Hey guys,
Here's an interesting quote on the Eucharist, made by a non-Catholic (he's Anglican), David Chilton:
(Everything in bold are my doing)
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It should go without saying (but, unfortunately, it cannot), that the Eucharist is the center of Christian worship; the Eucharist is what we are commanded to do when we come together on the Lords Day. Everything else is secondary. This is not to suggest that the secondary things are unimportant. The teaching of the Word, for example, is very important, and in fact necessary for the growth and well-being of the Church. Doctrine has long been recognized as one of the essential marks of the Church. Instruction in the faith is therefore an indispensable part of Christian worship. But it is not the heart of Christian worship. The heart of Christian worship is the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is assumed by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 and 11:20-34. We can see it reflected in Lukes simple statement in Acts 20:7: And on the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread.... It is also described in the Didache: But every Lords Day do ye gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. Justin Martyr reports the same pattern as the standard for all Christian assemblies:
On the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying, Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons.
The greatest privilege of the Church is her weekly participation in the Eucharistic meal, the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. It is a tragedy that so many churches in our day neglect the Lord's Supper, observing it only on rare occasions (some so-called churches have even abandoned Communion altogether). What we must realize is that the official worship service of the Church on the Lord's Day is not merely a Bible study or some informal get-together of like-minded souls; to the contrary, it is the formal wedding feast of the Bride with her Bridegroom. That is why we meet together on the first day of the week. In fact, one of the primary issues in the controversy of the Protestant Reformation was the fact that the Roman church admitted it's members to the Eucharist only once a year. Ironically, the practice of the Roman Church now excels that of most "protestant" churches; on the issue of frequent communion at least, it is Rome which has "reformed." (Days of Vengeance, p. 473-475)
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By the way Scott Hahn and David Chilton were really good friends. But Chilton passed away a few years ago. To my knowledge Hahn was heavily influenced by Chilton
God bless!
-Jason
Here's an interesting quote on the Eucharist, made by a non-Catholic (he's Anglican), David Chilton:
(Everything in bold are my doing)
-------------------------------------------------------------
It should go without saying (but, unfortunately, it cannot), that the Eucharist is the center of Christian worship; the Eucharist is what we are commanded to do when we come together on the Lords Day. Everything else is secondary. This is not to suggest that the secondary things are unimportant. The teaching of the Word, for example, is very important, and in fact necessary for the growth and well-being of the Church. Doctrine has long been recognized as one of the essential marks of the Church. Instruction in the faith is therefore an indispensable part of Christian worship. But it is not the heart of Christian worship. The heart of Christian worship is the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is assumed by St. Paul in 1 Corinthians 10:16-17 and 11:20-34. We can see it reflected in Lukes simple statement in Acts 20:7: And on the first day of the week, when we were gathered together to break bread.... It is also described in the Didache: But every Lords Day do ye gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure. Justin Martyr reports the same pattern as the standard for all Christian assemblies:
On the day called Sunday, all who live in cities or in the country gather together to one place, and the memoirs of the apostles or the writings of the prophets are read, as long as time permits; then, when the reader has ceased, the president verbally instructs, and exhorts to the imitation of these good things. Then we all rise and pray, and, as we before said, when our prayer is ended, bread and wine and water are brought, and the president in like manner offers prayers and thanksgivings, according to his ability, and the people assent, saying, Amen; and there is a distribution to each, and a participation of that over which thanks have been given, and to those who are absent a portion is sent by the deacons.
The greatest privilege of the Church is her weekly participation in the Eucharistic meal, the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. It is a tragedy that so many churches in our day neglect the Lord's Supper, observing it only on rare occasions (some so-called churches have even abandoned Communion altogether). What we must realize is that the official worship service of the Church on the Lord's Day is not merely a Bible study or some informal get-together of like-minded souls; to the contrary, it is the formal wedding feast of the Bride with her Bridegroom. That is why we meet together on the first day of the week. In fact, one of the primary issues in the controversy of the Protestant Reformation was the fact that the Roman church admitted it's members to the Eucharist only once a year. Ironically, the practice of the Roman Church now excels that of most "protestant" churches; on the issue of frequent communion at least, it is Rome which has "reformed." (Days of Vengeance, p. 473-475)
-------------------------------------------------------------
By the way Scott Hahn and David Chilton were really good friends. But Chilton passed away a few years ago. To my knowledge Hahn was heavily influenced by Chilton
God bless!
-Jason
