ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the 15 sections of "The Order of Celebrating the Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ". It compares the Baxter's liturgical structure to those of the Westminster Directory and the Book of Common Prayer, and provides a general theological analysis of the text. The chapter discusses specific ecclesiological issues, particularly the ways in which the thorny matter of admission to the Lord's Supper, a contentious issue during the interregnum, had a profound effect on his eucharistic rite. The heart of the rite, the prayers of consecration, commemoration, and sanctification, marked the zenith of this liturgy. Baxter not only restored the presentation of the gifts of bread and wine at the consecration, but also included a ritualized fraction at the commemoration. A vivid epiclesis over the gifts, followed immediately with the words of institution, highlighted the real sacramental rather than symbolic presence of Christ in the bread and wine.
