As I write this, all three of the women who have contributed thoughts to this blog have reflected in the significance of sharing Communion in a circle – both positively and negatively.
Take a look at Sandra, Demi and Ferial’s really insightful reflections on the previous posts Communion in our Community & Standing Together.
Circles often came up in my research interviews too. Often the circle seemed to reflect something of the “horizontal orientation in women’s spirituality” (Berry, 2009).
Women spoke of the connection, contact, intimacy made possible by being able to communicate through eyes, faces and smiles.
Also really important was a sense of sharing the communion TOGETHER rather than individually: “It just felt more of a community.”
“it’s what happens afterwards … (speaking with great joy in her voice) …I look around this circle of people and I look at their eyes and the smiles and the children and just the sense of Communion has been really powerful.”
Demi has posted here about how the sharing of Communion in a circle can reflect the theological significance of what it’s all about “every person in the gathered circle both receives and offers the elements, so that we are truly being fed by/feeding one another”, and Sandra and Ferial have both acknowledged the potential for circles to be exclusive, as well as embracing…
Do you have an experience or a thought to share about sharing Communion in a circle – or another way?
Please post anything you’d like to contribute in the box below. All comments are moderated so please feel safe to post It would be great to hear from you! Thanks Kim
Women In Communion 
I really value the solitude of receiving communion alone. I like the queue…its a time for me to prepare to receive the body and blood of Christ… a time to think and pray…and I look forward to the moment when I get to the front and I am standing before the priest for my time. I have experienced many different forms of circular communion and have spent the time worrying about where to go, where to stand, or do I kneel, how long do I spend there, how close do I get to the person next to me, are they getting too close to me, when do I leave… that it has spoilt the moment.
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Thanks for sharing this Fliss. I could really feel the difference between the peacefulness of your first description of solitude, and the tension of the second – and I’m really grateful for your description of how it feels for you. I think, like Ferial who has shared about how she is a visual and kenetic person, it’s really good to recognise that we all are different – and so we’re all going to experience things differently. Being alert to that is probably really helpful in trying to make sure there’s room for everyone to be as comfortable as possible. So thank you for adding your perspective to the picture, and please do come back if you have further thoughts on the blogs. Kim
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