The Communion and Communicant

In Short

Edward Hoare’s nineteenth-century pastoral tract examines the sacred institution of the Lord’s Supper using biblical texts, particularly 1 Corinthians. The work guides readers through the divine authority, true spiritual nature, and proper participation in the sacrament, carefully addressing common fears about unworthiness and judgment. It traces a path from initial hesitation and misunderstanding to confident, grateful obedience. The book has endured because it tenderly reassures anxious consciences, distinguishing between temporary divine chastisement and final condemnation while inviting weary believers to find spiritual nourishment at Christ's table.

The Story

Edward Hoare’s tract begins by observing the varied responses believers have toward the Lord’s Supper, noting that while many find it a delightful feast of remembrance, others avoid it entirely or approach it with paralyzing fear due to strict apostolic warnings. To clear away this confusion, the author establishes the absolute authority of the ordinance, tracing how Christ ordained it during the Paschal Supper and subsequently reaffirmed it through a direct revelation to Saint Paul. This dual foundation leaves no room for doubt, inviting believers to obey simply and trustingly rather than cowering behind self-invented delays.

The core of the argument defines the sacred nature of the sacrament through three distinct lenses. First, it is an act of remembrance, a visible outward sign marking the believer's deep gratitude for Christ's broken body and shed blood. Second, it serves as a divinely appointed means of spiritual nourishment where the believing soul feeds on Christ through faith, while the physical bread and wine remain unchanged in their literal substance. Third, it acts as a joyful foretaste of the future marriage supper of the Lamb, bridging the first and second advents of Christ.

Addressing the terror surrounding unworthy participation, Hoare confronts the difficult language of eating and drinking judgment. He clarifies that the term often translated as damnation actually denotes temporal chastisement—loving paternal correction sent by God to rescue His children from final condemnation. Building upon this, the argument identifies who truly comes unworthily: those harboring bitter strife and schism, those treating the sacred meal with careless indifference, and those persisting in unrepented, presumptuous sin. For these individuals, the sacrament brings grave peril, and repentance must precede participation.

Finally, the text turns toward tender consciences, dismantling false barriers that keep sincere people away. Hoare proves that active daily business, youth, spiritual inexperience, and deep sorrow over personal sin are never valid reasons for prolonged absence. The journey concludes with a definitive resolution: believers must never wait until they achieve a fictitious state of moral perfection before coming. Because Christ pardons freely and immediately, the broken-hearted sinner is urged to approach the table at once, casting all burdens upon the Savior and finding in the sacrament the strength to live, obey, and rejoice.

How It Unfolds

• The initial hesitation: The text opens by examining why many Christians either neglect the Lord's Supper or view it with fearful, paralyzing awe. It proposes careful scriptural study as the primary remedy for groundless dread, encouraging believers to understand the true nature of the service rather than shrinking away from a vital spiritual privilege.
• Establishing divine authority: The argument grounds the sacrament firmly in Christ's original command given before his crucifixion and his subsequent direct revelation to Saint Paul. This double reinforcement establishes an unquestionable obligation for simple, childlike obedience rather than human hesitation, doubt, or unauthorized delay.
• Unveiling the sacred nature: The work explores the ordinance as a rich, threefold gift: an affectionate memorial of Christ's death, a spiritual feeding ground where faith receives grace through completely unchanged physical elements, and a joyful foretaste of future glory.
• Confronting the solemn warning: The text interprets Saint Paul's severe caution regarding unworthiness, carefully explaining that the referenced judgment signifies merciful temporal chastisement designed to prevent final ruin rather than unmitigated eternal damnation. It balances holy reverence with comforting pastoral clarity for anxious minds.
• Identifying unworthy participants: The focus shifts to who truly eats unworthily, highlighting those living in bitter divisions, casual indifference, or unrepented sinful habits who fail to discern the Lord's body and refuse to examine their own hearts before God.
• Dismantling false barriers: The tract addresses overburdened workers, young believers, and tender souls plagued by doubts, reassuring them that worldly business, spiritual inexperience, or deep sorrow over personal sin should never bar them from seeking necessary grace at the table.
• The immediate invitation: The argument resolves by drawing the broken-hearted sinner directly to the table, emphasizing that grace is freely given to the sick and unworthy who trust completely in Christ's immediate, unearned pardon without waiting for perfection.

The People

Edward Hoare populates his theological exploration with biblical figures and human archetypes to illustrate spiritual realities. Saint Paul desires to warn the church against irreverence and division, but the Corinthians' internal strife and lack of discernment stand in his way; through his epistles, he ultimately leaves behind a clear standard of solemnity and grace. Peter and Thomas want to follow their Master faithfully, yet profound ignorance, doubt, and fear of the cross initially impede them, leaving them prone to denial and flight; nevertheless, Christ accepts them as they are, transforming them into foundational pillars of the early church. The careless professor wants the social standing of religious conformity without personal sacrifice, hindered only by their own worldly indifference, and ends up in grave spiritual peril unless they turn to genuine repentance. Conversely, the burdened worker and the tender-conscienced beginner deeply desire to serve God but feel blocked by daily toil or a painful awareness of their own unworthiness and corruption. Guided by the text, these hesitant souls are encouraged to cast aside false delays, ending up comforted, strengthened, and warmly welcomed as guests at the Father's table.

In Its Own Voice

Encouraging simple trust over human hesitation, the author urges readers to embrace childlike obedience:

“To follow your own judgment, and to give way to doubts and fears, can never be so safe as to throw yourself like a little child at the feet of your Saviour, and there say, ‘Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth.’”

Clarifying the physical reality of the sacrament, Hoare notes that the elements retain their original properties:

“The bread, therefore, is still bread, and the wine still wine—unchanged in all respects; the same in substance, and the same in property, as before their consecration.”

Explaining the true meaning of apostolic warnings, the author highlights the merciful nature of divine discipline:

“He says expressly, ‘we are chastened;’ he describes it as temporal affliction in this present life; and he teaches that it is sent for the express purpose of saving us from final ruin.”

What It's Really About

Beneath its practical guide format, the book explores the deep tension between human unworthiness and divine grace, asking how anxious believers can overcome paralyzing fear and approach holy things without presumption. Hoare argues that religious ordinances are not elite rewards reserved for the spiritually flawless, but divinely ordained means of nourishment for the weak and struggling. The central theme centers on the immediate, unearned nature of divine pardon, showing that spiritual growth comes through active obedience rather than cautious, self-imposed delay. Ultimately, the work investigates the true definition of spiritual worthiness, shifting the focus away from moral perfection and toward a repentant heart, childlike trust in Christ's finished atonement, and the unifying bond of Christian love among brethren.

Why Read It Today

Readers who cherish classic pastoral devotion and clear, verse-by-verse biblical exposition will deeply appreciate this work. Reading it feels like sitting across from a gentle, wise clergyman who patiently dismantles unnecessary anxieties with calm, scriptural logic. What stays with you is the liberating realization that spiritual strength is found not by waiting until one is morally flawless, but by coming to Christ directly in all one’s weakness. Modern readers must navigate nineteenth-century prose styles and occasional Victorian assumptions about social roles and household structures, which require patience to parse. Yet these period attitudes are easily counterbalanced by the timeless warmth of Hoare’s pastoral heart. Anyone haunted by feelings of spiritual inadequacy, or those who find themselves needlessly postponing sacred privileges out of fear, will find profound comfort here. The book strips away burdensome legalism and replaces it with an urgent, tender invitation to rest in unearned grace, making it a remarkably soothing companion for anyone seeking a closer, more confident walk of faith today.