Why Lutherans share the Peace

Why Lutherans share the Peace – Have you ever wondered about why we share the peace in worship? People turn to one another and share a handshake or a fist bump or possibly a hug while offering a few words about peace. Now from the outside, this action looks like a simple, everyday greeting between friends. Sometimes it even feels like a break in the service and a chance to stretch our legs and move around a bit. Perhaps we sometimes treat it that way. But it is so much more than a hello or a quick intermission.

Originally, sharing peace was exchanged only between close family members within the privacy of a home. So for early Christians sharing the peace was a way to reach out and recognize one another as God’s family. This was a radical idea at the time and was a deeply meaningful part of worship. It reflected the idea that in Christ all believers were united with one another.

Today we share the peace after we’ve prayed together for peace; in the Church, the world and for all in need. We turn to our brothers and sisters beside us and share that peace as a sort of fulfillment of our prayer. It also gives us an opportunity to be reconciled to one another before we offer our gifts to the Lord.

Just as in the earliest church, sharing peace was a sign of reconciliation and being united as one in Christ, so it is for us today. After the peace and the offering we then receive the gift of Christ’s peace in Holy Communion, remembering that we are also reconciled to God because of what Jesus has done for us.

Thanks for reading about “Why Lutherans share the Peace” by Emmaus Lutheran Church in Orange City Florida

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