The Passing Of The Peace

The kiss of peace concludes the response to the Word. The kiss of peace, a handshake, or a hug extended to other people in the congregation expresses the reconciliation Christ has made not only with God, but also on the horizontal level between people. This has become a joyful time, a time to greet each other with a Christian greeting and to express a feeling of love through a physical gesture. Encourage great freedom and hospitality in this action as a way of expressing and experiencing the warmth and love of the community of faith.

Form for Passing the Kiss of Peace The Peace of the Lord be always with you. or The Peace of Christ be with you. And also with you. or As our Lord said to his disciples, "Peace be with you." And also with you. These words are said first by the minister or worship leader. Then, as the people exchange the peace they say these words to each other. The meaning of the words and the sequence is that this is not a simple greeting among friends, but it is a gift of God's own peace passed from one to another. It is worth taking time occasionally to reinforce this meaning of the peace. However, in most warm and friendly congregations the time of passing the peace tends to get happily chaotic and is indeed a special time of community bonding. The exchange of the peace occurs with a handshake, a hug, or a kiss.