Children at the Lord's Table
The following resources (all PDFs) address the theological and procedural questions concering baptized children participating in the sacrament of the Lord's Supper.
Baptized Children and the Lord's Table: 1990
Baptized children are welcomed to the Lord's Table because they are members of the church and thereby fitting recipients of the grace which God makes available to the covenant community through word and sacrament. In the Reformed tradition, baptism is regarded as a sign and seal of incorporation into the body of Christ. Children are to be baptized because they, no less than their parents, have been promised "the forgiveness of sins through Christ's blood and the Holy Spirit who gives faith." (Heidelberg Catechism, Question 74.) There are no second class citizens of the covenant community.
Read more.
Resource
Baptized Non-Communicants and the Celebration of the Lord's Supper: 1984
The commission believes that ultimately the question of whether baptized children may be permitted to eat at the Table must be answered theologically. It agrees, moreover, that the 1977 paper provides such theological answers. The present paper builds on the 1977 study and attempts to support it with insights from historical theology and the behavioral sciences.
Read more.
Baptized Non-Communicants and the Celebration of the Lord's Supper: 1977
The Synod of 1973 instructed the Theological Commission to prepare a study of baptized children at the Lord's Table. The study is herewith submitted to the General Synod, and it addresses itself to the following areas of concerns: the place of baptism in the life of the church; the meaning of "baptized non-communicant members"; the place of the Lord's Supper in the life of the church; the place of children at the Lord's Table; the need to provide for an occasion of affirmation and commissioning; a suggested procedure for the local church; and a conclusion with recommendations.
Read more.
|