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1 Corinthians 11:25-26 YLT

25 In like manner also the cup after the supping, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood; this do ye, as often as ye may drink it -- to the remembrance of me;' 26 for as often as ye may eat this bread, and this cup may drink, the death of the Lord ye do shew forth -- till he may come;

Is there room to interpret often to be arbitrarily chosen by the recipient or is often conditional upon the subject of the passage(s)?

agarza
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O.J.
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  • As often as you wish, there is no schedule given, but kindly avoid using outdated rudimentary bad bible versions like YLT. – Michael16 Jul 06 '23 at 16:26

1 Answers1

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The operative word in 1 Cor 11:25, 26 is ὁσάκις (hosakis), an adverb meaning "as often as" (BDAG) which only occurs elsewhere in Rev 11:6.

The meaning in all three places simply means that "whenever" or "in all cases when this occurs"; and in 1 Cor 11:25, 26 it means that whenever you do this you will be reminded of the meaning of the communion service.

It is a sad fact that the details of the communion service is a subject about which the Christian church has had more squabbles than almost any other subject. Large chunks of the reformation in the 16th to 18th centuries were about the details of the communion. This is especially sad since the Bible provides no information about:

  • what liturgy to follow
  • the precise meaning of the symbols
  • how often it is to be celebrated
  • who is to participate and officiate
  • etc

It is also sad that some of those squabbling about these unbiblical details were claiming to do so on the basis of Biblical information which is mysteriously never quoted! Further, the context of Paul's remarks in 1 Cor 11 are against Christian schisms! This is a shocking irony given the number of schisms that communion details have created!

Thus, all that can be said about the communion is what Paul said about it as more correctly and helpfully translated by the NIV:

1 Cor 11:25, 26, (NIV) - In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.” For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.

Therefore, this "whenever" = "as often as" means that "whenever you drink this cup and eat this bread ... " simply means whenever you do it. This has been understood in two ways:

  • the times when communion is celebrated (eg, once per day, once per week, once per month or once per quarter or once per year as the practice is) you remind yourselves of Jesus' sacrifice, or
  • any time (as often as = whenever) you eat and drink together (eg, at common meals) you remind yourselves of Jesus' sacrifice.

I do not intend to debate these alternatives other than to say they each have their respective and vociferous defenders, again, based on little Bible evidence.

Dottard
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  • People are all over the place on this one. I've heard some say that "whenever" means, only, once a year. Others, every week on the first day of the week. Still others, whenever you feel like it. If the Lord's Supper is to be observed only once a year, which some people call the "Passover", then "when" would have been a better word choice than "whenever", which sounds more random. "Whenever you feel like it" sounds a bit too random as to make the ceremony meaningless. Only my opinion, but I'll go with every Sunday as the best option. But it isn't clear. – moron Jul 07 '23 at 10:03
  • @moron - you are quite correct - the Bible is absolutely silent about the frequency of communion. – Dottard Jul 07 '23 at 10:29