Also 4–5 co(m)munyoun, 4–6 -on(e, 6 commonion. [a. F. communion, or ad. L. commūniōn-em, mutual participation, fellowship, in Augustine ‘church communion’ and ‘the communion of the holy altar’; f. commūnis COMMON. (With reference to the possibility that the latter was derived from com- + ūnus, cf. ūnio, -ōnem, oneness, UNION.)]
1. Sharing or holding in common with others; participation; the condition of things so held, community, combination, union.
1382. Wyclif, Ecclus. ix. 20. The comunyoun of deth wite thou [Vulg. communionem mortis scito].
c. 1530. Pol. Rel. & L. Poems (1866), 33. Yf thei be merchauntes, dyvision of heritage is bettyr than commvnion.
1617. Moryson, Itin., III. I. iii. 46. They attribute … hospitalitie to the Brittanes, communion of all things to the Normans.
1737. Waterland, Eucharist, 272. By Communion, the Apostle certainly intended a joint-Communion, or participating in common with others.
1809–10. Coleridge, Friend (1865), 150. In France there was no public credit, no communion of interests.
1865. Grote, Plato, I. i. 52. Having no communion of nature with other things.
2. Fellowship, association in action or relations; mutual intercourse.
1553. T. Wilson, Rhet., 87 b. The Communion is a felowship or a commyng together, rather latine than englishe.
1592. West, Symbol., I. I. § 22. Contractes of propertie are buying or selling … of communion, societie.
1611. Bible, 2 Cor. vi. 14. What communion hath light with darknesse?
1816. Byron, Pris. Chillon, xiv. My very chains and I grew friends, So much a long communion tends To make us what we are.
1850. Merivale, Rom. Emp. (1865), I. i. 8. The Latin franchise … placed its possessor in a state of subordinate communion with the Roman people.
b. Religious fellowship, spiritual intercourse.
a. 1600. Hooker, Eccl. Pol. (1604), I. 54. The Angels as hauing with vs that communion which the Apostle to the Hebrews noteth, and in regard whereof Angels haue not disdained to professe themselues our fellowseruants.
1642. Rogers, Naaman, To Rdr. In these latter our union and communion with God consists.
1704. Nelson, Fest. & Fasts (1739), 582. It is in the Communion of the Sacrement, as it is in the Communion of Prayers.
1781. Cowper, Retirement, 747. Divine Communion … must fill the void.
1841. Myers, Cath. Th., III. § 9. 34. There may have been seasons when communion with God has become a consciousness of His Indwelling.
1876. J. Norris, Rudim. Theol., i. 15. Between man and God we are unwilling to use the familiar term ‘intercourse,’ communion is the more reverent word, but it means the same thing.
c. Intimate personal converse, mental or ideal; communing (In poetry or elevated prose.)
1800. Wordsw., Poems on naming Places, iii. She who dwells with me, whom I have loved, With such communion, that no place on earth Can ever be a solitude to me.
1820. W. Irving, Sketch Bk., I. 30. He lives with antiquity in the sweet communion of studious retirement.
1845. Ford, Handbk. Spain, I. 51. That health of body and soul which ever rewards a close communion with Nature.
† d. Action in partnership, common action.
1614. Raleigh, Hist. World (J.). Men began publickly to call on the name of the Lord; that is, they served and praised God by communion, and in publick manner.
1796. Burke, Regic. Peace, i. Wks. VIII. 92. Our account of the war, as a war of communion … was a war of disaster and of little else.
3. The fellowship or mutual relation between members of the same church, or of bodies that recognize each other as branches of the Church Catholic (said to be ‘in communion with’ each other; members are also said to be ‘in communion with’ the church).
The phrase communion of saints has been used both in this and in sense 4: cf. COMMUNING vbl. sb.
c. 1386. Chaucer, Pars. T., ¶ 238. Contricion … restoreth … to the compaignye and communyon of hooly chirche.
c. 1394. P. Pl. Crede, 817. The communion of sayntes.
1526. Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W., 1531), 218 b. The seconde [poynte] is, that there is communyon of sayntes.
1687. Luttrell, Brief Rel. (1857), I. 411. The inhabitants in and about London in communion with the establisht church.
1725. trans. Dupin’s Eccl. Hist. 17th C., I. v. 209. By this Word, Communion, we are to understand the mutual Love of Christians, and Conformity of their Manners.
