by Terry L. Bowes

It was one of those wonderful potlucks that many extended families are blessed to share. My husband, Steve, and our son, Mike, had just finished helping Scott and his father lay down sod in the backyard of Scott and Amy’s new house. Mike called the work "a guys’ shower" because Scott and Amy are expecting their first child.

After the sod was laid and the irrigation system installed, the family held a potluck to celebrate the accomplishment. Everyone brought a dish or beverage to contribute to the festivities.

Like most extended families, this one was not so much born as created. This particular family came together when our daughter, Missy, married Ryan nine years ago. Suddenly, we had in-laws with aunts, uncles, and cousins in various degrees. Scott and Amy are beloved parts of that in-law package.

We might all have been friends without this marriage tie. In fact, Ryan’s Aunt Carolyn and I had been singing partners for 20 years before Missy and Ryan even met. Our friendship was deepened and enriched into a family tie when they married. Put simply, we care more now.

As we shared news and updates about one another and family members far away, Carolyn asked me, "What are you writing right now, Terry?" I told her, "I’m writing an article for Lutheran Woman Today about full communion and our full communion partners." Immediately, a dozen heads nodded, a dozen mouths smiled kindly, and a dozen pairs of eyes glazed over. I’m used to that. Talking about full communion can be pretty darn boring. Living into full communion is exciting, challenging, and rewarding.

I looked over the group. Three generations were represented. Most of the family is Lutheran, some more active than others. Amy is a devout Roman Catholic. My Steve never really converted emotionally to Lutheranism from his Roman Catholic roots.

"Wait! Wait!" I protested as the conversation turned to the weather. "You all can help me write this article. What questions would you like to have answered? What comments would you like to make?"

Silence ensued. Finally, Amy spoke up to help me. "Who are these full communion partners you’re talking about?"

Currently, the ELCA has formal full communion agreements with the Episcopal Church (USA), the Moravian Church, and the reformed churches: the Presbyterian Church (USA), the Reformed Church in America, and the United Church of Christ. All of those formal relationships are relatively new, being ratified by the churches in 1997 and 1999. However, decades of dialogues between the ELCA and each of these church bodies preceded the formal agreements. Like any major commitment, full communion is not a relationship that we jump into cavalierly.

"Does that mean that when you take communion with those full communion partners you all believe the same thing?"

Yes, dear Amy. There are six characteristics of two churches that define a relationship of full communion: (1) a common confession of the Christian faith; (2) a mutual recognition of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, allowing for joint worship and an exchangeability of members; (3) a mutual recognition and availability of ministers; (4) a common commitment to evangelism, witness, and service; (5) a means of common decision making on critical common issues of faith and life; and (6) a mutual lifting of any condemnations that exist between the churches.

Dennis asked, "Haven’t we always been able to take communion in an Episcopal or Presbyterian church? What makes it different now?"

Good question, and another one that speaks to the Lord’s Supper. In the Lutheran-Episcopal Agreement of 1982, for example, the two churches recognized each other as "Churches in which the Gospel is preached and taught," and thousands of Lutherans and Episcopalians rejoiced across the country as they prayed and shared the Lord’s Supper together. The real goal that came out of that agreement, however, was full communion (communio in sacris). That altar fellowship was a huge step in that direction, but only one step.

Communio
When we first hear the term "full communion," our thoughts, like Amy’s and Dennis’s, go immediately to the Communion Table — the Lord’s Supper. While that is absolutely accurate, the term "full communion" as the ELCA defines its ecumenical life is broader.

The Latin word communio is the root of the words community, communion, commitment. When we say the Apostles’ Creed, we confess our belief in "the communion of saints," the holy community of all believers.

I love the word communio. It falls lightly on the ear and on the soul. It implies an intimacy, a sense of reliability, integrity, and mutual commitment to the Gospel. This relationship is not a mere association on the basis of human connections, interests, or efforts. "The concept ‘communio’ means: The Church as a human fellowship or communion is always a communion in Christ. Its foundation is always communion with Christ through faith and participation in his saving work." (A Commentary on "Ecumenism: The Vision of the ELCA," Minneapolis; Augsburg, 1990, William G. Rusch, editor, p. 122)

Family ties
In other words, a full communion partnership is a lot like a family gathering. In our case, the family is brought together because each of us loves Ryan and Missy and their children. In the case of the ELCA and our full communion partners, we come together out of a mutual love for God in Christ Jesus. We each bring our own personalities and histories to the gathering. We learn to accept, even love, the foibles of one another. We care about one another’s distant relatives, even though we might not have met them.

We also bring unique gifts to the relationship. Scott and Amy needed a backyard of something besides mud to welcome their new baby. Steve and Mike have the experience and equipment to install a sprinkler system and rolls of sod.

Every single synod of the ELCA has its own stories of new family ties as a result of our full communion relationships. Episcopal priests serve as pastors in ELCA congregations and vice versa. Presbyterian pastors share the same interchangeability with Lutherans. Joint congregations are forming; church facilities are being shared.

In Mississippi, Lutherans and Episcopalians are working together through several social service programs for children at risk and the families of men and women in prison. The synod and the diocese have joined forces to respond to disasters as the Lutheran/Episcopal Disaster Response in Mississippi that share a new trailer for quick response in emergencies.

The Texas-Louisiana Gulf Coast Synod and the Episcopal Diocese of Texas come together for many events, including a joint conference on spirituality in 2003.

In Jamestown, New York (the Upstate New York Synod and the Episcopal Diocese of New York), the goal is to establish two Hispanic congregations and to launch an outreach program to the community to be called Flame of Hope (Llama de la Esperanza), including a day care center for children in high-risk situations.

Could these things have happened without a formal full communion relationship? In many cases the answer is yes. But as the Rt. Rev. C. Christopher Epting, deputy for ecumenical and interfaith relations for the Episcopal Church says: "[when] we were not in full communion we could ignore one another. Now we cannot."

Interchangeability of clergy may be the most visible incarnation of full communion and could not happen without formal full communion agreements.

The "M" word
Full communion and merger are not the same things. In a merger (such as the merger of the LCA, the ALC, and the AELC in 1987), churches become one, with one constitution, one "headquarters," one decision-making process, one new name (ELCA). Full communion gives a deeper relationship among churches, each of which maintains its own identity. I am still a Bowes, even when I am at a Brooks event.

So?
It was my husband, Steve, who, as usual, asked the most penetrating question: "So what does any of this have to do with John and Jane Doe in the pew of Holy Cow Lutheran Church? Why should they care about full communion?"

There will be many Johns and Janes whose lives and faith will never feel direct effects of full communion. Full communion does offer all of us opportunities to engage in partnerships between our congregations and the congregations and parishes of our full communion partners. Perhaps your youth groups come together for an event. Think of how exciting it could be to combine Vacation Bible Schools one summer. I would encourage your Women of the ELCA to invite the women of your full communion partner churches to plan and enjoy a retreat. Imagine the ways that full communion partners could work together to combat poverty in your community.

My friend Faith sent me a copy of The Moravian Hymnal, a gift from her very Lutheran sister who serves as the organist for a Moravian congregation in North Carolina. It stands alongside my Lutheran Book of Worship, The Book of Common Prayer, and Moravian Texts and Prayers on my table of devotional books. I would never have plumbed the depths of those wonderful books if not for my involvement in ecumenical relationships.

Put simply, I care more now.