The Great Thanksgiving (Biblical)
"Holy, Holy, Holy" (Sanctus)
The "Holy, Holy, Holy" is a hymn of praise or doxology typically found in the liturgy preceding the receiving of the Lord's Supper. From its Greek version it is sometimes called the Trisagion or "thrice holy." The text of the Sanctus, as used in most worshiping communities, is as follows: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.The first part of the Sanctus is taken verbatim from the hymn of the seraphs, or "burning ones," in Isaiah's vision of the majesty of the Lord (Isa. 6:3), a vision in which he received his call as a prophet of the Lord. The hymn articulates something of the wonder and adoration of all creatures before their Creator, who is called the Lord of Hosts, or armies (Yahveh tz?va'ot). Because of the use of this name, associated with Yahweh's enthronement above the ark of the covenant and because of the other imagery of the vision (coals taken from the altar, the sanctuary filled with the smoke of incense, the antiphonal chanting of the seraphs reminiscent of the interplay of the priestly choirs), it is likely that the context for Isaiah's vision was his participation in an actual festal liturgy at the Jerusalem sanctuary, the "house of the Lord."
The second part of the "Holy, Holy, Holy," the Hosanna, is based on the words of Psalm 118:25–26. The Hebrew hoshi'ah-na' is a cry for deliverance: "Save, we beseech thee!" The psalm is a liturgy in which a blessing is pronounced on those who enter the sanctuary in the name of the Lord; it focuses especially on the entrance of the king, having been delivered in battle against his enemies (cf. Ps. 118:10–18). The acclamation was echoed in the shouts of Jesus' disciples as he first entered Jerusalem in the week of his death and resurrection (Luke 19:38). The Hosanna gives the Sanctus a christological character, reminding worshipers of the fullness of the holy God dwelling in his incarnate Son (Col. 2:9). Christ ever comes as "king of kings and lord of lords" (Rev. 19:16) when his people gather to celebrate his victory and declare his dominion. The "Holy, Holy, Holy" is a fitting expression of the worshiping church's awe before the mystery of the presence of God. The Sanctus and Hosanna convey an awareness of the real presence of the Lord in his sanctuary, as his people gather to celebrate their bond with him in the covenant meal. But, although the Eucharist is a sacramental act pointing through physical objects to spiritual realities, the "Holy, Holy, Holy" does not necessarily suggest to Christians that the Lord's presence is coextensive with the elements of the Lord's Supper and their architectural surroundings. In New Testament imagery the sanctuary to which the Lord comes, in which he is blessed and exalted as holy, is the assembly of his worshipers (1 Cor. 3:16–17; 2 Cor. 6:16; Eph. 2:21; Rev. 21:3).Eucharistic Prayer
In all Christian traditions the receiving of the Lord's Supper is accompanied by prayer. The content and thrust of such prayer differ from church to church. In historic Christian worship, however, two themes have predominated: thanksgiving to God for his acts of redemption culminating in Christ's giving of himself, and the invocation of the Holy Spirit on the congregation and on the gifts of bread and wine. The eucharistic prayer is sometimes called the prayer of consecration.Thanksgiving
The word Eucharist means thanksgiving and refers to Jesus' act of blessing the Father and giving thanks as he distributed to his disciples the loaf and cup of the Last Supper (Matt. 26:26–27). Jesus' giving of thanks was consistent with Jewish custom of the period. At the end of a common meal, the host would offer thanks over the "cup of blessing"; this prayer had three themes: thanksgiving for the food and for God's providence, thanksgiving for the covenant and the redemption of the people of God, and a prayer for the reunification of the faithful in the kingdom of God. The eucharistic prayer transposes these same themes into the framework of the new covenant centering in Jesus Christ. Both the Didach? and the First Apology of Justin Martyr attest that by the middle of the second century the practice was for the president of the assembly to give thanks over the bread and wine. In keeping with Jesus' example, the eucharistic prayer may begin with a blessing or doxology. The body of the prayer typically takes the form of a recital of God's action to redeem his people through Jesus Christ. This is seen in the eucharistic prayer quoted by Hippolytus from the early third century:We render thanks to you, O God, through your beloved Servant Jesus Christ, whom in the last times you sent to us as Savior and Redeemer and Messenger of your will; who is your inseparable Word, through whom you made all things, and in whom you were well pleased. You sent him from heaven into the Virgin's womb; and, conceived in the womb, he was made flesh and was manifested as your Son, being born of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin. Fulfilling your will and gaining for you a holy people, he stretched out his hands when he should suffer, that he might release from suffering those who have believed in you. And when he was betrayed to voluntary suffering that he might destroy death, and break the bonds of the devil, and tread down hell, and shine upon the righteous, and fix the limit, and manifest the resurrection, he took bread, and gave thanks to you … (Hippolytus, The Apostolic Tradition 4.4–9)
The same narrative form, similar to that of biblical creedal statements, is found in the eucharistic prayers of many contemporary liturgies; the recital of God's deeds of creation and of the deliverance of his people culminates in thanksgiving for the salvation made available through Jesus Christ. Such is the case in this example from the Lutheran Book of Worship (1978):
Holy God, mighty Lord, gracious Father: endless is your mercy and eternal your reign. You have filled all creation with light and life; heaven and earth are full of your glory. Through Abraham you promised to bless all nations. You rescued Israel, your chosen people. Through the prophets you renewed your promise; and, at this end of all the ages, you sent your Son, who in words and deeds proclaimed your kingdom and was obedient to your will, even to giving his life.
