Blog:Recieving (not taking) Communion

Note: this post is a reflection on the article Recieving (not taking) Communion

Holy Communion by Pietro Longhi

Even from Catholics, one may hear the Rite of Communion referred to -- incorrectly -- as "taking Communion."

A source of the confusion may stem from the use of "partake of the one loaf" by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 17:

Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf (1 Cor 10:16-17)

The word "partake" can be found in the Old Testament, such as in God's instructions to Aaron on sacrifices,

"You shall eat them in a most holy place; every male may partake of them. As holy, they belong to you." (Nm 18:10)

The term "partake" is especially important in regards to participating in ungodly or demonic sacrifices, such as when the Jews were forced by the Greeks to "partake of the sacrifices" to Dionysus (2 Mc 6:7).

The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf(1 Cor 10:16-17)

which is used for reception of Communion by many Protestant churches. The use of "partake," however, is deliberately distinct from "recieve", indicating "sharing in" or "participating" as opposed to reception, so even in the Protestant sense of "sharing" Communion with the Lord, "receiving" is incomplete, at best.

This website is uninterested in apologetic debates (i.e., Catholic v. Protestant, etc.), so we will not get further into the Protestant choice of words here, and, instead, focus on Catholic teaching of the Sacrament of the Eucharist and Sacraments in general.

Receiving Communion

In the US Catholic Bishops (USCCB) guide The Reception of Holy Communion at Mass the word "take" appears only twice, and both times in terms of the proper reception of the host on to one hand, then "taking" it by the other:

The host will then be laid in the palm of the left hand and then taken by the right hand to the mouth. If one is left-handed this is reversed. It is not appropriate to reach out with the fingers and take the host from the person distributing.

While the guide does not provide a theological reason for not taking the host from the Eucharstic Minister, we can infer from "not appropriate" and "the person distributing" that the Eucharist is given and not taken.

By contrast, the word "receive" occurs nineteen times in the guide, always in terms of our participation in the Eucharist as recipients of the Lord's Body and Blood.

Gospel accounts of the Lord's Supper

As we see in the Gospels, Jesus either "gave" the Bread and the Cup to the disciples or or instructed them disciples to "take" it from him -- key preposition there, "from", as it indicates they they are to receive it from him:

Matthew:

and giving it to his disciples said, “Take and eat; this is my body." (Mt 26:26)

Mark:

and gave it to them, and said, “Take it; this is my body." (Mk 14:22)

Luke:

Then he took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them (Lk 22:19)

There's no quibbling over the word "take" as it is a direct instruction from the Lord who is the giver of his body.

In English, "bring" and take" have a narrow distinction (in Spanish llevar and traer have clearer distinctions), as in, "Take that book and bring it over here." In that sentence, take means "go and get" and bring means "get it to here." We could just as easily say, "Bring that book over here."

Generally, when we "take" something, we are either extracting it from where it is or acquiring it, or both within the same thought. For example, "Take this worksheet home," a teacher might say to instruct students to both receive the worksheet and "take" (or "bring") it home. If I "take away" something, I'm receiving it and making it my own. Or, if I "take a class" it means that I am participating and proceeding with that class.

Upon reflection, we realize that the word "take" has innumerable uses in our language (see "take" from Merriam-Webster). But what it is not is to "receive." Only in the sense of an order, "take this" do we associate "taking" with "recieving." Thus when the Lord commands, "Take it" he is commanding that the disciples recieve his Body and Blood.