Eucharist
Mushrooms at the table?
People have long tried to trace a connection between the early church’s eucharistic practice and psychedelic substances. Scholars aren’t convinced.
This is my broken body
When illness took over my life, I developed a new understanding of the Eucharist.
Hartmut Rosa says we’re running faster just to stay in place
The German sociologist’s theory of “resonance” offers an alternative: deceleration.
The shape of liturgy when everything is changing
Even stones are constantly being transformed.
The liturgy of a black lives matter protest
Last week in Louisville, I went to church.
Reason and revelation meet—even in Aquinas
Denys Turner’s essays bridge the gaps that often frustrate us when we read medieval theology.
by Kyle Rader
Communion at the border wall in Tijuana
What does it mean to worship in the middle of a wound?
In West Virginia, the teachers’ strike made new space for Eucharistic living
A church on my street fed food-insecure kids while schools were closed. The work of justice flowed outward from the table.
Take and eat? When church members prefer just a blessing
Matt grew up in the Episcopal Church. One Sunday he appeared at the altar—with his arms crossed over his chest.
Stealing Jesus: A Protestant takes communion at mass
My ecclesiastical criminality has been going on for 45 years. It all started at a Trappist abbey in Virginia.
Lessons in Belonging from a Church-Going Commitment Phobe, by Erin S. Lane
Erin Lane wants to help millennials and those who love them understand the real countercultural impulse of the church.
reviewed by Anne Blue Wills
Contesting Catholicity, by Curtis W. Freeman
Curtis Freeman's book addresses primarily Baptists, but his concern matters to all Christians who live in denominational separatism but are summoned to embrace the richness of catholic faith.
reviewed by Walter Brueggemann
Putting away the silver
"After we receive the bread, we're gonna go to the kitchen," he said. "We have cheese pizza tonight."
Worship for the Whole People of God, by Ruth C. Duck
Ruth Duck takes a balanced approach to liturgy. Her aim is not to champion a single style but to offer a foundation for reflection.
reviewed by Marlene Kropf
Why not a eucharistic anti-gun event?
A number of activist organizations are declaring March 15-17 "National Gun Violence Prevention Sabbath Weekend."
It's not clear if this is meant to replace The Brady Center's "God Not Guns Sabbath," which has been observed on the last weekend of September for a number of years. But the organizers seem eager to keep the event broadly ecumenical and interfaith.
A church-visit epiphany
This past Sunday was the Epiphany, the celebration of the incarnate Christ made manifest. It also happened to be the Sunday I decided to visit a congregation of the Metropolitan Community Church.
The MCC is more theologically liberal than I am, so I braced myself for some hangups. But I also wanted to remain as open as possible to experiencing God in a different context. I’m glad I went.
Altar politics: Sharing communion on Election Day
On Nov. 6, our church building was both a polling place and a place for worship. At some point I began to see the latter as the main event.
Who is communion for? The debate over the open table
Offering the elements to the unbaptized can be seen as a development and not a revolution, but it is a significant change. Is it a good one?
Pulpit safety Sunday
Much has been said about Pulpit Freedom Sunday already, but there's still a thing or two to add.
First, let's talk about the political and legal aspects of the story. Reuters says it's "not entirely clear" why the IRS hasn't gone after churches making endorsements in recent years. I’d say the reason is actually pretty clear: the U.S. House of Representatives.