Communion: A Second Look at Traditional Teachings… a Layman’s Look

A Dutch Landscape. Image by MabelAmber on Pixabay.com

Having some Catholic friends in my life I have had further exposure to Catholic ways of living, and recently I have been thinking about Communion. Perhaps being a non-Catholic I have the liberty to think in different ways about the tradition of Communion. Perhaps the act itself of Communion is a kind of “earth to heaven” telegraph message in an age where internet was not around, an action that would set up a message to someone for a particular purpose. Perhaps we can think about it like those lights that send huge beams into the night sky, a bat signal sent to batman, except this is a “God” signal letting him know you want something, an agreed upon signal if you will.

Quite a few years ago I had a deep understanding, one that left me feeling such deep regret and sadness. I was in a time in my life where I was in a lot of pain and I was asking for help all the time. Just as frequently I would receive profound dreams and visions. Amazing while they were happening and deeply touching, they never seemed to impact my situation. The following day and the days afterward I would feel stuck and within my pain, and again I would take up my plea for help.

The deep understanding? Each dream or vision contained a feeling, a power, something that spoke to me. I was to copy and practice that feeling. The feeling was the answer.

That was it.

So simple. So easy. My sadness was great. How long had I petitioned for help? How many times had I been answered? If only I had known sooner. How much time had been wasted? I held such deep regret for the passage of time and for my ignorance, for how often the universe had responded and I had not understood, the sadness for my not understanding, for the long times of emptiness and pain, for the healing that would ensue. Because I did not understand I was not even able to accept the love that was extended to me.

That was years ago now. I no longer feel regret and powerfully practice holding feelings, thoughts and life-directed energy in many areas.

Seeing Communion, it occurred to me that the act of taking bread and wine together in this rite was one of telling a cosmic agency that we wanted to connect with and experience the feeling necessary to practice becoming…