the twelve Apostles as it were a
lamp of twelve lights, and didst send them forth into the whole world to preach and teach the
Gospel of Thy kingdom, and to heal every sickness and infirmity in the people: and didst
breathe into their faces, and didst say to them: Receive ye the Holy Spirit, the Comforter:
whose sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose sins ye retain, they are retained.
Thus do Thou also upon us Thy servants as we enter the holy ministry, together with the
Bishops, Priests, Deacons, subdeacons, chanters, laity, and all the fullness of Thy Holy
Catholic and Apostolic Church. Preserve us, O Lord, from curse, and ban, and
excommunication, and from the part of the adversary, and make pure our lips and heart from
all pollution and iniquity; that with a pure heart and conscience we may offer to Thee this
sacrifice as a sweet-smelling fragrance, and for the remission of our sins and the sins of all
Thy people: Through the grace and compassion and love towards mankind of Thine
only-begotten Son, through Whom and with Whom be to Thee glory and majesty, with
Thine all-holy and good and life-creating Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

Posted: Saturday - February 03, 2007 at 10:49 PM          

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