Author's Preface
1. Accepting Or Uniting
   
2. Who Is A Christian?
   
3. "Why Don't You Leave The Church of Christ?"
   
4. The Iniquity Of The Fathers
   
5. Our Judicial System
   
6. "You Are My People Now"
   
7. Serving "Otherwise Than As Prescribed"
   
8. Does Baptize Really Mean To Immerse
   
9. Our Relationship Through Baptism
   
10. Those Gospel Meetings
    
11. A Prelude To Worship
    
12. Worshipping In Spirit And Truth
    
13. The Forbidden Prayer
    
14. "I Didn't Hear Nobody Pray"
    
15. Communion Prayers
    
16. Communion With Bread, Wine, And Money
    
17. Thursday Is The Lord's Day Too!
    
18. Not Forsaking The Assembly
    
19. Acts 20:7 One More Time
    
20. Our Father Who Art Where?
    
21. Does Nature Reveal God's Love
    
22. Copyrighted: All Rights Reserved
    
23. Don't Pour Water On Them
    
24. The Remaining Restriction For Women
    
25. Some Questions About Revelation
    
26. Must One Fully Repent Before Baptism?
    
27. Nicodemus In Context
    
28. Our Respected Myths Of Religion
    
29. Hook's Points: A Potpourri
    

For half a century I joined others in pleading for a separation of the collection from "The Communion." Most of us have taken the collection baskets off the table and some churches pass them at another point in the service.

Now in my senility I wonder if collection trays really are out of place on the table and if a separation is needed.

Such words as commune, communion, fellowship, sharing in common, participation, and partnership derive from the same root in the Greek. In our traditional usage we have made them too diverse in meaning. For instance, we do not usually think that participate and commune mean the same thing. All the italicized words in this essay, however, are interchangeable with their other noun and verb forms.

"The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?" (1 Cor. 10:16 RSV). This ritual of participation is generally thought of as "The Communion." Sharing in the one body is depicted by eating the bread; sharing in the atonement is depicted by drinking the cup.

We are called upon to eat the bread and drink the cup in remembrance of Jesus as a mutual reminder. But there is another communion which we are called upon to remember. It is "...taking part in the relief of the saints..." (2 Cor. 8:4). The apostles in Jerusalem gave Paul and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship (communion!), not demanding that they teach circumcision, but "only they would have us to remember the poor..." (Gal. 2:9f). In remembering the poor, we are urged to "contribute to the needs of the saints" (Rom. 12:13).

In remembering the poor by giving them aid is to share their poverty. It is a fellowship in, a participation in, their destitution. "The poor" also includes persons who impoverish themselves in evangelistic activity like Paul did. Paul lovingly reminded the Philippians that "...in the beginning of the gospel, when I left Macedonia, no church entered into partnership with me in giving and receiving except you only..." (Phil. 4:1416). He also urges, "Let him who is taught in the word share all good things with him who teaches" (Gal. 6:6). Such special collections are now mostly supplanted by regular giving to support our own selfserving local programs. Noting our shameful neglect of the poor and evangelism, it is no wonder that we would want to obscure this ritual of giving.

We remember our fellowship with all others in the one body when we eat the bread. We remember our fellowship with all the saved ones when we drink the cup. We remember our fellowship with the poor when we give aid. Just as the eating and drinking are in remembrance honoring Jesus, so is the giving, for "truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me." (Matt. 25:40). Giving to human need is a communion with, a sharing with Christ.

Giving was not a part of the supper instituted by Jesus nor were regular collections called for in the scriptures. Neither is limited to certain days and formal assemblies. Giving is not a part of the supper. It is a communion, however, even though not "The Communion" as we have come to make distinctions.

Rather than the often heard announcement, "We have completed our communion service and will now take a collection," would it not be better to hear something like, "We have communed by means of bread and fruit of the vine in memory of Jesus, and now we will commune with Him in another manner by communing with and remembering the poor through the money we give?"