A chalice is the cup used to hold wine for the Eucharist, Communion, or the Lord’s Supper. Churches commonly place it on or near the altar or communion table. During the service, a minister or worship leader handles the chalice, and the congregation may receive the wine from the cup or from a shared communion tray.
What Is a Chalice?
A chalice is a cup with a bowl, usually a stem and base, made to hold wine for the Eucharist or Communion. It may be silver, gold, glass, or ceramic; ornate historic examples can be engraved with biblical scenes or Christian symbols. The word comes from Latin calix, meaning “cup.” A chalice is not the same as the paten, the plate used for bread or communion wafers.
How Is It Used During Communion?
Before Communion, a minister, deacon, or trained server fills the chalice with wine and places it on the altar or communion table. During the central prayer or statement of institution, the minister handles the bread and cup. In Catholic, Orthodox, and some other liturgical traditions, the chalice and bread are elevated for the congregation to see. The wine is then distributed from the chalice, in small individual cups, or with a shared tray.
How Do Churches Use and Understand Chalices?
Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic churches commonly use a chalice, as do Episcopal and other Anglican congregations, Lutheran churches, and many Methodist congregations. Some congregations use ordinary ceramic or glass cups and simply call them communion cups. Baptist and many other nonliturgical churches typically use plastic or paper cups, a metal communion tray, or a pitcher with individual cups, though some use a formal chalice or do not use the word chalice.
Churches differ in what they understand by the wine. Catholics and Eastern Orthodox speak of consecration and sacrifice; Lutherans and many Anglicans and Methodists teach sacramental presence; many Baptists and other memorialist churches regard the elements as symbols or memorials. The communion traditions page explains these differences in more detail.
The physical vessel does not determine a church’s theology. A simple cup may hold wine understood as the consecrated body and blood of Christ, while an ornate gold chalice may belong to a congregation with a different sacramental teaching.
Why Are Some Chalices Ornate?
Some Catholic and Orthodox churches use gold or silver chalices, sometimes engraved with religious images, and treat them with ceremonial care. The ornamentation can express reverence and the importance of Eucharistic celebration. In Catholic and Orthodox traditions, chalices used for the Eucharist are reserved for that purpose. Other traditions place little emphasis on the vessel’s material or decoration and emphasize the words, bread, wine, and shared meal.
What Should a First-Time Visitor Expect?
Visitors do not bring their own cup. Follow the congregation’s instructions: an usher or minister will direct you where to go, and a minister or server handles the wine. The wine may be poured into your hand or a cup, or a communion tray may be passed. If you are not receiving Communion, sit, stand, or kneel as the congregation does and wait for the dismissal or the end of the service.