A Quick Thought

Sin, I believe, is merely the absence of love.

I'm reading way too much

The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of the mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.

- Wilhelm Stekel

"Breaking of Bread"

This one is for you Steve.

First of all, let me give you some context for this post. This post in an excerpt from a paper I recently wrote on Acts 2:42-47. This passage describes the first group of Messianic Jews in Jerusalem after the day of Pentecost. This excerpt talks about how they would "break bread" in each others' homes and discuses a little bit of the theology behind the idea of communion. Its some food for thought - if you will.

Anyways, if you have any questions, or would like to know the sources I used in the paper, please don't hesitate to ask.

Enjoy!

The second act of worship seen in both verses 42 and 46 is “breaking of bread.” This is commonly mistaken for the sacrament of communion performed in the church today. “Rather, Luke recalls the practice of devout Jewish families who following temple worship would share meals together as symbolic of their social and spiritual solidarity” (Soards 72). The “breaking of bread” refers to a common Jewish practice that would take place at a communal meal. “The Jewish practice of saying grace before a meal includes taking a loaf of bread, giving thanks, breaking it, and distributing it (Matt. 14:19). To “break bread” could designate a common meal” (Freedman 199). This does not mean, however, that what the new believers were doing in acts was not completely isolated from what Jesus Christ commanded them to do at the last supper (Luke 22:14-20). “Probably the best understanding is to see [breaking of bread] as a combination of the two – an agape meal (as noted in 1 Corinthians 11:20-34) followed by the Lord’s Supper” (Janzen 24). This has profound implications for the way the church practices breaking of bread now. Perhaps, when Christ called his church to remember him every time we break bread and take the cup, he was not referring to when the church participated in the sacrament of communion every first Sunday of the month. Instead, perhaps Jesus was calling his church to remember him every time they gathered together - with each other, with their friends, with their families - to simply to eat and drink. Perhaps then, the Lord’s Supper should not just be reserved for every first Sunday of month. Instead, maybe remembrance of Jesus should take place at breakfast, lunch and dinner.