When I was very young, being reared in another denomination, my mother and I, for reasons I cannot remember, were at church together without the rest of the family. In my memory it was evening; also for reasons I cannot remember. What I do recall is that my mother had a very traumatic experience at that service of Holy Eucharist.

We were seated in back instead of in our customary pew halfway up on the left side of the sanctuary and so were among the last to receive communion. We followed the instructions of the ushers and began to solemnly walk up the aisle, hands folded in prayer. When we finally got to the communion rail we knelt and waited for the priest to come and put the host, the bread, on our tongues. This was, as I said, quite some time ago. I received first by virtue of the prie…