Kathleen Loveridge

Leader: Today we are going to share Holy Communion.

Youngster: What does that mean?

Leader: Communion is a word that people in church use to mean sharing, and it’s Holy because we are going to share a meal with God.

Youngster: I don’t think I’m ready for another meal yet; I’ve eaten too much Easter egg.

Leader: Well you’re not going to get very much at this meal, just a small piece of bread, and one of these small glasses of wine – and that’s not even alcoholic.

Youngster: Doesn’t sound much like a meal to me, and surely that Hot Cross Bun is not big enough for all of us?

Leader: It will be, as long as each of us only has a tiny bit. The bread and wine are symbols; we have a small taste of each to share in God’s feast. It’s his meal for us.

Youngster: Not very generous, is he?

Leader: Ah, but as I said these small tastes remind us of something much bigger! They stand for the body and blood of Jesus, and remind us that God loved us so much that he sent his son Jesus into the world as a human being. That was God’s generosity!

Youngster: How do you mean?

Leader: Well Jesus’ teaching was so extraordinary that crowds of people began to understand God better because of what he said. He told them that if they tried to follow his example and did their best to love and serve them, then God would forgive them when they did things wrong, and be there to help them when they were having a hard time. To prove how serious he let himself be arrested, given a mock trial, and executed in the most horrible way.

Youngster: Oh yes, that’s the story we had on Good Friday. The religious leaders were jealous that Jesus was getting more popular than them, and they tricked the Roman authorities into agreeing that Jesus was dangerous.

Leader: And you’ll remember that the last thing Jesus did before he was arrested was to share a meal with his closest friends. We call it the Last Supper, and at the end of the meal he told his friends that every time they shared bread and wine at Holy Communion they would be celebrating what was going to happen to him.

Youngster: Doesn’t sound to me much like something to celebrate. And it still doesn’t seem to me that God was being generous.

Leader: That’s because Good Friday wasn’t the end of the story and it’s why today, Easter Sunday, is the most important day in the year for Christians. God didn’t just allow Jesus to die on that horrible Cross, he then brought him back to life, to show us that he has the power to enable us to live forever, too.

Youngster: That’s more like it; that’s really generous.

Leader: Yes, that’s why every time we come to Holy Communion we say a great prayer of thanksgiving. It begins: Holy, holy, holy Lord. We’re going to say it together, now, before we share this meal with God.

Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessèd is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.