Koinonia – is the Greek word for communion,
the unity between individuals fostered and celebrated in common
worship. Acts 2:42 tells us that the early Christians devoted
themselves to “koinonia, the breaking of the bread, and prayer.”
It may be surprising to find that the
deepest roots of our understanding of the word “communion” is
therefore, not so much the act of receiving the Body and Blood of
Christ in the form of bread and wine, but rather, the act of gathering
together and forming a worshipping community.
Our liturgical assembly (at the Eucharist)
is a dynamic event, a process, which begins with the gathering of those
who are called by God. Christ himself is present in them, and so, the
assembly of the community itself is the fundamental sacramental
symbol. The assembly is the subject and the bearer of the liturgical
action, for “liturgical services are not private functions, but are
celebrations of the Church, which is the ‘sacrament of unity,’ namely, a
holy people united and organized under their bishops.” Constitution on
the Sacred Liturgy, #26.
We have an exceptional community here at
Holy Trinity, one that reaches out to include newcomers and to aid
those in need, that awareness can only come from a very real sense of
the presence of Christ among the people; the sense of a truly “holy
family.” (December 28,2003)