Bread and Wine - Basic Elements

In this article, I will reflect on the basic “elements” of Holy Communion, the bread and the wine, and what they signify, what they preach, what they show forth.

First, the bread. The word used in the New Testament clearly refers to a loaf of bread. This makes sense because the loaf, like the Lord’s body on the Cross, is broken (Greek: klasis: fracture). The loaf of bread, which is Christ’s body, also preaches to us about the “one Body” that is Christ’s church. Just as grains of wheat are gathered to become one bread (see hymn 465, As the Grains of Wheat), so those called to be members of Christ’s Body, the Church are gathered from the corners of the earth into one Body, one “loaf,” so to speak.

Bread carries a tremendous amount of weight of meaning in the Bible. Here are just a few instances of the importance of bread: the unleavened bread prepared for the Passover in Egypt, the bread of manna in the wilderness during the Exodus, the Bread of the Presence in the Tabernacle and then the Temple, the abundance of bread in the miraculous feeding stories in the Gospels. Bread is the food of basic sustenance in the Middle East, even today. When we receive our Lord’s body in Holy Communion, we are reminded of the sustaining character of our Lord’s gift. It is literally our daily bread, our basic sustenance for our Christian journey.

If bread is the stuff of basic sustenance, then wine has an altogether different character. It is the stuff, not of the everyday, but of celebration. Even today, wine evokes this festive character. When we think of wine we think of parties, of weddings, of festivals! In this way, the wine of Holy Communion reminds us not only of our present-day feasts but also of the Messianic Banquet, the great Feast of God at the end of time. In Isaiah 25, the prophet speaks of a feast of well-aged wines, of rich food filled with marrow, of well-aged wines strained clear (25:6). These two images—of the feasts on earth and the Feast of Heaven—converge in the first of Jesus’ “signs” (miracles) in the Gospel of John: the wedding feast at Cana in Galilee in chapter 2. Here the unsuspecting wedding guests—and steward and groom—are inundated with gallons upon gallons of the best wine. So too with the coming kingdom of God!

In Holy Communion we are given a twofold sign and gift of our Lord’s presence: bread, the stuff of daily sustenance, and wine, the beverage of feast and festival. These images are held together in the one meal of Holy Communion. In the Bible, some see the 2nd and 6th chapters of the Gospel of John as two reflections on the fullness of Holy Communion: wine and bread, wedding feast and food for the multitudes.

[As with many of these posts, I am indebted to Dr. David Yeago, Lutheran Theological Southern Seminary, for his reflections on the Eucharist.]

"Pour out" vs. "sustain" [Holy Baptism] (p. 231)

In the Lutheran Book of Worship, the prayer for the gift of the Holy Spirit reads, "God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, we give you thanks for freeing your sons and daughters from the power of sin and for raising them up to a new life through this holy sacrament. Pour out your Holy Spirit up on {name}: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord, the spirit of joy in your presence" (LBW, p. 124, emphasis mine).

Evangelical Lutheran Worship softens this language: "We give you thanks, O God, that through water and the Holy Spirit you give your daughters and sons new birth, cleanse them from sin, and raise them to eternal life. Sustain {name} with the gift of your Holy Spirit: the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord, the spirit of joy in your presence, both now and forever" (ELW, p. 231).

Thus the baptismal prayer for the Holy Spirit becomes, in practice, actually less robust than the one used for confirmation/affirmation of Baptism, where at least we pray: stir up the same Holy Spirit.

Of course, both hymnals have the explicit "pour out" language during the Flood Prayer over the water. But what is at stake in this movement from the particular to the general? If the Holy Spirit is not poured out in a definitive and concrete way in Holy Baptism, then when? Are we to assume that the act of the laying on of hands, without the words "pour out" transmit the gift of the Holy Spirit?

In our sacramental tradition, Lutherans are committed to the particularity of Christ. Look in these places: the Word and the Holy Sacraments, these particular places, and there you will find Christ our God. To be sure, the Spirit's movement in the life of the baptized is prior to Baptism (cf. Luther's explanation of the Third Article of the Creed), but the Holy Spirit is in a concrete and definitive way poured out on the baptized in Holy Baptism.

Perhaps the reason for this change is located in a liturgical minimalism that suggests that the Holy Spirit is given at the precise moment of the water baptism. That is a topic for another day.

At least the ELW maintained the rubric for the laying on of hands.

Neither Cranky nor Uncritical

Tone is important, but so is truth. It is my hope that the general tone of this blog refrains from being overly cranky (which I am known to be at times regarding all things liturgical). At the same time, it is my hope that it also aims at discerning the Truth, whom we confess is Jesus of Nazareth.

Decoder Ring

For these posts I will try to maintain some uniformity in the format of the posts. The title will be the issue at stake, followed by the section or service in brackets, followed by the page number in parentheses (from the pew edition of Evangelical Lutheran Worship).