Dr. Platypus

So far we have seen that the earliest forms of distinctively Christian worship have their origins at the dinner table where a few baptized and committed believers gathered to share a common meal. Furthermore, the evidence strongly suggests this form of worship was a private affair at which non-believers were forbidden. Wayne Meeks, for example, describes how Paul understood the Lord’s Supper ritual as a “boundary marker” of Christian community (The First Urban Christians [Yale University Press, 1983] 159-60). This exclusion flies in the face of current ministry philosophies that make much of the church’s weekly worship service as a “front door event” at which pre-Christian seekers are assumed to be present.

Modern church practice, crossing all denominational lines (as far as I know), does not bar anyone from simply attending a service where the Lord’s Supper is celebrated. I have been present at Catholic Mass on several occasions, even though as a Protestant I would be deemed unqualified to receive Communion. My mere presence, however, was never a sticking point. Churches generally give some sort of notice, either spoken or printed, as to who is or is not invited to receive the bread and the cup. The attendance of people not permitted to participate fully is not considered a problem. This practice is an outgrowth of medieval Christendom, in which it could be safely assumed that nearly every member of society had been baptized in infancy and was thus at least nominally Christian. As our society becomes more secular and post-Christian, this assumption will need to be named and evaluated biblically, ecclesiologically, and theologically.

On at least one occasion, however, Paul discussed Christian worship on the assumption that unbelievers would be present. In discussing the exercise of charismatic gifts, he told the Corinthians,

If all prophesy, an unbeliever or outsider who enters is reproved by all and called to account by all. After the secrets of the unbeliever’s heart are disclosed, that person will bow down before God and worship him, declaring, “God is really among you” (1 Cor 14:24-25)

It should be noted that Paul (1) assumed that the presence of an “unbeliever or outsider” was a real possibility, and (2) urged the Corinthians to adjust their worship practices so as not to put unnecessary stumbling blocks in such a person’s path.

From earliest times, therefore, Christians invited the unbaptized to participate in some forms of Christian worship but not others. Specifically, only the baptized were permitted to attend the Eucharist. A number of options presented themselves for working out the logistics of this decision.

Let us call the most widespread arrangement the “Classical” option. This option was universal by the fourth and fifth centuries. Simply put, the unbaptized were permitted to attend the first part of the service, in which the Sciptures were read and explained, but were dismissed before the Eucharist. So long as there was a vital catechumenate, those who had made at least a preliminary commitment to follow Christ were dismissed with a blessing and sent to another location, where they would receive additional instruction.

Two earlier options may be designated by the locations in which they first appear in the documentary record. The “Bithynian” option is suggested by Pliny’s interrogation of certain lapsed Christians. Around the turn of the second century, Pliny discovered that the custom of Christians was to meet in the pre-dawn hours for prayer, and then to gather again in the evening to share a common meal. It has been conjectured that the early-morning prayer service was modeled on Jewish synagogue practices. Although there is no indication of the presence of seekers at the morning service, it seems likely that they would have been welcomed, just as “God-fearers” were welcomed in Hellenistic synagogues in the first century.

Earlier still, we find the “Corinthian” option in the writings of Paul. In 1 Corinthians, the Lord’s Supper was apparently exclusively for Christians (1 Cor 11), but seekers were permitted to join in the “symposium” immediately following (1 Cor 12-14). Though it may seem strange to us, it was unremarkable in ancient times for hosts to invite only a few close friends for dinner and to invite additional guests to come after supper to take part in the evening’s entertainments. Such a practice seems to be implied in 1 Corinthians.

Finally, we should mention the “Constantinopolitan” option, known only from a historical reminiscence in a sermon of John Chrysostom (Homily 27 on 1 Cor 11:17). Chrysostom described an ancient church custom by which “the poor” were invited to a dinner that took place in the church at the conclusion of the Eucharist. If “the poor” included unbelievers (and this is not certain), this would be the only ancient option in which non-believers were invited to share food with Christians! There is no evidence that any church actually observed this custom in ancient times, but it deserves consideration, if for no other reason than it is faithful to Jesus’ own example of eating with society’s outcasts.

technorati tags: agape, baptism, catechumen, communion, eucharist, lord’s supper, unbaptized