Communion Information

Introducing Children to Communion

PBC does not promote a particular age when children are expected to participate in communion, and PBC does not require that a child be a certain age before being allowed to partake. Rather we support parents in explaining and determining if a child is ready to partake in this personal act of faith. Occasionally arrangements are made to have grades 2 to 5 be present in the worship services when communion is offered. The celebration of Communion, or the Lord's Table, is an essential aspect of the Christian faith so it is important that children be present to observe and/or participate (if appropriate). Also, including the children helps them develop a sense of belonging to the larger church community.

Parents are encouraged to introduce their children to the concept of Communion as the beginning of an ongoing conversation. When explaining Communion to children it isn't necessary to give a complete and final explanation in one sitting. An understanding and appreciation of the Lord's Table will increase as they grow in the Lord. Printed below are further details to help equip parents to teach about this observance and to help discern if it would be appropriate for a child to participate.

Explaining Communion to Your Child

By Kathy Means

The church celebration of communion is a tangible way of remembering the death of Jesus on the cross for us. The Lord Jesus instructed his followers to remember him through the symbols of bread and wine. This act of remembrance is know by Christians as communion, the Lord's Supper, and, in some churches, the Eucharist. It is therefore appropriate for those children who have a personal faith in Christ to participate in communion. Communion is a sacred time for reflection and prayer that nourishes our souls by faith.

How might you explain communion to your child? Begin by reading 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 to them.

"For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, 'This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.' In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.' For whenever you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes." 1 Cor. 11:24-26

We remember Who He is! When we take the bread and drink from the cup we remember Christ. Explain to children who Jesus is. He is God's Son, Jesus Christ, your Savior and Lord.

We remember who we are! We are sinners in need of forgiveness. Tell children: It's appropriate to take a quiet moment and confess our sin to God and ask for forgiveness.

We remember what He did! Communion helps us remember that Christ died for us, for our sins, on a hill outside of Jerusalem. Tell children: Christ loves you so much that He died so your sin would no longer separate you from God. Communion reminds us that Jesus gave His body (represented by the bread) on the cross for your sins. Jesus also bled on the cross (the cup represents his blood). He died, was buried, and rose from the tomb to live again so that you could forever live with God in heaven.

We remember what He does! Jesus is doing something for us every day of our lives. Tell children: If you have invited Jesus to be your Savior, He live in you! He loves you so much that He is always at your side. He is your best Friend. He is your Guide. He leads you along the way, into the right way, into the best way. He is your Shepherd. He cares for you, He protects you, He looks after you. Jesus is just as near and real as the bread and the cup you see with your eyes and touch with your hands and lips.

We remember that He is coming back! We eat the bread and drink the cup remembering how Jesus, our Savior and Lord, came to this earth to die for us. Tell children: Jesus wants you to celebrate communion until He comes again. One day Jesus is coming back in a wonderful way, yet we do not know the exact time when He will return. We wait, and we remember Him through communion.

Should your child participate in communion? *Any child who can confidently speak of his or her own faith in Christ is welcome to participate in communion.

*Any child who knows for sure that he or she is not yet a Christian should be made to feel comfortable passing the bread and the juice to the person beside them without partaking.

*It is certainly appropriate to tell a child he or she is not yet old enough to participate if they have shown no sign of thinking of themselves as individual moral agents before God who need to make a decision about Christ. Children, of course, will differ in this age-of-understanding. Some will be aware of purposefully giving their lives to Christ at age five, and others will not have personally faced the possibility of faith by age eleven, or later.

*The most difficult case concerns children who have grown up surrounded by their parents' Christian faith, who assume they believe the same things, (and would answer yes if you asked them if they believe in Christ), yet show no personal response to God that can be detected by their father, mother, or any one else looking on. That child may need to wait for their faith to mature. But if we err, we believe we should err on the side of love (which hopes all things and believes all things) in these cases - especially with young children and not turn them away from an opportunity to express their simple faith through communion. With children in their late teens it may be an occasion to gently question the choice to take communion, pointing out the need for an inner response to validate the outward act of worship.

Nothing is more wonderful or more likely to make us recognize our need for the Lord than the business of parenting. We're all in this together! Let us know of any way we can help you serve Christ in the lives of your children.