Choose the sections that are appropriate to your context and tradition. For example, if communion is part of a longer service, it may be more appropriate to use only parts of the liturgy.

Gathering at the table

When fear tells us to bury what has been entrusted,
Christ calls us into courage.
We come to the table of grace, where love is not ruled by fear.

When the future feels uncertain,
God meets us with grace, strength, and hope.
Keep us awake to love, and faithful in what is ours to do.

This is Christ’s table.
Not a reward for the successful,
but bread for those who need courage.
Not a prize for the productive,
but welcome for those who come as they are.

We come with questions and longing, with weariness and hope.
We come for grace, for courage, for love that can be trusted.

The Peace

Peace is not fear dressed up as obedience.
Peace grows where trust, dignity, and courage are given room.
The peace of Christ be with you.
And also with you.

(Share peace in ways that honour boundaries – words, a nod, a wave, a hand on heart.)

The Great Thanksgiving

The Spirit is here.
The Spirit is with us.

Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the God of love.

Let us give thanks to the Holy One.
It is right to give thanks and praise.

It is right, and a joyful thing,
to give you thanks, God of courage and grace.
You hear the cry of those who are oppressed.
You raise up voices that call your people towards freedom.
You give wisdom to leaders who listen,
strength to communities under pressure,
and courage for the work of justice.

You do not build your way on fear.
You do not measure people by profit.
You do not call us to anxious striving,
but to faithful love,
shared responsibility,
and hope that does not collapse before the future.

In Jesus, you came among us with grace that frees.
He told stories that unsettle easy answers.
He exposed the fear that distorts our image of God
and the systems that reward some while leaving others afraid or exploited.
He called his followers to live with courage,
not because they were safe from all harm,
but because they were held by love.

He shared bread with the anxious and the uncertain.
He welcomed those treated as failures.
He trusted ordinary people with the work of care and justice,
and promised that love would not be wasted.

And so, with angels and ancestors,
with Deborah and all who speak courage in fearful times,
with all who wait for help and keep hope alive,
we sing the song of heaven:

Holy, holy, holy One,
breath of all that lives, fire of all that loves,
heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is the One who comes to heal and to set free.
Hosanna in the highest.

Thanksgiving and story

Blessed are you, Holy One.
In Jesus you showed us a way of faith
that is not driven by fear.

He did not shame the anxious.
He did not confuse worth with achievement.
He did not bless systems where some flourish
because others are exploited or afraid.

He taught us to ask what kind of power is being served,
what kind of trust is being formed,
and what kind of life is being protected.
He called us to courage without cruelty,
responsibility without panic,
and faithfulness without pretending.

At his table, grace is not buried.
Bread is shared.
The cup is passed.
The fearful are welcomed.
The weary are fed.
The future is held in love.

Here is the mystery we celebrate –
God is not the harsh voice we fear,
Christ meets us with courage and care,
the Spirit keeps hope alive,
and grace teaches us not to bury love.

Words of Institution

On the night before he gave himself for us,
Jesus took bread;
he gave thanks, broke it, and said:
“Take, eat. This is my body, given for you.
Do this in remembrance of me.”

When the meal was ended,
he took the cup;
he gave thanks, and said:
“Drink from this, all of you.
This is my blood of the new covenant,
poured out for you and for many,
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this, as often as you drink it,
in remembrance of me.”

Christ has died.
Christ is risen.
Christ will come again.

Prayer of the Spirit

Pour out your Spirit on us gathered here,
and on these gifts of bread and cup.
Make them for us the body and blood of Christ,
that we may be for the world the body of Christ:
brave in love,
steady in hope,
careful with power,
generous with what we have received.

When fear tells us to hide, meet us with courage.
When pressure tells us our worth is productivity, root us in grace.
When systems reward greed, teach us another way.
When people are made afraid by harsh images of you, help us speak of love that frees.

Shape us into a people who keep hope awake
without shaming those who are tired.
Let this table teach us trust:
bread shared without earning,
the cup received without fear,
community built without comparison,
and gifts offered for the healing of the world.

Through Christ, with Christ, in Christ,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all honour and glory are yours,
God of promise and presence,
now and always.
Amen.

The Prayer Jesus taught

As Jesus taught us, we pray:
(Use your community’s preferred wording/version.)

Breaking the bread

We break this bread
to share in the body of Christ.
Though we are many, we are one body,
because we all share in one bread.

The gifts of God for the people of God.
Thanks be to God.

Sharing the bread and cup

(Words such as these may be used during the distribution.)

Grace is given freely.
Life is still taking root.

(If people receive a blessing instead of the elements: “May Christ be close to you; may love hold you.”)

Prayer after Communion

God of courage and grace,
we thank you for meeting us at this table.
You have fed us with grace,
and reminded us that love is stronger than fear.

When we are anxious about the future, steady us in hope.
When we are tempted to bury love, give us courage to offer it.

Send us out as people of faithful trust –
to use power carefully,
to honour dignity,
to resist greed,
to share what has been entrusted to us,
and to practise hope even when fear is present.
God of life,
now and forever. Amen.

Sending

Go in peace – not because the future is clear,
but because love can be trusted.
We will live by grace. We will practise courage. We will not bury love.