1839. Yeowell, Anc. Brit. Ch., Pref. (1847), 11. Churches planted by the Apostles, with whom it was in full communion.
1853. Trench, Less. Proverbs, 125. The communion of saints, their communion not with one another merely … but … their communion with Him, who is the friend of all good men.
1879. A. W. Haddan, Apost. Success., in Ch. of Eng., iii. 60. That the … ungodly Churchman should be still in outward communion with the Church.
† b. Letter of communion: a certificate of church membership. Cf. 8 and COMMUNICATORY LETTERS.
1697. in T. W. Marsh, Early Friends Surrey & Sus., xiii. 118. Whereas our Deare friend William Penn is Intended to pass over into Ireland this Meeting Desires William Garton and Josiah Garton to draw a letter of Communion and send it unto him.
4. An organic union of persons united by common religious faith and rites; a church or denomination; the organized body professing one faith.
1565. Jewel, Repl. Harding (1611), 21. In this sense S. Hierome called S. Augustine a Bishop of his Communion: that is, of his Faith, of his Minde, of his Doctrine, of his Religion.
1573. R. Barnes, Wks., 246. Wee beleeue … that holy church is a communion or felowshypp of holy men.
1642–3. Earl Newcastle, Declar., in Rushw., Hist. Coll. (1751), V. 134. That I have in my Army some of the Romish Communion, I do not deny.
1700. Astry, trans. Saavedra-Faxardo, II. 314. It is not allowable to kill or hate a Man of a different Communion.
1844. H. H. Wilson, Brit. India, II. 570. The Scotch minister … according to the rules of his communion.
1875. Hamerton, Intell. Life, XI. i. 398. The clergy of their respective communions.
5. Of things: Community or association of functions, common relation.
1538. Starkey, England, II. ii. 178. The communyon betwyx them [i.e., body and soul] also to be of that sorte that they dyseasys of the one redunde to the othir.
1635. N. Carpenter, Geog. Del., I. iii. 47. These parts are called Homogeneall … in respect of their Magneticall nature, and communion.
1668. Culpepper & Cole, Barthol. Anat., II. iii. 90. The communion of Nerves and Vessels.
1875. Jowett, Plato (ed. 2), I. 437. To dissever the soul from the communion of the body.
1878. Foster, Phys., III. ii. 407. A certain amount of functional communion between the two sides, so that when one retina is stimulated both pupils contract.
6. Intercourse, communication.
1614. Raleigh, Hist. World (T.). The Israelites had never any communion or affairs with the Ethiopians.
1692. Ray, Dissol. World, iii. (1732), 19. No Intercourse or Communion with the superior or external Air.
1869. Gladstone, Juv. Mundi, iii. 95. Words … transported bodily out of the Greek into the Latin tongue after literary communion had begun.
7. Participation in the Christian sacrament of the Lord’s Supper; also, the sacrament itself as administered or observed, the Eucharist; in some phrases, as to take, deliver, receive the communion, it becomes more or less concrete. (Also Holy Communion, communio sancti altaris, Augustine.)
Communion in one kind, in both kinds, half communion, etc.: terms relating to the dispute whether the laity should receive one or both elements in the communion. Close or strict, free or open communion: among Baptists, a division on the question of admitting to the Lord’s Table persons who have not received baptism in accordance with Baptist principles.
[1382. Wyclif, 1 Cor. x. 16. The cuppe of blessynge the which we blessen, wher it is not the comenynge [Tind. & Cranm. partakynge, Genev. & 1611 communion (Revised a c.), Rhem. communication, Vulg. communicatio, Gr. κιονωνία] of Cristes blood? and the breed which we breken, wher it is not the delynge or part takynge [1388 the takyng, T. & Cr. partetakyng, Genev. & 1611 communion (Rev. a c.), Rhem. participation, Vulg. participatio, Gr. κιονωνία] of the body of the Lord?]
c. 1440. Promp. Parv., 89. Communyone sacrament, communio.
1492. in Archæol. Jrnl. (1888), XLV. 155. A pair of chalice of silver for the communion.
c. 1500. in Maskell, Mon. Rit. (1846), II. 327. Oon after an other … shall offer an host and wyne … for theyr communion.
1548. Order of the Communion, Proclam. To come to this holy Sacrament and most blessed Communion … Rubr. 1 Before he shall minister the Communion. Rubr. 2 Disposed to be partakers of the Communion. Rubr. 5 Those that are minded to receive the holy Communion. Rubr. 9 The Priest shall deliver the Communion first to the Ministers.
