Mystical Supper

Anamnesis is not necessarily restricted to a particular part of the Eucharistic celebration. It should be remembered that while the succinct summary of the paschal mystery and statement of eschatological hope that bears the technical name of anamnesis (i.e. the prayer: Remembering, therefore, this salutary command and all that was done in our behalf: the cross, the tomb, the resurrection on the third day, the ascension into heaven, the sitting at the right hand, the second and glorious coming again) serves to focus the entire Eucharistic celebration, the entire Divine Liturgy is essentially anamnetic. Christian Eucharistic Liturgy is, first and foremost, anamnetic in character and nature. It makes real in the present moment that which took place in time. If we are truly transported into God’s Kingdom when we celebrate the Divine Liturgy (the opening statement that we declare at the very beginning), then there is no physical time and we can experience, if we allow ourselves to do so, what the apostles experienced with Jesus during the Last Supper.

While the term anamnesis and the related Hebrew word zikkaron are rare in Scripture, the Biblical canon, which grounds Christian and, in the case of the Old Testament also Jewish faith, is also anamnetic at its core. Pre-Christian and non-religious notions of anamnesis approach the Christian understanding of anamnesis to varying degrees, and serve to show the development toward the Christian sense of anamnesis as living and actualizing memory.

In Jewish worship there is this same sense of experiencing as present what happened in the past. The Exodus from Egypt, as experienced in the Passover, is something that every Jewish person experiences as real in their lives. When we experience the Christian Passover, that is Easter, hopefully it is as real to us as it was to the first Christians. That is why I always encourage all who worship with me to allow themselves to experience the joy of knowing that we are immortal. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead tells us of our immortality.

While I know that this concept of anamnesis is not necessarily easy to comprehend, it is all a matter of faith and allowing ourselves to imagine that in God’s Kingdom there is no time. The present moment is the only reality that really exists. Neither the past or the future are real! We can only experience life in the present moment.