To communicate, to take communion, to be in communion

 I am not a linguist. Fairly clear statement, but not quite. While I cannot explain the intricacies of language nuances or historical development of how we got Santiago from James or the other way around for a decade I have lived in three languages on a regular basis. Since I grew up bilingual this isn’t such a radical change in theory but the third language is German and German has the curiosity of being both very concrete and very diverse in each words meanings. Work, especially in relation to Edith Stein, has underscored the issues that can come up when a translation becomes to interpretive. The words that I have been thinking of this weekend is the German word for communicating and taking communion. In what may seem like a contradiction to the assumed exactitude of the German language the word for communicating and taking communion is the same: “communizieren” but seen from a different perspective, whether the use of the word in this was intentional or not, it allows us to meditate on its significance. Communion, communicate, and to take communion in all three languages: Spanish, English, and German have the same root and mean to come together (losely remembering Bishop Varden’s writings on this, he explains it much more clearly).  So in German, for Catholics at least who believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, taking communion underscores the centrality of communicating in order to be in communion with others. The eucharist, God with us, God amongst us, is the centre of the community, expressed most clearly in a community coming together for worship and communion with God at Mass. This is no small thing but one which week in and week out many people do without thinking about it too much. Until it all falls apart. 

On returning to Spain, I have been asked on occasion how life was like in the UK, in particular if there were any Catholics or much Catholicism in general. There is a persistent misconception that England is consistently more Protestant than Catholic but recent stats show that in fact Anglicans (the largest group of Protestants in the UK) and Catholics are roughly equal in numbers, with future predictions placing Catholics at 25% and Anglicans at 21%, a historical reversal. Numbers aside, one of the things that I find myself repeating in these conversations is the presence of a young, vibrant community. I should clarify, I have lived in what many Catholics in the North of England consider areas that are unrepresentative of the country as a whole and yet, are not the small, well formed communities the ones that have maintained the faith throughout history? What I noticed there and which is sadly missing in places such as Germany and Spain is a living community that doesn’t just go to Mass together but actually lives together. The Catholic communities I experienced in Oxford and Cambridge had a couple of important characteristics but for today I want to focus on one: they accept you just as you are. I like to think this is a very British characteristic, it might be, but as I lived it in a Catholic context I’ll say its proper of how Catholicism is lived in the UK. No matter where you come from, what your native language or accent in English might be you are accepted. If you prefer guitar music versus the organ at Mass, practicing Lectio Divina or praise and worship, you are accepted. The important thing is that you are Catholic, you believe in the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. I think back to Cambridge where at the Dominic Priory, the student chaplaincy-Fisher House-, and the local parish, Mass was celebrated in Latin, the Dominican rite, Novus Ordo in English, with Choir, without it, and then everyone would socialise together. I remember the day conference on the different liturgical traditions: Eastern and Latin rite Catholics came together to share their experiences and knowledge of the Mass, Christ in the Eucharist was the centre of it all, and all were Catholic. There is a trend of two things: open honesty leading to communication and sharing, and acceptance of the other as they are. The two are deeply related and I think return back to how communion and Jesus in the most Holy Sacrament of the altar - commonly also spoken of as communion- are at the heart of a community. The Eucharist is Christ communicating to us, His Community, His Mystical Body, and we the members, the living parts of His Mystical Body coming together. It is thus unsurprising that what might seem like an oddity in the German language is in reality a reflection of the deep connection between communication and Eucharist. 

I began thinking about all of this when faced with a moment of no communication. While in England someone from Barcelona and I commented to our northern European counterparts that in Latin cultures we argued more with each other than is usually seen in say England or Ireland. There if someone is unhappy with someone else they simply disappear rather than communicate their issue. So while in Latin cultures we seem to be arguing all the time in practical terms this means that things are worked out in honesty and communication, therefore community, never fully breaks down. While it might seem tiresome to be always talking, isn’t this more faithful to the nature of human community, especially from its creation at the beginning of time by God? People often fear being honest about what they think and/or feel because of the possible consequences but if two people speak honestly about their friendship or relationship, even if in the immediate aftermath of the conversation the result is not quite what they hoped for they are more likely to continue being friends years afterwards than if they hadn’t said anything. Why? Because communicating honestly requires humility and acceptance of yourself and of the other person as they present themselves, essential ingredients of true communion, of true community. So, while it is not always easy to express yourself and to accept what the other person is saying, doing so is a very necessary process for emotional and intellectual maturity, and for true community. I think this is especially noticeable when seeing the differences in levels of isolation present in societies where people talk to each other all the time and those that don’t. Something to take into account next time you wonder “should I say something?” How important is your community with that person to you? How honest can you be? How honest are you being with yourself? John Paul II repeatedly said not to be afraid, to open the doors to Christ. He was quoting scripture when he called us to not be afraid. What is behind this is Christ telling us not to be afraid of truth and ultimately of The Truth, Himself, and the truth in each one of us is a small manifestation of the Truth. Embracing it is essential for true communion: with ourselves, with others, and with God.