October 5 is World Communion Sunday
World Communion Sunday, celebrated the first Sunday in October, is one of six “Special Sundays” in the United Methodist Church. The event is always observed with a special offering. Fifty percent of the offerings are used for crusade scholarships, enabling persons from churches in other nations and from U.S. ethnic and racial minorities to prepare for leadership in mission in church and society. The remainder of World Communion Sunday offerings are used for ethnic scholarship and training programs.
Among the six Special Sundays, World Communion Sunday receives the second largest accompanying offering in the United Methodist Church. Last year, United Methodists gave $1.1 million in observance of World Communion Sunday, compared to $3.3 million for One Great Hour of Sharing in March. Other Special Sundays include United Methodist Student Day in November, Human Relations Day in January, Native American Ministries Day in May, and Peace With Justice Sunday in September.
In Holston Conference’s 925 churches, worshippers gave a total of $10,490 for World Communion Sunday in 2002, compared to $46,522 for One Great Hour of Sharing.
World Communion Sunday is originally a Presbyterian observance. The Federal Council of Churches of Christ in America established World-Wide Communion Sunday in 1940 as a global, interdenominational event. Prompted by the impact of World War II, the Methodist Church received an offering on this Sunday for the Fellowship of Soffering and Service. It aided the work of the Methodist Committee on Overseas Relief (now known as the United Methodist Committee on Relief, or UMCOR), as well as the Commission on Chaplains and the Commission on Camp Activities.
In 1971 the United Methodist Church changed the name of the observance to World Communion Sunday and redistributed the offering to support the Crusade Scholarship Program (begun in 1944), the Ethnic Minority Scholarship Program and the Division of Chaplains and Related Ministries.
In 1980 Chaplains and Related Ministries was moved to World Service Funding, but the World Communion Sunday offering continued to assist racial- and ethnic-minority persons pursuing various avenues of ministry.
Other denominations commemorating World Communion Sunday include the Presbyterian Church, Christian Church (Disciples of Christ), and the United Church of Christ.
For the United Methodist Church’s site on World Communion Sunday, click here. http://www.umcgiving.org/ content/sundays/communion.asp
For the National Council on Churches site on World Communion Sunday, including resources churches have created, click here. http://www.ncccusa.org/ecmin/world communionsunday2003.html
For a Jan. 15, 2003, “Wednesday on the Web” article about Special Sundays, click here
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