Two Communion Meal Liturgies


Saints Communion 
We will begin the morning in sharing the communion meal. This is something followers of Jesus have done all throughout time and will do in the future until we all eat and drink together again with Jesus. It is a beautiful thing to think that we share this meal with all the saints, including our brothers and sisters in ..(place of hardship at this time.)
I invite each of you to come forward and take a piece of bread and a cup and hold onto it until we all eat together.
Play iTunes track ‘ Leaning on the Everlasting Arms’ by the Lower Lights. 
Let us hear again the story of this hopeful meal: When Jesus knew the time for His death had come, and the darkness was gathering around Him, He shared His final meal with His friends. He said to them  I tell you that I will not eat another Passover meal until it is finally eaten in God’s kingdom.” Taking the bread, He gave thanks. Then He broke it and gave to His disciples saying: “This is my body, which is given for you. Eat this as a way of remembering me!”
Leader holds up the bread:
This bread reminds us of your wonderful life Jesus and your death. Thankyou Jesus for your body. Thankyou for showing us how to live. We eat and remember. We take your life into us, take us into your life. Let us eat.
Eat  
After supper, He took the cup and gave thanks. Then He gave it to His disciples saying: ““This is my blood. It is poured out for you, and with it God makes his new agreement.
Leader holds up the cup:
This drink reminds us of your blood Jesus. We remember that our sins are washed by you. We drink and we remember. Through your death our death was taken. Let us drink.
Drink 
In sharing this sacred meal we celebrate that death has been defeated. We eat and drink to the hope that we have found in Jesus. And we will keep doing this until our hope is fulfilled.
Closing Prayer
As you feed us now, Jesus, in our worship, may we become, again, your body
which nourishes the world, and embraces all people with kindness.
 
A Special Meal
I love the special, messiness of communion, the memories, the hopes, the children grabbing, the drink spilling. I love that Jesus invited us to remember him in a meal. Cooking and eating together is something we all have in common. Something everyone can understand as a loving gift.
We will begin with a clip of Armenian women preparing bread together. I wonder what you like about it?
Play clip: http://www.folklife.si.edu/talkstory/2016/tastes-of-memory-lavash-and-armenian-identity/
Today we remember Jesus’ last meal before his death. With bread reminding us of his life, his body, here on earth and wine reminding us of his death, his blood that poured out for us. This meal reminds us of Jesus then when he said goodbye to his friends before he died, and Jesus now who invites us into the life he woke into into when he came alive.
Leader holds bread
Someone has prepared this good food that fills our belly giving us strength. We thankyou Jesus that you have prepared a good way for us, thankyou that your Spirit fills our lives with good things.
Leader holds cup of wine/juice
The grapes have been grown and harvested making a special drink that is joy to drink. We thankyou Jesus that you lived and died on this earth and have shown us the way of true joy and love.
Let us enjoy this meal and remember Jesus.
Eat, drink and listen to iTunes track “All my hope” by David Crowder.
 
Emma Morgan