Practices (Baptism, Communion, Marriage)

As a church we do not have formal membership but consider all who participate in our community as belonging to one another in Christ. As far as our sacraments and covenants, within Eucharist:

Baptism: We practice baptism by immersion and for those who have made a declaration of trusting Christ. If you’d like to learn more about following the Way of Christ in baptism, click here to email Kevin, one of our pastors.

Communion: Because the table we set is Christ’s table, not Eucharist’s table, our communion practice is to welcome all who desire to come to the table.

Marriage: Neither of our pastors are currently ordained, and therefore cannot perform civil marriage ceremonies. That said, they both perform religious marriage ceremonies regularly for those who are a part of Eucharist. If you would like to talk more about getting married within the Eucharist community, click here to email Kevin.

2SLGBTQIA+ Belonging

As the leadership team of Eucharist, we recognize that many Christians have done great harm to the queer community. We deeply grieve the injury done to God’s beloved, especially when done in Jesus’ name, and as a part of the wider church, want to apologize for that harm and work towards reconciliation. We value the belonging, safety and full participation of queer people in our congregation.

One common question we are asked is if Eucharist is an “affirming” church. Because the definition of that term shifts from person to person, we want to be explicitly clear about our practices, believing that clarity is not only reasonable, but kind.

This is a living document, a signpost along our journey. We expect and pray to learn and listen to the Holy Spirit as our community continues to grow together.

1. 2SLGBTQIA+ persons and families participate as full members in our community, for baptism, service, and participation at every level of leadership. In all areas of church leadership we look to the heart of each unique person, valuing character and competency, as well as at the fruit of the Spirit that appears in each person’s life (love, joy, peace, long-suffering, kindness, generosity, gentleness, faithfulness, and self-control).

2. Pastors within Eucharist are free to marry couples who are a part of our church community, and this is not restricted on the basis of sexual identity or gender expression. Our denomination does not allow ordained clergy to perform same-sex marriages, which has led both of our pastors to not choose ordination. In not being ordained, we are able to treat all of God's beloved the same, which means we only perform religious ceremonies within Eucharist (all couples need to find an alternative way to legalize the religious service).

3. While people in Eucharist may disagree on a variety of matters, our church is one where people do not engage in personal or potentially contentious conversations outside of trusting relationships. We welcome each person to bring their pre-existing beliefs into our church, and to humbly seek the Spirit as they are, always with mutual respect and healthy communication (abusive language is never acceptable). A consistent posture of grace and hospitality is what we hope defines us as a community together and characterizes our presence in our neighbourhoods, our city and the wider church.

While these practices have been a part of our community for some time, they have not been communicated as clearly as they ought to be. If you would like to read more about the history of queer belonging within Eucharist and our apology for a lack of clarity, click here.

Denomination and Networks

Since our beginning in 2010 Eucharist has been in association with two networks who greatly shape our identity: TrueCity Hamilton and the Canadian Baptists of Ontario and Quebec.

While our congregation is connected with these communities, we want to stress that you don’t need to be any particular denomination (or even particularly religious) to be a part of Eucharist. We love being a diverse, sometimes messy, group of seekers. However we also recognize the importance of wider networks for mission and the unity of the church.

TrueCity Hamilton is a local network of churches working together for the good of the city. You can learn more about this movement, and why we think it’s so important, by clicking here.

The CBOQ is a beautiful and diverse association of congregations across Ontario and Quebec. You can learn more about the CBOQ by clicking here.