Communion Liturgy

How much attention do you pay to the words of the communion liturgy? I had a discussion with someone a few weeks ago about the words that are sometimes used by clergy that are biblically wrong. I guess a person can get hung up on worrying about the words that another uses. We just need to make sure we understand what is correct.

The verse I am talking about specifically is "this is my body given for you." This is Luke 22:19. Many times people say, "this is my body broken for you." Now think about the difference between given and broken. It is really a significant difference. Was Jesus broken? Was the mission too big for Him? Did the beating that was coming overwhelm Jesus so that He felt broken?

OR as Jesus said, did He give himself for us? That is quite a difference. One is willful. The other is coerced. I have to believe that Jesus willfully gave Himself up to the Father's will to take our sins. In this act, He displayed completed obedience to God's will. He was not forced in any way to submit. He just obeyed. He also loves us so much that it was part of His act of obedience. Perhaps His humanness needed to meet human images so that He could fully appreciate the depth of His love for us and that is why He was sent to us as a baby. In any event, He was not broken by the mission, or the whip, or the difficulty of the ministry. He simply GAVE His body for us.

Matthew 26:26 "....Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body."

Mark 14:22 "....Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take it; this is my body." ...."

The thought that just occurred to me is this: Jesus takes the bread and Jesus breaks it. He says that this is His body. So, Jesus takes the bread and Jesus breaks His body then gives it to us for our salvation.

So the next time you take communion and someone uses the term broken instead of given, know that Jesus was never broken. Rather, He broke and gave himself.

Thank you for this Holy Mystery! In humility I say Amen.

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