That's the tradition.

It should be red at communion. White at baptisms, Rose at confession.

For extreme unction, triple Harvey Wallbangers are proper.

I think the church is way past this being a contentious issue and is looking at more important things like whether to offer nachos and chicken wings while you are in the line up waiting for your wine and whether to have a happy hour for confession.

Only if it's Ernie Els Estate Red Wine750ml.  I went to catholic school for elementary, and we used to always joke about how the priests would take huge sips. Seriously though, I think wine at communion is fine....but you got to share the cup w/so many people...could be cooties or something.

I came from a mixed Lutheran-Catholic background, and neither denomination ever seemed to have any problem with the consumption of wine that I was ever aware of. When I was forced into attending church as a kid, the prospect of taking wine at Communion was the one thing I was able to look forward to with any enthusiasm. In retrospect, it wasn't all that much wine (and to get it you had to go through the distasteful process of letting that flavorless styrofoam-type wafer dissovle on your tongue), but that was the age when I worried that one beer might render me paralyzed drunk. It wasn't long after that that I stopped attending church (although I continued on with the wine drinking). The only time I became aware of Christians having a problem with wine drinking was when I saw Jimmy Swaggart on TV once going on a tirade about how only grape juice should be served at Communion, unfermented grape juice. Then again, he also went on tirades against pornography (or, as he referred to it, POH-NAAGRAPPHHEEEE!!!) and prostitution, and we all know how well he followed his own advice in that regard, so maybe he wasn't serious about the wine drinking either.

Jesus used unleavened bread and wine, and He said, "do this in remembrance of me".  There was no grape juice available at the time of Passover.

no, beer and chips. i wonder if these people even wonder what jesus drank....grape juice? It was wine, so you'd think they'd all want to be like him, a drunk.

Chips would have more flavor than those wafers, but they don't really yell bread at me. Beer? I think the contention is the we shouldn't have alcohol, so nobody is gonna buy that one. We probably need to save the beer and chips for the game later that afternoon.

Absolutely, along with grape juice for those who suffer from alcoholism, such as myself. Nope, not ashamed... more than ten years since the last drink I will have until the great wedding feast, which I hope with all hope to be invited to.

It was served at the last supper to Jesus and his disciples - the ritual continuous now.

The eucharist shouldn't be practiced at all, as it's the sickest aspect of all Christian beliefs. It's both magic and cannibalism, and gravely disrespectful to any concept of the Divine. To begin with, Jesus Christ is God made Flesh by Magic Trick No.1, The Virgin Birth. Jesus then performs several other magic tricks throughout the BS rag known as The New Testiment (e.g., destruction of the Temple, the generation of fish and loaves, walking on the water, reattaching the severed ear in the Garden, etc.) before pulling the Granddaddy Magic Trick of them all: turning wine and bread into the actual body and blood of God made Flesh. Presto!!! And any child molester or drunkard who is protected and sanctioned by church bureaucracy can do the same!! Amazing!!! Outdoes David Copperfield!!!! Then, the believers are to consume the literal, not symbolic, body and blood of Christ, thus violating one of the most taboo of human no-nos. Then, through the human process of digestion, the body and blood of Jesus is actually turned into a fleck of crap that gets flushed down the toilet in 4-12 hours. Great way to honor God made Flesh! Must have seemed like a plausible idea to the weirdo religious fanatics back in the days who wrote the grab bag of lies called The New Testament, but when a modern thinker goes through the issue, the logic breaks down. This is typical of most Christian "teachings." The entire idea of the eucharist is probably the most ridiculous and assinine notion in all of human history. So, the issue of whether wine should be served at communion is inconsequential. The real issue is that the eucharist is necromancy, cannibalism and partial turd generation, institutionalized and legitimatized by a gutter religion. I'm sure this is not what the Divine had in mind, that is, to be turned, through a complex process of physical transfers, into a piece of sh*t.

I'll look at this from what I consider to be a practical, rather than a theological, point of view. I'm not at all keen on having wine served as a part of the Communion rite, because I think that there's way too much potential for spreading sickness because of the number of people who are all drinking from the same cup, chalice, or whatever. Just wiping with a cloth between "sippers" doesn't really do much sanitation-wise. I'm not squeamish about most things (Lord knows where my mouth has been and what it's had in it!), but I just don't see the point in pushin your luck, especially during the cold or flu season.

Communion is properly unleavened bread and wine, since this sacrement springs from the Jewish Seder meal. Grape juice will work in a pinch, though. It's not as important what physical ingrediants there are as long as the spirit of the Sacrament is honored, that being a oneness with God and our fellow believers through the sharing of bread and wine, body and blood. That is the essense of Holy Communion.

man - i've got to ask this - is it really true that most churches in the USA serve grape juice instead of wine??? as to if it should be served - well wine was part of the institution Jesus established so wine it should be... grape juice for the underage? sounds reasonable - that age is 18 here - probably 21 in USA? and with the zero alchol no tolerance regieme for young drivers in many countries grape juice will avoid them breaking the law. Drinking too much wine - to the extent of getting drunk is a sin - but that doesnt mean you can't have it in moderation

From my stand point it is n/a since the host is consecrated it contains the body,blood,soul,and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ.

I think some comment is necessary about the total abstinence argument. I was shocked to learn that the USA is practically the only nation in the world that advocates total abstinence for alcoholics. That is because, evidently, we have bought into the slogan that one drink is the road to perdition. Most of the other countries of the world treat alcoholism as a behavorial problem and go back to the original idea of temperance, and that was moderation! Obviously some people cannot tolerate any liquor, but not the vast majority as I understand. In Europe total abstinence is the last thing tried for alcoholics. In the USA it's the first and exclusive remedy!

According to how my church does it, it's wine. As does my husband's church, which is catholic. However, the way we both have been taught is that at the end of the communion, if there is wine left over, the pastor must drink it, because it is not to go to waste and also if it was poured into a sink, it would go into the sewer which is unholy...lol. I have met a lot of priests who were alcoholics because of this. They have service every day. Sometimes 3 or more times a day. Perhaps it is best to not have it as wine? Not to mention, there may be alcoholics in the congregation, who can't drink wine. I know in my church, there is that option; wine or grape juice for just such an instance.

Yes, because that was exactly what Jesus drank at the last supper. Maybe I wouldn't serve wine to someone under the drinking age, not unless it was legally permitted. I think grape juice for younger communion observers is OK. Besides, it is not necessarily the drink which makes communion important, it is what the drink symbolises.

Nope, it's an alcoholic beverage. It's not God's Blood like many Christians want you to believe. It's just a damn drink. Drink too much of God's Blood, you'll be intoxicated.