Red Kool-Aid ?

Are you a member of a religious denomination ?

For several decades I’ve visited and worshipped in many churches.

The varieties of worship styles and liturgy reflect our varying preferences and cultures. God, designed us all uniquely, for His purposes.

One of the most fascinating things I’ve observed is how different groups celebrate the sacrament of Communion, or The Lord’s Supper. This was instituted by Christ myself, on the night he was betrayed.

At many churches, small cubes of white bread and tiny containers of grape juice are consumed by worshippers, as they commemorate Christ’s sacrifice for us.

At one church I visited, the pastor passed around a whole loaf of bread, and everyone tore off a little piece of it. (germs…?).

At the Vatican, I received the Eucharist, the communion wafer, in a crowd of 60,000 worshippers, outside, at St. Peter’s Square.

And, memorably, there was the time a church served tiny ( and tasty) salted crackers, and tiny cups of red Kool-Aid as their Communion celebration.

What would Jesus say about this variety ? Of course, we don’t know, but what we know with absolute certainty is that Christ expects us to be united in Spirit. (John 17:21).

Although each individual worshipper is infinitely precious in God’s eyes, essentially Christianity is a faith that involves all of us working together as spiritual brothers and sisters, and members of the huge Body of Christ. We are all equally valuable as we move God’s Kingdom forward in the world, and invite others to share the Good News of Salvation. We, the believers in this age, need to be working diligently in these times of the harvest. We no longer have time for inter-denominational squabbling.

Communion styles vary considerably amongst Christ followers, but , as we partake, we agree, with the Psalmist : ‘Taste and see that the Lord is good’. (Psalm 34:8)

Photo courtesy of Pixabay

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