18 Jul GS 2022 art 43

GS 2022 Article 43 – Overture RSE 2020 to remove the bracketed qualifier “For the Second Service” from the Abbreviated Form for the Celebration of the Lord’s Supper

1.   Material

• 1.1.   RSE 2020 Overture to Remove the Bracketed Qualifier from the Abbreviated Lord’s Supper Form (8.4.2).
• 1.2    Letters from the following CanRC: Ancaster (8.5.2.1), Brampton-Grace (8.5.2.2), Niagara South (8.5.2.3), Guelph-Emmanuel (8.5.2.4), Smithville (8.5.2.5), Cloverdale (8.5.2.6), Vernon (8.5.2.7), Coaldale (8.5.2.8), Flamborough-Redemption (8.5.2.9), Fergus-Maranatha (8.5.2.10), Glanbrook-Trinity (8.5.2.11), Winnipeg-Redeemer (8.5.2.12), Edmonton-Immanuel (8.5.2.13), Langley (8.5.2.14), Carman West (8.5.2.15).

2.   Admissibility

• 2.1    The submissions were declared admissible.

3.   Decision

Synod decided:

• 3.1    To remove the bracketed qualifier “For the Second Service” from the Abbreviated Form for the Celebration of the Lord’s Supper.

4.   Grounds

• 4.1    In their correspondence to GS 2022, a number of churches suggested that the removal of the bracketed qualifier would facilitate the more frequent celebration of the Lord’s Supper, while simultaneously maintaining the priority of the preaching.  While neither the length of the liturgical forms, nor of the service as a whole necessarily is an insurmountable barrier to more frequent communion, it cannot be denied that the adoption of a shorter form could facilitate more frequent celebration of the sacrament.
• 4.2    The Acts of GS 1977 do not indicate that any limitation/restriction would be placed on the use of the desired abbreviated form (GS 1977 Art. 60 esp. Cons. 10 and Rec. 4).
• 4.3    GS 1980 provides no grounds, or rationale, for the decision to limit the use of the Abbreviated Form to the second service (GS 1980 Art. 136).
• 4.4    In their correspondence to GS 2022, some churches expressed their concern that eliminating the bracketed qualifier would cause the longer form to be neglected or ignored altogether.  No principial or substantive objection was raised against the sufficiency of the content of the Abbreviated Form.
• 4.5    In their correspondence to GS 2022, several churches expressed concern about the absence of the list of transgressions that is found in the longer form. This concern treats the longer form as the norm. Scripture is the norm. Both forms are expressions of the norm. Further, this concern is mitigated by the fact that the Lord’s Supper is most often celebrated in the morning service, in which the Law is read.  Finally, the Abbreviated Form maintains the call for self-examination and the admonition to repentance.