True but please show me in scripture where it matters how the host is given?
I believe the important part is that it is done, not the actual ritual.
Hooah, Sarge.
Colonel, USAFR
Don’t give in on that point...this was a Jewish Passover meal.
The person serving the meal (in this case Jesus) did not go about feeding each individual one by one. That is preposterous.
I am not saying the practice is WRONG, but it certainly isn’t required. And it definitely isn’t how the Passover was celebrated. *If* Christ had done something that out of the ordinary, one would suspect the writers of the gospels would have noted the action.
The idea still lives on in even evangelical churches, that a pastor ought to lead or “bless” the elements before communion.
The concern for the form of communion does not discount the importance of its reason. In fact, I would hold that it is just the opposite. Consider you are a slave about to meet your king. Before being brought into his presence, wouldn’t the reason demand your attention to the form? The greater your love for your king, the greater your desire to come into his presence in a way that reflects that love. No detail seems unimportant when you consider his majesty. Hence, I think, the bishops point on Calvin (or perhaps better Zwingli).