Christmas Eve Communion Services?

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

It has been a while since I have been in a church that celebrated holy days so I am a bit out of the loop in this regard but I have noticed a number of friends of mine on Facebook, mostly confessionally Reformed but some PC(USA) friends, who are attending or hosting Christmas Eve Communion services where the Lord's Supper will be served.

Now I grew up in the PC(USA) and this never was a feature of our Christmas Eve service and I had not heard of this before. Does anyone here on the PB know where this practice comes from and why it was started? It seems very odd, never mind an impossibility to guard the table rightly, to do this on a day supposing to celebrate the Incarnation and not Christ's Death.

 

[matt01]

Does anyone here on the PB know where this practice comes from and why it was started?

I am unable to help with your question; however, I did find out from one of the elders last night that we would be observing the Lord' Supper tonight. This is the first time that I am able to recall, over the course of several churches, where we have done so for a Christmas Eve service.

 

[Martin]

I'm not sure if there is a connection, but do you think someone got the idea from the Catholic Midnight Mass or any of their Christmas Masses?

 

[Backwoods Presbyterian]

I have been told on facebook that this was/is a common practice in the Continental Reformed churches. Interesting.

 

[Jack K]

I don't see anything unfitting about celebrating Communion in a service that's built around the theme of the incarnation. Christ's birth, his death and his resurrection all fit together when properly considered. But I certainly agree (and my background is Continental Reformed) that fencing the table would be a problem at a Christmas Eve service, given who tends to attend those. It's hardly the best time and place for Communion.

 

[Philip]

I'll just note that the issue of fencing the table is not a problem at the church I attend, given the (unusual) method of distribution that we use.

 

[DMcFadden]

I suspect that it owes to churches that draw inspiration from (ape) Lutheran or Anglican churches. For Martin Luther, Crux Sola Est Nostra Theologia --”The cross alone is our theology" (Heidelberg Dispute, 1518) is not a mere motto, but an organizing rubric around which his entire theology is developed. It permeates every aspect of the church experience. Frequent communion is very common (2x a month is not unusual in Lutheran circles). The church we attend does not offer communion at the 7 p.m. "family" service but does at the 11:00 p.m. one.

 

[jwithnell]

It is common in Lutheran churches.

We typically have a service tonight primarily as a community outreach (no silly kid stuff) preceded a few weeks earlier with door-to-door caroling. But communion is served only during our second Sunday service as usual.

 

[irresistible_grace]

My husband works with many unchurched people and several will attend midnight mass tonight. My friend attended a Lutheran Christmass Eve service last year and had communion.

Just putting the mass back in Christmass, I guess!

 

[Elizabeth]

The Lutheran church we are visiting does have a service tonight, but no communion. Tomorrow, there is communion at the morning service. Yesterday they also had communion. We are not members at this point, so we don't partake, of course.

 

[Elizabeth]

Of course, the Anglican church that my husband is associated with has communion all Christmas services. They are very high-church and more Catholic-leaning than the Lutherans we are familiar with by a long shot.