Holy Communion in Contagious Times

“No one will finish reading this book without a deeply enhanced sense of the meaning of the eucharist. Painstaking and impressively well-documented and researched, it will be an invaluable resource, stimulating much debate and reflection.”

Rowan Williams

“In this carefully researched and original book of quite extraordinary scope, the author brings to light the deepest meaning of the relation of God to a world that includes cyberspace.”

Paul S. Fiddes

“Renowned biblical theologian Richard Burridge’s arguments give us much to think about in this ongoing important debate.”

Michael B. Curry

“A visionary eucharistic theology and ecclesiology for the future’s hybrid physical and virtual expressions of church.”

Mitzi J. Budde

“A provocative, interesting, rich, and thoughtful book. It is well worth the read and furthers the discussion considerably.”

C. Andrew Doyle

“Reading Burridge’s material about online eucharists moved my theological goalposts!”

Pierre Whalon

“A fascinating study. Something all church leaders need to wrestle with!”

Michael F. Bird

“Richard Burridge’s theological depth and willingness to be radical in his thinking make this book essential reading.”

David Walker

“Richard Burridge brings his prodigious energy, theological and pastoral passion, and diverse network of colleagues to engage the vitally important issue of ongoing Christian liturgical tradition in the internet age. I’m grateful to Professor Burridge for putting this book into the world at this challenging moment.”

Cynthia Briggs Kittredge

“The global pandemic raised many questions for the church about how holy communion might be celebrated when we are unable to meet in person. With characteristic expertise, Richard Burridge guides us through these debates with close attention, both to the tradition of Christian teaching on the eucharist and developments in modern communication technology. He offers some provocative yet deeply considered proposals that deserve consideration by all who have wrestled with these issues.”

Graham Tomlin

“The Richard Burridge skill set is to provide magisterial, detail-orientated studies that explore all the issues from a full range of perspectives. This extraordinary book is no exception. With rigor and careful attention to detail, Burridge sets out a provocative argument while considering all the options. Read carefully, learn much, and think deeply.”

Ian S. Markham

“The pandemic has sharpened questions which Christians have been asking for some time about the celebration of the eucharist on digital media. In this lively and forceful book, Richard Burridge presents his informed perspective on the current state of the debate in the Church of England, and he offers some striking proposals for the future.”

Michael Ipgrave

“As a fellow ‘zoomicant’ in lockdown’s wilderness, I appreciated not only the spiritual nourishment but also Richard Burridge’s thoughtful and detailed exploration, which helped me still be part of God’s people even when gathered at a distance.”

Richard Coles

“The eucharist is the food that makes us hungrier for God. Each time the bread is broken, God unmasks his fidelity and love. Without it, as Burridge shows with his usual contagious love of scholarship and public theology, faith curdles into self-reference and we forget the call to model community life. Read this as a vaccine against a diseased Christianity.”

Mark Oakley

“When the pandemic led to lockdowns and the prohibition of in-person worship services, the Ecclesiology Committee of the Episcopal Church House of Bishops which I chair took up the question of online celebrations of the eucharist. In a paper that I wrote, I was adamant that consecration of elements online is impossible. I became intrigued, however, by Richard Burridge’s insistence that the question not be purely theoretical, but needed a thorough study, including a ‘Zoom communion’ group that I joined. Though I do not celebrate or communicate, I have come to think that, under strict guidelines and only during real emergencies, an online eucharist can be celebrated faithfully. The church’s newest mission field is cyberspace, and Richard Burridge’s book is a guide to its geography.”

Pierre Whalon

“Sometimes it takes a crisis, sometimes a new technology, to drive the church of Christ forwards. In 2020, we had both on a global scale. The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and the opportunities of near-universal access to the internet created a context in which congregations and their leaders had to address afresh the question of what it means to break bread and share wine in remembrance of Christ’s death. The dance between pragmatism and theology lasted eighteen months, with the lead swapping between these partners. In this book, Richard Burridge traces the developments in praxis and theory across a range of traditions, rooted in the deep question of what it means for the people of God to gather at the table of Christ. As congregations return to their buildings, and as pastors and priests resume their sacramental positions, the questions explored in this book have not disappeared, and Burridge offers some tantalizing challenges about the nature of gathering in a post-pandemic, internet-enabled age.”

Simon Woodman

“Recognizing that the Holy Spirit of God is fruitfully active among people and communities across the world and across the churches as they face the implications for Christian worship and witness of the restrictions of the 2020–21 pandemic, Burridge offers a theological analysis that is detailed, perceptive, stretching, and highly readable. A marvelous achievement that testifies to the liberating energy of God’s grace for a church which is too often hidebound in a world crying out in its suffering and need.”

Gordon Oliver

“There are few more qualified to tackle the tangled question of what communion is and does than the Reverend Canon Professor Richard Burridge. Holy Communion in Contagious Times brings to bear his prodigious gifts as a Bible scholar, as a priest, and as a person considering how the church balances isolation and spiritual need. This book will challenge and maybe even shift your thinking about the most sacred acts in our faith.”

Greg Garrett