The Church

• 3 parts of a sacrament

  1. the ritual actions or words (form)
  2. physical substance (matter)
  3. understanding and intent of person performing it (intent)
• The person who gives communion in the Roman Catholic church has to be ordained
• Roman Catholics take the form, matter and intent very seriously
• only those who have been baptised and admitted to communion can take part in the roman catholic church
• The form: Roman Catholic

  • "the mass is ended, go in peace to love and serve the lord"
  • epiclesis- raising the bread and wine at the alter
  • genuflexion- bending the knee or kneeling
  • fraction- breaking the bread
  • shaking hands to share the peace
• The matter: Roman Catholic

  • bread and wine- taken and held up at the alter
  • transubstantiation takes place- literal body and blood of christ
• The intent: Roman Catholic

  • sent into the world spiritually stronger
  • fast for 2 hours before or overnight
  • confession
• Baptist church

  • learn all they need from Jesus and christians living from the Bible
  • study Bible carefully and prayerfully
  • anyone can conduct communion, as long as the congregation agrees
• Differences between baptist and Roman Catholic mass

  • baptists have no alter
  • baptists have cubes of bread and grape juice, catholics have wafers and wine
  • anyone can take part in communion in the baptist church, don't need to be baptised and confirmed
• "all those who love the Lord Jesus" can take part in communion in Baptist churches
• baptists take a memorialist approach

  • do not believe the bread and wine has undertaken any spiritual change
  • memorial to remember the life and death of Jesus
  • throw leftovers away
• Roman catholics, orthodox and some CofE

  • bread and wine alters spiritual significance
  • bread is the embodiment of the actual presence of Jesus
• Catholics will keep a wafer and put it in a monstrance so that people can pray to the physical presence of christ
• catholics receive mass several times a week, compulsory at christmas and Saint's Day
• Excommunication bans Catholics from receiving communion, happens when a person breaches the serious rules of the Church
• Most Catholics receive mass when they get married and before they die
• After death, Catholics may hold mass in the deceased's honour
• Those who are undergoing spiritual change or challenges may ask for a mass to be said in their name
• Protestants value the Lord's Supper but do not believe it has extra symbolic value to the community
• baptism has a higher status than communion for Baptists
• Baptists view communion as an optional extra and will incorporate it into their worship around once a month