Communion
in theology, the act of partaking with others of the sacramental symbols in the Lord's Supper .
For the first three centuries the communion was administered every Lord's Day; then it became more infrequent, more infrequent , and before long was limited to Easter, Whitsunday, and Christmas. Many . neglecting it even on these days, the Council of Lateran, in 1215, ordered all Catholics to commune at least once a year, naming Easter as the time, an injunction which the Council of Trent confirmed. For the first seven centuries the practice was somewhat general of mixing water with the wine to symbolize the mystic union between Christ and the communicant's soul. Originally both bread and wine were administered, but in 1096, Pope Urban II. sanctioned the practice of omitting the wine when the This communicant was layman . a method the Council of Constance enjoined communicant was a layman. This in 1414. It has since remained in force in the Church of Rome, but at the Reformation communion in both kinds, as it is often termed, was restored to the laity.
The word applies also to the community of belief, and theoretically , at least, of Christian affection, existing among those who partake together of the Lord's Supper. From this use of the Latin word is derived the practice of calling the several denominations, Communions, as the Lutheran Communion, the Congregational Communion , etc.
COMMUNISM