Holy Communion Coursework

The Christian scholar St. Augustine defined a sacrament as: ‘the invisible form of an invisible grace’. This means that very sacrament has two parts – a physical and a Spiritual part. The physical (visible) aspect is something that can be seen, touched, tasted etc. and the Spiritual (invisible) part is the non-physical element, a grace or gift from God. Sacraments are a form of worship as they celebrate and remember important aspects of the Christian faith. Each sacrament has its own importance. There are many different beliefs and views of sacraments. This is because different denominations believe that different activities are true sacraments and are considered to just be an important part of being a Christian.

The Roman Catholic and Orthodox Church denominations believe and practice in seven sacraments. These are the Eucharist, Baptism, Confirmation, Marriage, Penance, Ordination and the Anointing of the sick. The Church of England, otherwise known as the Anglican Church, follows only two of these sacraments, Baptism and Holy Communion. They do however believe that the other five sacraments are important but do not see them significant to be a sacrament. The Free Church and other Protestant Churches believe in no sacraments whatsoever. They have only communion and marriage and see them both simply as a symbol or reminder.

        One of the most important sacraments or events to Christians is Holy Communion. This central act of worship re-enacts the death and resurrection of Jesus in ritual form. It remembers the words and actions of Jesus at the Last Supper. Different churches give Holy Communion different names. The Roman Catholic church call this event ‘Mass’, the Orthodox church would call Communion ‘Holy’ or ‘Sacred Liturgy’, the Church of England call it the ‘Eucharist’ which means ‘thanksgiving’ or ‘Holy Communion’ and the Free Church and other Protestant Churches call it the ‘Breaking of the bread or ‘the Lord’s Supper’.

Join now!

        Holy Communion is considered to be an act of worship to God. The word worship comes from Anglo Saxon, ‘to ascribe worth’. In other words this means to say something has great worth.  In society today, the human race worships many people as someone to look up to. A good example of this kind of worship would be David Beckham or a famous pop star. The religious meaning of worship is ‘the act of paying divine honour to God, especially in religious services. It is an act of feeling of adoration; to show reverence with supreme respect and admiration.’ Generally for ...

This is a preview of the whole essay