GreekOrthodox
Psalti Chrysostom
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I don't care if you believe it or not. I'm just giving you the reference to the term "medicine of immortality".
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Better to not take communion?
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I don't care if you believe it or not. I'm just giving you the reference to the term "medicine of immortality".
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Not all Christians follow Sola Scriptura. However, I provided you two scriptural proofs that Holy Communion remits sin and is the medicine of immortality, from the Gospel of John, where our Lord says that eating his flesh is a prerequisite for eternal life, and from the Gospel of Matthew, where our Lord discusses the remission of sins via the Eucharist.
But seriously, St. Ignatius the Martyr is important. His epistles date from the very early church, and he was the third bishop of Antioch after St. Peter, and a disciple of St. John. He was fed to lions. His epistles are beautiful and resonate with the Gospel message. They also confirm the traditional view of how the early church was organized by the end of the first century.
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I see here advice of confession before Lord's supper. Where does the Bible say that? The apostles didn't at the first Lord's supper.
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GreekOrthodox
Psalti Chrysostom
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Once the Supper became a regular part of Christian worship, confession and fasting was expected prior to taking part of the Eucharist.
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HTacianas
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Honestly, later beliefs unsupported by two thousand years of Christian history simply don't concern me. But if you can find someone in Christian history who agrees with you I'm willing to listen.
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GreekOrthodox
Psalti Chrysostom
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Probably the earliest reference is from the Didache which was written in the Apostolic Era, and was considered by some to be part of the Scriptures. If you arent familiar with it, it is a short read (15 pages) of basic teachings and practices that the Apostolic church had already written down.
https://legacyicons.com/content/didache.pdf
“Confess your sins in church, and do not go up to your prayer with an evil conscience. This is the way of life. . . . On the Lord’s Day gather together, break bread, and give thanks, after confessing your transgressions so that your sacrifice may be pure” (Didache 4:14, 14:1 [A.D. 70]).
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Psalti Chrysostom
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The Didache mentions fasting before baptism
And before the baptism let the baptiser and him who is to be baptised fast, and any others who are able. And thou shalt bid him who is to be baptised to fast one or two days before.
This practice is attested as early as the first half of the third century, by Tertullian and particularly Hippolytus.
I also found this:
Tertullian addresses the topic tangentially while addressing the dangers of women marrying non-Christians. Their husbands will notice their Christian practices, such as fasting before taking communion, and may put pressure on them to stop:
Will not your husband know what it is which you secretly taste before (taking) any food? and if he knows it to be bread, does he not believe it to be that (bread) which it is said to be? (To His Wife, II.5)
Hippolytus is more direct. In the Apostolic Tradition, he writes:
The faithful shall be careful to partake of the eucharist before eating anything else. (36)
At the Synod of Hippo (AD 393), the practice is codified in Canon 29 (Mansi, III, 913), and again a few years later at the Synod of Carthage (Canon 28 (Mansi, III, 884)). And around this time, Augustine indicates that the practice is universal:
It pleased the Holy Spirit to appoint, for the honour of so great a sacrament, that the body of the Lord should take the precedence of all other food entering the mouth of a Christian; and it is for this reason that the custom referred to is universally observed. (Letter 54, VI.8)
And before the baptism let the baptiser and him who is to be baptised fast, and any others who are able. And thou shalt bid him who is to be baptised to fast one or two days before.
This practice is attested as early as the first half of the third century, by Tertullian and particularly Hippolytus.
I also found this:
Tertullian addresses the topic tangentially while addressing the dangers of women marrying non-Christians. Their husbands will notice their Christian practices, such as fasting before taking communion, and may put pressure on them to stop:
Will not your husband know what it is which you secretly taste before (taking) any food? and if he knows it to be bread, does he not believe it to be that (bread) which it is said to be? (To His Wife, II.5)
Hippolytus is more direct. In the Apostolic Tradition, he writes:
The faithful shall be careful to partake of the eucharist before eating anything else. (36)
At the Synod of Hippo (AD 393), the practice is codified in Canon 29 (Mansi, III, 913), and again a few years later at the Synod of Carthage (Canon 28 (Mansi, III, 884)). And around this time, Augustine indicates that the practice is universal:
It pleased the Holy Spirit to appoint, for the honour of so great a sacrament, that the body of the Lord should take the precedence of all other food entering the mouth of a Christian; and it is for this reason that the custom referred to is universally observed. (Letter 54, VI.8)
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There are all kinds of non-scriptural writings, but there is a very good reason that we have the canon of Scripture. The Bible is considered to be complete and authoritative; other writings are just that -- other.
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Many people have written things that, while they may be beautiful and resonate with the Gospel message, are not Scripture. Sola scriptura.
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You certainly have "a right spirit" as God enjoins us: mrdp! Yes, it is important to understand "all the counsel of God" as He says, and not just act on religious ideas. A true "born again" believer (as John 3:16) can rightly partake of the 'Lord's supper', and other religious imitators are eating and drinking severe judgment of God for coming in the flesh and not as a redeemed "child of God". Keep looking up!
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Psalti Chrysostom
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Yes, to a limited extend due to diabetes with the approval of my priest. I will take my Sunday morning medicine with a protein shake so that I don't faint during the 3 hour Matins and Liturgy. I'm one of the chanters and it is considered bad form to faint at the chanting stand
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Confession is fundamentally an examination of conscience, which St. Paul strongly advised as a prerequisite to partaking of the Eucharist.
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There is nothing in Scripture about confession before Lord's supper. Jesus shared the bread and wine with His disciples, including Judas, without requiring any confession.
Paul recommended that people examine themselves first, but nothing more. 1 Corinthians 11:28 NET 2.1
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If you have a Christian faith, have been baptised and received into the church (ie. through confirmation). If it is your desire, above everything else, to follow Jesus and His teachings, to turn away from sin and love God and neighbour, then I see no reason why you should not take part in Holy Communion.
Jesus is present with us in the Eucharist. In the presence of Jesus we will always find mercy, forgiveness and love, when we genuinely want it and seek it.
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@GreekOrthodox if I might presume to join you in answering his question, the Orthodox tradition is to fast from Saturday night until receiving the Eucharist on Sunday, and likewise if attending a midweek liturgy. However, fasting is not required where it would be contrary to someone’s health. As an example, I know of an Orthodox priest (Antiochian or OCA I think) who suffers from hypoglycemia who under instructions from his bishop eats a full breakfast before serving the Divine Liturgy.
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