Yesterday a young girl in our community took Holy Communion for the first time. Before the service I took her into the chancel, and we looked at the wine and the bread, and reviewed what we talked about in our class. Her mom said she was so excited, she woke up early and put on "just the right dress" she had picked out the night before. She was all smiles as she came forward, practically bouncing up the aisle, to receive a taste of God's love.
I serve communion to children as young as the parents will let me because I think the adults have it all wrong. We used to commune on the day of confirmation (9th or 10th grade); then we moved it to 5th grade, the (arbitrary!) "age of reason"; now it's the discretion of the pastor and the family. Our communion practices have changed to reflect more accurately our theology of communion: what is God really doing here? We used to think a person had to "understand" what was going on in communion before they could receive it.
Well, if we really believe the bread and wine are tangible means of God's grace to us; if they are really ONE MORE WAY God is reminding us of God's unfailing love for us that not even death can interfere with; if a sacrament is a holy act of which GOD is the subject... you get the point.
And if a 5-year-old bouncing down the aisle with a grin on her face isn't an apt expression of the joy we feel in being surrounded by God's love, then we are lost.
Maybe we should start communion earlier and take it away when we forget what it's all about.
When I asked her what she will always remember when she takes communion, she proclaimed excitedly, "GOD LOVES ME!!"
Amen, sister!
Amen indeed!
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