General Misecellany

Tokens & Medallions

Communion tokens were first recommended by John Calvin with the intent that no unworthy person would be admitted to the communion service. They were first used in the Reformed Church of France in the year 1560. The Dutch used tokens in Amsterdam as early as 1586. England and Ireland began to use communion tokens near the end of the 16th Century, when authorities found it useful to know who did or did not conform to the legal form of worship of the state church. The Catholic churches in France may have been using tokens as early as 1613.

But it was in the Presbyterian churches of Scotland that communion tokens were most widely used. Many believe that there was a second reason for using tokens, to protect communicants from betrayal by spies during periods of religious persecution. The use of communion tokens in the Presbyterian churches of Scotland began during the reign of the Stuarts in 1605. The conflict between church and state continued until the reign of William and Mary and the establishment of the Presbyterian Church as the Church of Scotland in 1690. For nearly 50 years, the Presbyterians had been forced to meet in glens or other secluded places at long and irregular intervals to celebrate the communion service. When the struggle between the church and state finally ended, the use of tokens was by then considered to be an essential part of the Scottish communion service.

Communion tokens have been used all around the globe, however, it was in Scotland where the tokens had their deepest roots, with over 5000 different types being recorded.

Click here to view the Tokens & Medallions Gallery.