A searchable, downloadable PDF of the original article appears below. Calvin Brown is pastor of Nelson and Slocan Churches, B.C.
One of the hallmarks of John Calvin least appreciated is his clear understanding of the place of Holy Communion in the life of the church. Both in the Institutes (I, XVII) and when drawing up the constitution of the church in Geneva Calvin laid emphasis on the importance of frequent celebration of Communion.
Jean Cadier, the French Protestant scholar, who authored The Man God Mastered quotes in that book a section on the presentation of the Genevan constitution which says, “It is certain that a church cannot be called well ordered and ruled unless it is one in which the Lord’s Supper is often celebrated and frequented, and in such good order that no one dares to presume to present himself at it unless he comes with special reverence and in holy fear.” Cadier goes on to note, “We must not be surprised at the importance which the Reformer attaches to the Lord’s Supper. By a strange deviation modern Protestantism has neglected the sacrament and knows little more than the preaching of the Word. The first Reformers, on the contrary, gave to the sacrament of communion with Christ a very large place.”
In the first Article Calvin was desirous that the celebration of the Supper should take place every Sunday at least,“seeing the great consolation that the faithful receive from it and the fruit which proceeds from it in every way, both from the promises which are there presented to our faith (for we are truly made partakers of the body and blood of Jesus, of His death, of His life, of His Spirit and of all His riches), and from the exhortations therein made to us, to recognize and magnify in our praise God’s wonderful gift of favour towards us, and finally to live in a Christian manner, being joined together in real peace and brotherly unity as members of a single body.”
For practical reasons Communion once a month was suggested as an interim measure but the Council insisted the celebration be four times a year at the great festivals and in September. “I gave in too easily,” Calvin was to say later. But the custom remains to this day.
In my own congregations in Nelson/ Slocan the sessions have different practices. In St. Andrew’s, Slocan we celebrate Communion the first Sunday of the month disregarding the timing of the great festivals, which practice is like Calvin’s interim measure. In Nelson, we celebrate Communion on Sundays every other month, noting especially Communion celebrations on the great festival days, especially at Easter, Pentecost, and Christmas. On alternate months we celebrate Communion at the Wednesday Midweek Service and include prayers for healing. Each week at 7:30 a.m. Thursday mornings we again celebrate Holy Communion. The frequency of Communion allows the benefit of the sacrament to be ministered to the people to their spiritual growth. Increased frequency alone, of course, will not necessarily edify the body, but it must be accompanied by solid teaching on the blessing and responsibility of partaking. It is a challenge to open our lives to Christ’s filling; it is a corrective that demands the people deal with sin that separates more frequently than quarterly; it is an opportunity to lift praise to God in consistent obedience and joy for what He has done for us that we may become a truly “thankful” people.