1555. Eden, Decades W. Ind. (Arb.), 256. Whyle certeyne of the Christians were at the communion.
1577. B. Googe, Heresbach’s Husb., I. (1586), 4. We goe … to our Parishe Churche, where we heare our Curate, and receave the blessed Communion.
1631. Rutherford, Lett., xiv. (1862), I. 67. Unacquainted with the day of our Communion.
1660. Jer. Taylor, Duct. Dubit. (1671), 371. The half-communion is by the Council of Constance affirmed to be different from the institution of Christ.
1737. Waterland, Eucharist, 28. Communion. The Sacrament is so called, because of the Communion we therein hold with Christ and with each other.
1869. Freeman, Norm. Conq. (1876), III. 15. Communion in both kinds was certainly usual at this time.
1883. Addis & Arnold, Cath. Dict., s.v., At every Mass the celebrant is bound to communicate, because his communion is necessary for the completion of the sacrifice. The communion of the people is in no way essential, either to the integrity or lawfulness of the sacrifice.
1886. Blunt, Dict. Sects, 65/1. Particular Baptists … are subdivided into two sections on the question of free or strict communion … the ‘strict’ or ‘close communionists’ admitting to the Lord’s Supper only those who have been baptized as adults.
† b. = Communion Service. Obs.
1552. Bk. Com. Prayer, Ord. Deacons. Then shalbe song or sayed the Communion of the day.
1555. Bale, in Strype, Eccl. Mem., III. App. xxxix. 108. They mock the rehearsal of Gods commandments, and of the epistles and gospels in our Communion, and say, they are misplaced.
1575. in W. Turner, Select. Rec. Oxford, 368. Ye … Burgesses … shall yearly procure a communion or sermon to be made.
c. (See quots.)
1853. Rock, Ch. of Fathers, IV. 42. While the Eucharist was being distributed to the people, the choir sang the whole or part of a psalm, called, from that circumstance, the ‘communion.’
1883. Addis & Arnold, Cath. Dict., Communion, the antiphon which the priest says after the ablutions, at the Epistle side of the altar. Formerly it used be sung, while the people communicated: hence the name.
8. attrib. and Comb. (almost exclusively referring to 7), as communion bread, day, office, place, platter, service, Sunday, time, wine, etc.; † communion board, a communion table (cf. BOARD sb. 6); communion-cloth, a cloth used at the celebration of the Communion, esp. a cloth for the communion table; see also quot. 1866; communion-cup, a cup used for the wine at the communion: a name preferred by the Puritans in England to chalice; communion letter = letter of communion (see 3 b.); communion-rail, the rail in front of the communion table in some churches, the altar-rail. Also COMMUNION TABLE.
1588. Allen, Admon., 14. The Idoll of her prophane *communion borde.
a. 1631. Donne, Serm., IV. lxxxvi. 99. The religion of the church holds a stubborne Recusant at the table, at the Communion-board as far from her as a Recusant at the Pew.
1605. T. Sparke, Brotherly Perswas. (1607), 10. The order of Geneua touching their *communion bread.
1631. Weever, Anc. Fun. Mon., 49. An ore-worne *Communion-cloth.
1866. Direct. Angl. (ed. 3), 353. Communion cloth or Houseling cloth is a white linen cloth spread over the rails at the time of the Communion, or is held for the Communicants by acolytes or other ministers.
1642–3. Earl Newcastle, Declar., in Rushw., Hist. Coll. (1721), V. 137. Their Chalices or *Communion Cups (let them [the Parliamentarians] call them what they will).
1683. Apol. Prot. France, ii. 14. A young Maid … had stole herself into the Congregation upon a *Communion-day.
a. 1711. Ken, Hymnarium, Poet. Wks. 1721, II. 135. He no *Communion-Letters could pretend, Which mov’d the Angel Entrance to suspend.
1721. Strype, Eccl. Mem., III. xxxi. 243. They thought it not convenient to have the Ten Commandments, the Epistles, and Gospels repeated in the *Communion Office.
1823. P. Nicholson, Pract. Build., 572. The height of the pilasters in the *Communion-Place is 22 feet 6 inches.
1847. B’ness Bunsen, in Hare, Life, II. iii. 97. Knelt by the *Communion-rails of Westbury Church.
1827. Gentl. Mag., XCVII. II. 487. This part of the Ante-*Communion Service is now so commonly omitted on Sundays.
1878. H. C. Adams, Wykehamica. The next day was *Communion Sunday.
1552. Bk. Com. Prayer, Communion, The Table hauyng at the *Communion tyme a fayre white lynnen clothe vpon it.
