Preparation for Communion

Definition and Meaning

Preparation for Communion is a broad term for the preparation that precedes the Lord's Supper. The term is used in two senses.

• Spiritual preparation: Those who will partake of Communion reflect on their sins, repent, and are reconciled with their neighbors.
• Practical preparation: The bread and cup are prepared, the Communion ware (the vessels used for Communion) is cleaned, and the Communion table is set. Churches commonly refer to this as "setting the Communion table."

Biblical and Historical Background

Communion originated at the Last Supper (Luke 22:19–20). The passage most often cited as the basis for spiritual preparation is 1 Corinthians 11:27–29, in which Paul warns against partaking of the bread and cup "unworthily" and exhorts, "let a man examine himself."

The Didache, regarded as an early church document, likewise urges believers to confess their sins before breaking bread on the Lord's Day. After the Reformation, the Reformed churches, particularly Scottish Presbyterianism, developed a tradition of holding separate preparatory services before Communion. The practice of examining communicants in advance developed alongside it.

Practice in Korean Churches

Spiritual preparation typically takes the following forms.

• Many churches announce Communion a week in advance in the church bulletin or during announcements.
• During the week of Communion, churches may preach sermons encouraging repentance and self-examination or hold early morning prayer meetings.
• Many churches observe Communion around Holy Week and World Communion Sunday.

Eligibility to partake varies somewhat by denomination.

• In Presbyterian and Methodist churches, baptized members generally partake of Communion.
• Baptist churches hold as a principle that those who have received believer's baptism by immersion may partake.
• Specific criteria vary according to individual congregations and denominational constitutions.

Practical preparation typically proceeds as follows.

• It is often handled by church officers such as kwonsa (senior deaconesses) or members of the women's mission society.
• They cut the bread into small pieces or prepare individual Communion kits, and they fill the cups.
• The Communion table is covered with a white cloth.
• During the service, elders, deacons, and others assist in distributing the bread and the cup.

The contents of the cup also differ by denomination.

• Most Korean Protestant churches use grape juice instead of wine, a practice generally attributed to the influence of the temperance (abstinence) movement among early missionaries.
• Churches that emphasize liturgy, such as the Anglican Church of Korea, sometimes use wine and wafers (thin bread made for Communion).

For how often Communion is observed, see Frequency of Communion; for differing understandings of the meaning of the bread and cup, see Eucharistic Controversies.