Child Communion

The admission of children to Holy Communion before confirmation

(in The Church of England)

Historically the normal practice in The C of E has been that children are admitted to Communion only after confirmation[1].

It’s hard to say anything precise about the normal age of confirmation. Some Bishops set lower limits. Somewhere between 10 and 16 would be usual but some children just never get round to it!

The C of E does allow those who “are ready and desirous to be confirmed” or who are baptised and in danger of immediate death to receive Communion before confirmation (Canon B15A)!

In March 1997, the House of Bishops issued guidance on the admission of baptized persons to Holy Communion before confirmation. Since then the practice of Child Communion has been growing in the Church of England and General Synod passed new regulations in 2006. The Church of England website says that about 15% of parishes have so far introduced Child Communion.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has commented: “If there are risks, they are worth taking for the sake of really sharing Christ's life in his Body with the children whose company he loved on earth and loves still.”[2]

Under the regulations, Incumbents may apply to the bishop of the diocese to introduce child communion in their parish(es) with an accompanying resolution from the PCC in support of the application.

Personally, I am keen to see baptized children who are regularly receiving Christian nurture at home and in church, admitted to the Lord’s Table. I would not want the church children to feel excluded or like second-class Christians because they can’t receive the bread and the wine.

However, some parents (or indeed some children) may want to wait until after confirmation for the first Communion. That is absolutely fine and we would carefully avoid any pressure to rush children into taking Communion.

Incumbents may only admit children to Communion prior to confirmation with the parent’s permission. I would want to discuss with parents when and how children might best be prepared for Communion. We will want to work together on the on-going Christian nurture of our children and seek to grow their understanding of the Holy Communion and other aspects of the faith.

Recall that Jesus said: “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these." (Matthew 19:14) and “I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." (Mark 10:15). I don’t think we should worry too much about our children not understanding everything about the Holy Communion. Which of us does? We hope that their participation will aid their understanding and their growth in grace, as it does ours.

We would, of course, admit adults with learning difficulties to Holy Communion even though we might suspect that they might not understand everything that’s going on. Faith is the key to receiving the blessings of Holy Communion, and this faith can include different degrees of understanding. Of course, none of us can see into one another’s hearts. 

The guidelines state that a register should be kept of those admitted to Communion before confirmation and the child’s baptismal certificate should be endorsed or, failing that, they should be given another certificate to show that they have been admitted to Communion in the Church of England.

Once a child has been properly admitted to Communion in a C of E church, he may receive Communion in any other parish church regardless of the policy in that church.

The expectation is that even when children have been admitted to Communion before confirmation, they will still be confirmed in due course in the normal way.

Further reading:

http://www.churchofengland.org/education/children-young-people/ministry-with-children/children-and-holy-communion.aspx including the Children and Holy Communion regulations.

Stephen Lake, Let The Children Come to Communion (SPCK, 2006)

   

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[1] It seems likely that children received Communion from ancient times (as they still do in Eastern Orthodox Churches) until the rise of the doctrine of Transubstantiation in the 12th Century. See further Tommy Lee, ‘The History of Paedocommunion: From the Early Church until 1500’ available at http://www.reformed.org/social/index.html?mainframe=http://www.reformed.org/sacramentology/tl_paedo.html

[2] Rowan William’s foreword in Stephen Lake, Let The Children Come to Communion (p.vii)