CHARLESTON, S.C. — In another time, before you could take communion at First Scots Presbyterian Church, you had to be able to recite the 10 Commandments, the Apostles' Creed and the Lord's Prayer as well as show that you "walked in the way of the Lord."
If you could demonstrate these things, you received a token--silver if you were a member of the congregation, pewter if you were a slave--allowing you to receive communion.
The tokens are among dozens of items in an exhibit at the Charleston Museum of ecclesiastical silver from local churches and synagogues--a display including four of the oldest known pieces of Southern silver, one of which dates to 1711.
"Sterling Faith: 300 Years of Charleston's Sacred Silver" also includes a silver 19th Century communion plate made for slaves in a congregation near Beaufort.
Besides silver, the exhibit includes an 1864 commission signed by Confederate President Jefferson Davis designating Catholic Bishop Patrick Lynch as a representative of the Confederacy to the Vatican.
In the next display case is the pardon Lynch received from U.S. President Andrew Johnson after the Civil War.
Dozens of items from about 35 churches and synagogues were included in the display, which continues through Oct. 31.