In evangelical and charismatic churches, prayer during the administration of the Lord's Supper usually focuses on the death of Christ in atonement for sin, with the intent that partaking of the Supper might be of spiritual benefit to the worshipers in reminding them of Christ's sacrifice. However, the note of thanksgiving is often present as well, especially thanksgiving for that salvation in Christ of which the Lord's Supper is a symbol.
Invocation of the Spirit
The epikl'sis, or invocation of the Holy Spirit, is based on Jesus' promise of the Holy Spirit as recorded in the Gospels and in the Acts of the Apostles. In his discourse to the disciples at the Last Supper, Jesus affirmed that he would send the Helper, the Spirit of truth, to guide his followers after his departure and to glorify him (John 16:7–15). Appearing to the disciples after his resurrection, Jesus further declared that the Holy Spirit would come upon the church, empowering it for witness to the gospel (Acts 1:8). The New Testament accounts of the institution of the Lord's Supper do not expressly link it with the Holy Spirit, but rather with the body of covenanted believers; the connection with the Spirit is supplied by the vital role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the church as the body of Christ. The biblical history of the apostolic church and the teaching of the New Testament Epistles both stress the dependence of the church on the Holy Spirit. There is "one body and one Spirit" (Eph. 4:4); those who are Christ's live in the resurrection by the Spirit of Christ (Rom. 8:11), having confessed his lordship by the Spirit (1 Cor. 12:3). As Christian liturgy developed, prayers began to be offered, invoking the Spirit's presence both upon the elements of the Lord's Supper—the emblems of the body—and upon the people celebrating through these gifts. An early example is the epikl?sis from the eucharistic prayer quoted in The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus:And we ask that you would send your Holy Spirit upon the offering of your holy church; that, gathering them into one, you would grant to all who partake of the holy things [to partake] for the fullness of the Holy Spirit for the confirmation of faith in truth. (Hippolytus, The Apostolic Tradition 4.13)
In traditional worship, the invocation of the Spirit may precede or follow the words of institution. In this example from The Book of Common Prayer, the invocation comes just before the concluding doxology of the eucharistic prayer:Sanctify them [that is, the gifts of bread and wine] by your Holy Spirit to be for your holy people the body and blood of your Son, the holy food and drink of new and unending life in him. Sanctify us also that we may faithfully receive this holy sacrament, and serve you in unity, constancy, and peace; and at the last day bring us with all your saints into the joy of your eternal kingdom. All this we ask through your Son Jesus Christ. By him, and with him, and in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all honor and glory are yours, Almighty Father, now and for ever. Amen.
Words of Institution
The words of institution are the biblical narrative of Jesus' institution of the Lord's Supper. Almost universally, they have been included in the observance of the Lord's Supper in Christian worship. In liturgical churches and others with more traditional forms of worship, the words of institution are printed in the service book or hymnal as part of the great thanksgiving; in evangelical and charismatic churches, the minister, deacon, or other officiant may read them directly from the Bible. The words of institution are usually quoted from Paul's account of the Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:For I received from the Lord what I also passed on to you: The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, "This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of [him]." In the same way after supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me." For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until he comes. (1 Cor. 11:23–26)
In addition to narrating Jesus' acts of distributing the bread and the cup, the words of institution as given by Paul introduce several interpretive concepts. First, Jesus ordained that his followers continue to practice the ceremony, "in remembrance of me." The Greek word anamn?sis refers not merely to remembering but to "recalling" in the sense of making present once again. Understood in this way, the Lord's Supper is a sacramental action serving as a vehicle for the intensified awareness of Christ's presence with his church. The understanding of how this presence of Christ is related to the elements of the Lord's Supper differs among Christian traditions. As to what Jesus himself meant by "in remembrance," we must bear in mind that we have his words only in Greek translation. What is clear is that the observance of the Lord's Supper, under any historic theological understanding, is in obedience to the ordinance of Christ.
Jesus spoke of "the new covenant in [his] blood." The Lord's Supper is a sign of the restoration of the covenant broken by the unfaithfulness of Israel, in the "new covenant" announced by Jeremiah (Jer. 31:31–34). The concept of covenant in the Lord's Supper places the emphasis on the common life of the community of Christian disciples in interrelationship with one another and with the God who dwells in their midst (Exod. 25:8; Ezek. 37:27; Rev. 21:3). The cup represents the blood of the sacrifice, which enacts the covenant (Exod. 24:6–8), and the Supper as a whole is the meal that ratifies the new covenant (Exod. 24:11). Since the Lord God, in granting the covenant, stands in the place of the Great King, the Lord's Supper is also a declaration of the kingdom of God. Third, Paul interprets the Lord's Supper as a proclamation of the Lord's death in anticipation of his coming. Paul may have in mind Jesus' statement at the Last Supper that he would not partake of it again until the arrival of the kingdom (Luke 22:15–18). In the New Testament, the "coming" of Christ is anticipated as a judgment on sin and disregard for the laws of God (Acts 17:31; 1 Thess. 5:3; 2 Thess. 2:8) and also as the gathering up and transformation of his elect (Mark 13:27; 1 Cor. 15:22–23; 1 Thess. 4:16–17; 1 John 3:2). And, since the atoning death of Christ has freed from bondage to the old system all those who have united with him in his death (Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3:13; Col. 2:12–14), the proclamation of his death also looks forward to the redemption of the children of God (Rom. 8:23; Col. 3:3–4). For first-century Christians, there was an immediacy to the expectation of Christ's coming, for "in just a very little while, he who is coming will come and will not delay" (Heb. 10:37).