| Feature Article – January 2007 |
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A spirit of fear has infiltrated our church. It is a fear of the common cup.
1Cor 11:25 says: In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.”
The common cup has been the Anglican tradition for centuries following the practice that was prevalent at the time of the institution of the sacrament. The text says “the cup” because everyone drank from the one cup.
The fear of the transmission of infection by the common cup started a long time ago but it was given impetus by the coming of the scourge know as Aids. This is not the forum where the transmission of this disease should be discussed but it should be noted that it is not by drinking from a vessel from which some one with the condition has formerly drunk.
There has never been a recorded outbreak of infection that has been traced back to some one taking Communion.
Many infections are transmitted from hand to hand and this should be of more concern. There was a time during the preparation of the elements called the “lavabo”, meaning “I wash”, when the server would have a napkin over his arm and hold a small bowl as he poured some water over the fingers of the celebrating priest. It was purely symbolic as it achieved nothing. Following this the priest would keep his thumbs and index fingers in juxtaposition so that they would not touch anything again before administering the host. It makes manipulating the chalice quite awkward. There is only one celebrant in this diocese whom I know does this – Bishop Jim. Look carefully the next time you see him celebrate.
In the usual liturgy, the Great Thanksgiving Prayer follows immediately the Passing of the Peace where there is a lot of hand to hand contact. Since the priest is going to be handling all the wafers subsequently it is a good idea for him/her to cleanse his hands. Washing with hot soapy water would be best but impractical. However there are several alcohol-based products which can be applied and dry quite quickly with vigorous hand rubbing. Anyone who will be handling the wafers should also do this.
What I say now applies to St. George’s (Brandon) and may not be relevant to all churches in the diocese.
On any given Sunday there are approximately twenty children who receive Communion by intinction. Even if we assume that they arrive at church with clean hands, they are certainly not clean by the time they come to receive. They have been downstairs in Sunday school classes, sitting on the floor and doing crafts. Several will have used the toilets. I have not been downstairs to check my facts, but I very much doubt that there is a line-up to wash hands before coming upstairs. The adults upstairs have also taken part in the Passing of the Peace and sharing the germs on their hands. These are the fingers that will be dipping into the cup.
“Ah. But I am careful and my fingers never get into the wine”
Yours may not but you do not see what the priest sees! The only way to make intinction safer would be for everyone who proposed to dip the wafer to wash their hands with hot soapy water immediately prior to receiving.
At the end of the administration, the celebrant is required to drink all the wine that is left. If there was frequent transmission of disease by the cup there should be a high incidence of infection among the priests. As far as I am aware, they have no more infections than anyone else.
For two years Olwen, Michael and I worshipped in the parish church in Milo, Tanzania, and drank from the common cup. When I was celebrating, I would finish the wine. There were people there with Aids, TB, Salmonella, amœbic dysentery and more intestinal parasites than you can possibly imagine. None of us developed so much as the common cold. From one service to another the vessels would sit in the sacristy where there was no running water. I doubt very much that the vessels were even washed.
Again, at St. G’s, the vessels are washed by the ladies of the altar guild with hot soapy water and dried with towels dedicated to that sole purpose.
The practice of intinction is potentially unsafe for those who drink and those who dunk. It is certainly no safer than drinking from the cup. It is entirely acceptable to receive just the bread alone. This is a full participation in Communion and should be considered by those who have this concern.
If you are some one whose current practice is to dip, I would like you to consider this.
Do you believe that Our God, who is a God of Love and wishes that we are all whole in mind, body and spirit, would allow harm to come to us from partaking of the sacrament which He instituted?
In my opinion there are only two acceptable alternatives for receiving; the traditional bread and wine from the cup or, if you have a serious fear of transmitted infection, taking the bread alone.