The Lord's supper, or communion, is a practice of actively
remembering the work of Jesus Christ done on the cross, his resurrection, and
his continued work in the church.
Mennonites believe that this is a renewal of our covenants with God, a
time of remembrance, and a time of looking forward in joy and hope to the feast
of Christ in the age to come.
Communion is a vital aspect of the life of the church and
participation therein. Wonderfully,
Mennonites see a powerful theology in three interlocking aspects of communion. First, communion is actively remembering
the work of Jesus Christ - his body and blood given for us and the resurrection
three days later. Second, this remembering causes us to renew
our covenants with God, refreshing and helping us to continue striving for the
Kingdom of God here on earth in these present moments. Third, as we are remembering and we
are renewed, we are given a foretaste of the coming Kingdom, the
total renewal of all things by Jesus at the end of days.
This speaks in a powerful way, invoking in us God's
presence, locating God in the past, present, and future, allowing us to take
part in the kingdom in a visible way. In
US America, we tend to allow other things to take over our understanding of
ritual as they are co-opted by the world to make a dollar. Easy examples of this are Easter and
Christmas. Yet, the world hasn't been
able to reap riches off of communion quite yet...instead communion has simply
become a "cracker and juice."
The repeated nature of the act has made it meaningless.
Into this, Mennonites proclaim communion is filled to
bursting with meaning. All we have to do
is take part in it.
Want to learn more?
Here is Article 12 of the Mennonite Confession of faith: http://www.mennoniteusa.org/about/confession-of-faith-in-a-mennonite-perspective-1995/article-12-the-lords-supper/
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