CHAPTER 7: LIVING IN COMMUNION 223 traditional view that sharing the Eucharist is considered an expression of full visible unity. Reflecting on this part of the interview, however, it struck me more and more as if Brother BE’s question was not born out of ignorance concerning the theological meaning of the word. Instead, I now take it as a rhetorical question indicating that he was reluctant to frame his experience in this particular theological concept. His reaction to my response strengthens this feeling: FW: Well, since uh… since um… … celebrating the Eucharist is considered to be the, the sign of unity and of communion, um… and you’re sharing uh, your whole life with your brothers and sisters here, do you feel like being in communion really, with, with also the institution, or just with the community? BE: No, no, I think, uh, the community, or the brother~ the Roman Catholic brothers and sisters of the community are of course expression of this wider church, to which, uh… indirectly I’m, yes, I feel in communion. Even if I wouldn’t say that um… um… perhaps I’m Protestant enough, not to understand the Eucharist as the goal, uh, or only as the goal, of course it is the goal, but only as the goal of the visible unity, but it is also, perhaps, a way to, to build this… this communion. So, to use uh, a more Catholic word {laughs} it’s an incomplete communion {laughs}. (…) So, I would say yes and no to your question, so, I feel in communion, in the fact that, because, I feel I’m able, as a Protestant brother to take part in this celebration, which is also a way to, to come near to what we both, Protestants and Catholics, desire, so, this wider unity. But at the same time, of course, this communion is not complete, it’s uh… it’s just a sign of a possible communion, which does not only depend on me, but also on decisions of churches and of church leaders….497 The word ‘indirectly’ is essential here. It indicates a shift in BE’s perception of communion, compared to his memory of receiving Communion at Taizé’s European Meetings as recalled in the previous section. Back then, he desired to receive Communion directly from the hands of the presiding bishop as the chief representative of the Roman Catholic Church. This act resonates with the classic view on ecclesial communion, which is predominantly realized in communion between bishops. Through them, respective particular churches and the faithful are in communion with one another. In his current situation in Bose, however, BE experiences communion with the Roman Catholic Church 497 BE-1,39-40.
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