Communion as Common Union
In the article ‘Top 12 Things I Wish I’d Known’ (before entering an Orthodox Church), Frederica Mathews-Green writes that “Only Orthodox may take Communion”. It sounds very exclusivist and well, to some degree, it is.
Yet, even recently, the concept of ‘closed communion’ was simply the standard for those denominations that believed that something special was happening at the consecration of bread and wine, such as the Anglicans/Episcopalians, the Catholics, the Lutherans… the list continues. Yet today, the number of major denominations practising closed communion could be counted with a single hand.
The reasons for this surge towards ‘open communion’ probably varies somewhat. But a basic premise that this belief is founded on, and a consistant theme whenever we talk to people about this issue, is that either the denomination has either withdrawn their claim to be definite about their way to heaven, and/or that the denomination doesn’t believe that communion is both with God and with each other.
If the case is solely the first, this raises a number of questions. If two denominations, in the same area, claim that each other are equally saving paths, what is the sense in disunity? Perhaps one could excuse the situation if these were venerable traditions with centuries of experience - the paperwork alone would be formidable. Where, however, is the sense in further dividing - in any visible way - people on the same path?
One basic reason is that, underneath the veneer of shared communion, there are actual theological differences. Theological differences (and theology itself) can be easy to ignore, if you want to - as various Christian-pop-culture items can attest to. However, this is dangerous. The whole purpose of theology is to understand more about God. Just like a marriage, where one spouse attempts to know the other, thus deepening the love between them, so too one should behave with God, who loves us. Without a desire to understand God, how can one develop a relationship? follow His commandments?
As Orthodox, we believe that Communion is not only that we are taking the Body and Blood of Christ within ourselves, participating in what is, in some sense, miraculous and beyond understanding. We are also communing with each other. The same interconnectedness that we wish to have with God is also the interconnectedness that we should wish to have with God’s other children.
When Jesus was asked to summarise the Old Testament, the foremost command was to love God with everything you’ve got. Crucially, He told us that the second commandment was to love your neighbour as yourself. Communion is fulfilling both of these commandments.
—