Guidelines for Receiving Holy Communion At St. Andrew’s Church
November 28th, 2009
For those who have asked whether they may participate in Holy Communion at St. Andrew’s Church, here are our guidelines for receiving Holy Communion.
The Holy Eucharist is the sacramental feast intended to bless and strengthen its recipients upon the journey to the eternal Kingdom of our Lord and Savior and rightly belongs to all those consecrated to our Lord Jesus Christ through Holy Baptism.
Those intending to receive the Holy Supper must, therefore,
- be baptized with water in the name of the Holy Trinity
- examine themselves in the Light of God’s Word
- sincerely confess their sins to God with a firm purpose to amend their lives
- believe that Christ is present, as he has promised, in the Sacrament
The Holy Supper is, therefore, properly received by those whose intention is to publically profess Christ with a living and mature faith at the solemn occasion of confirmation and whose manner of life does not contradict the Good News which the Supper proclaims. All who are confirmed shall be immediately admitted to Holy Communion, if they have not been admitted previously.
Because the Eucharist is the food of all the baptized, it must be understood that childlike faith is not necessarily a barrier to participation. Because the gift of the Eucharist is an act of Jesus Christ in the Church, however, the parish pastor is responsible to determine when it is appropriate to admit the baptized to the Table.
Our Christian brothers and sisters who are not members of our Synod, but who meet the four stated criteria above and have been admitted to the Table in their own ecclesial jurisdictions may be invited to the Eucharist by the parish pastor with the consent of the bishop.
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