06/25/2026
Thinker Thursday: Closed Communion
Buckle up, ladies & gents, because this is a long one!
Often during a WELS service where communion is held, the church body can expect to hear the pastor state something about closed communion. What does this mean?
Closed communion is a practice among the WELS church body. This means that when Holy Communion takes place during a WELS service, only members of the WELS church body can participate.
Why?
“God directs believers not to practice religious fellowship with those whose confession and actions reveal that they teach, tolerate, support, or defend error (2 John 10,11).” (wels.net)
Although we would all like to assume that all believers believe the same thing, we can’t be certain. We can be certain, however, that other members of the WELS community do believe what we believe. Holy Communion is fellowship, so we must only commune with those that are within the WELS community to keep Holy Communion as holy as the Lord intended it to be.
Not all church bodies practice closed communion. Not all church bodies share the same beliefs that WELS members do. Keep this in mind as you pursue your faith & share the gospel with others!
Who knew that closed communion existed or that there was such solid reasoning behind it? Now you do!
Have a blessed week, & pray for those who know the Lord & those who don’t!
WELS is a group of more than 330,000 men, women, and children in nearly 1,300 congregations across the United States and Canada united by a common faith in Christ's saving love.