One Cup Churches

[Fellow Traveler]

I've never been to a one cup coc nor are there any near me that I know of. For those who have been to one, how was the cup distributed? Was it passed in the pews or did the people get in line like Catholics do and receive that way? I've also heard that in some of there churches that of there are enough people they use two cups. Is anyone here old enough to remember a mainstream coc before multiple cups were widely used?

[Lev]

I've never been to a one cup coc nor are there any near me that I know of. For those who have been to one, how was the cup distributed? Was it passed in the pews or did the people get in line like Catholics do and receive that way? I've also heard that in some of there churches that of there are enough people they use two cups.

I've been to one. It was passed down the pew from person to person, just like the trays of mini-cups are in most COCs today, if I remember correctly. It was also real (i.e. alcoholic) wine. This was in Europe, though, so it was already quite different from your standard American COC. It was, however, a real COC, founded by Harding-affiliated evangelists.

Is anyone here old enough to remember a mainstream coc before multiple cups were widely used?

I'm not but it is interesting to me that multiple cups ever became approved in COCs. With strict adherence to CENI, how could they?

Lev

[Fellow Traveler]

The earliest record of them being used in any church was the 1890s and that they gained popularity in light of tb epidemics.

[Fellow Traveler]

I've never been to a one cup coc nor are there any near me that I know of. For those who have been to one, how was the cup distributed? Was it passed in the pews or did the people get in line like Catholics do and receive that way? I've also heard that in some of there churches that of there are enough people they use two cups.

I've been to one. It was passed down the pew from person to person, just like the trays of mini-cups are in most COCs today, if I remember correctly. It was also real (i.e. alcoholic) wine. This was in Europe, though, so it was already quite different from your standard American COC. It was, however, a real COC, founded by Harding-affiliated evangelists.

Is anyone here old enough to remember a mainstream coc before multiple cups were widely used?

I'm not but it is interesting to me that multiple cups ever became approved in COCs. With strict adherence to CENI, how could they?

Lev

Is this a cultural variation between European and American cocs?

[B.H.]

The one I used to visit passed the cup from aisle to aisle The one I went to used grape juice but some of them here in the states do believe it needs to be wine. Back when one cup was more the norm people would line up and go towards the front like most of the Catholics do. Most one cup churches are very small averaging twenty or thirty members. Sometimes they may hit 100 b ut those are rare. It's just more expedient to pass the cup from aisel to aisle than make the people (lots of times frail and elderly) have to get up and move.

I do not believe a one cup congregation would use two cups. Instead, if the congregation got big enough where it appeared two cups were needed to share the fruit of the vine they would divide into two congreations to solve the problem. ONe cup churches doctrinally believe you have to have one cup because they interpret Luke 22:20 as the container representing the new covenant. The bread is the body, the fruit of the vine is the blood, and the cup represents the new covenant.

Interestingly, this is a case where variants among the manuscripts do have doctrinal implications so to speak. Some manuscripts have Luke 22:20 written in a way where grammatically speaking poured out modifies cup, not blood, whereas in other manuscripts it is written in such a way where poured out modifies blood. One cup preachers nad mainline preachers have been arguing over this for ages. Me, fffftttt.

Another point. Most mainliners are willing to fellowship one cup churches willing to fellowship them and in certain locales they do. However, why do the one cuppers get to add to the worship (adding a cup representing the new covenant) but the musical instrument church of christ can't be fellowshipped for adding to the worship his instrument. Think about it closely. It's not just using one cup, but the doctrine the cup itself is an emblem of something the mainline thinks it isn't.

[Lev]

Is this a cultural variation between European and American cocs?

Technically speaking, there isn't really such thing as a "European COC." Since the COC began in America and was exported to Europe (and everywhere else you find it), the denomination is American. Some COCs outside of the USA have local (i.e. non-American) preachers and many conduct services in the local language as opposed to English, but given their heritage, they are all of American origin.

That said, the European COCs I've been to, and it's only been a few, are a bit different in cultural matters such as the tolerance of moderate alcohol consumption.

Lev

[Lev]

However, why do the one cuppers get to add to the worship (adding a cup representing the new covenant) but the musical instrument church of christ can't be fellowshipped for adding to the worship his instrument. Think about it closely. It's not just using one cup, but the doctrine the cup itself is an emblem of something the mainline thinks it isn't.

Alternatively, why were multiple cups ever allowed to be introduced? I don't buy the TB epidemic story. COCers today who have Celiac disease are told to suck it up and eat the gluten-containing communion bread anyway. There's even a notion that God will protect them. Why wasn't the same 'logic' applied to the cup and the spread of TB? It's pretty clear that Jesus used one cup to establish the Lord's supper. Why can the COC diverge from the 'pattern' on this?

Please note that I'm not arguing for one-cup communion. I could not care less how many cups a church uses. I'm just illustrating the absurdity of so-called Pattern Theology.

Lev

[Pitts S2C]

Growing up in multiple coc’s in the Midwest, I was always told that we do not use a single cup due to hygiene purposes. That was the main reason that I remember hearing at every coc that my family visited to justify their position.

I have also read online that Luke 22:17 infers that multiple cups be used (“divide it”).

Luke 22:17 (KJV)
And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves:

[agricola]

It could have solved a lot of discussion of King James' translation staff simply decided to translate 'cup' as PITCHER!

In that period, most people would have owned, and carried with them, their own personal individual cup, and spoon, and probably a knife as well. No forks. They weren't invented yet.

So at that dinner, a pitcher of wine would be passed around and from it, people would have filled their own cups, and maybe as a courtesy, poured for their neighbor at the table.

I think I just made a good argument against carpets in the auditorium. Hmmm.

Only really really rich people owned enough utensils to feed OTHER people!

(Herod, for instance, had entire place settings and plates and wine cups for dozens of folks).

[B.H.]

True agricola. The Greek word poterion translated as cup in English could be translated as simply container or pitcher.

LEV, I agree with you about the fear of germs letting you have a cup is inconsistent with people being told to eat bread that is not tolerable to their body.