The Heart Of Communion

The Great Prayer of Thanksgiving follows a pattern given to us by Jesus himself, who built upon Jewish models. Although the various churches have different versions of this prayer, a basic, fourfold structure found already in the Gospel accounts of the Last Supper is common to all: taking bread, giving thanks, breaking and pouring, and distributing. The Eucharistic Prayer What is the Great Prayer of Thanksgiving, and what does it have to do with worship? Although that title, and another term, the eucharistic prayer, may sound unfamiliar to some of us, the prayer itself is not. It is a prayer all of us have joined in many times-the central prayer in the celebration of Holy Communion. Eucharist is the New Testament Greek word for thanksgiving. So the eucharistic prayer is often called the Great Prayer of Thanksgiving. It is a unique prayer with a distinctive pattern, provided by the Lord Jesus Christ himself on the very first Easter. As Jesus walked to Emmaus with two of his disci…