One of the great delights of gathering each Sunday is participating in Communion (Lord’s Supper). This is more than simply a remembrance of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross (as important as that is), it is a means of God’s grace to us. As we participate in the meal the Lord is present to feed us, strengthen us, and encourage us.
Since September 2020, when we resumed offering communion, we made some temporary concessions for the unique situation we were in due to the COVID-19 pandemic. One of those concessions was giving the option for folks who were not yet comfortable joining in-person to participate in communion from home. However, it has always been and remains the elders theological conviction that the Lord’s Supper (communion) is intended to be enjoyed while the church body is physically present together. It is an embodied experience. This is why we wrote and communicated back in September of 2020 the following:
Recognizing that these are unique times, the option to participate in Communion via the livestream will be offered as long as the COVID-19 pandemic continues.
As elders we recognize that it’s impossible to know fully when and if the pandemic is over. However, due to the current state of COVID-19 in our local area and state, we feel like the time has come to resume communion as an in-person only practice. We will be making this transition starting Sunday, November 28, 2021. Practically speaking this means you will hear the elders giving communion instructions and invitation only to those in-person.
Now if you are someone that is shut-in and for any number of reasons is not able to be present, please reach out to elders@cpwp.org as we want to make sure the Lord’s Supper is available to you. This has been a long-standing practice in church history and one that we as CrossPointe elders are eager to extend to you.
Lastly, we are continuing to offer the pre-packaged communion elements but are now also offering the more traditional bread and juice. The bread is gluten free and served by people who are wearing gloves and using tongs. The juice is in single serve cups that you can take from the trays next to the bread servers.
The last 18+ months have brought incredible change, and we know change is never easy. Our intent and hope is not to take something away, but to invite you to participate in communion in the fuller, richer way it has always been intended.
Should you have any questions, please reach out to elders@cpwp.org