Communion
A sacrament is a symbolic action, or ritual, by which people of
faith encounter the presence and goodness of God. In a sacrament,
ordinary things like water, bread, and wine are used to point us to God
and God’s love, reminding us of the sacred in life.
In the United Church, we celebrate two sacraments: baptism, the ritual that formally recognizes we belong to the Christian community, and communion, a symbolic meal initiated by Jesus. These are of central importance to our faith.
The Lord’s Supper, Eucharist, Holy Communion—these different terms refer to the same sacrament shared by most Christian denominations, a symbolic meal.
Communion is served from a table that suggests the dining table in our homes. At the communion table, we acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the host and all are guests. The meal uses the symbols of small pieces of bread and a taste of wine or juice to remind us of Jesus' last supper with his followers and of God’s enduring love. At George Street United, we use the ancient practice of intinction, dipping the bread into the chalice, and everyone present is invited into communion with God.
Baptism
We use water as a symbolic cleansing that signifies the
acceptance of new life within the church family. We believe the gift of
God's love doesn't depend on our ability to understand it,
so we baptize
people as infants right up through adulthood. Baptism is not a
requirement of God's love, nor is it a magic charm for life. Baptism
takes place during a regular Sunday service. When children are baptized,
their parents or godparents make promises before God and the entire
congregation to raise them in the Christian faith. Adults seeking
baptism make the promise themselves. It's a significant commitment to
bring a child to church every Sunday, so during a baptism, the
congregation also pledges to support parents and their children, to help
with the Christian education of the children. At George Street, the
Ministers walk the baby or child through the congregation say everyone
can say hello. p>
If you are interested in exploring the possibility of a baptism at George Street United, we invite you to come and worship with us, check us out to see if this is a place you could belong, and feel free to discuss it with one of the ministers.
