Talk #3 HOLY EUCHARIST: REAL PRESENCE OF JESUS, FLESH & BLOOD

THE MASS A MEMORIAL OF THE LORDS SUPPER. The mass, also known as the Eucharist and a memorial of the Lords Supper, repeats what happened at the Last Supper and allows us to enter into the sacrifice of Jesus Christ in Calvary. The term memorial in the Catholic understanding means a great deal more than simply a memorial service!. Christ instructed the apostles, Do this in remembrance of Me "Luke ##$%&' % Cor. %%$#()#*+. ,o what- Cele.rate this Last Supper, this new /assover of 0is 1ody and 1lood, this sacrificial offering. 2nd how2s a memorial. The Jewish understanding of memorial was not simply to .ring to mind a past event. 3t involved actually ma in! "re#ent t$at "a#t event. Thus, the past is not only remem.ered, .ut also relived i.e.. made "re#ent here and now in the cele.ration and we enter into the event of the sacrifice in Calvary. This is consistent with the Jewish tradition. The Jews cele.rating /assover at the time of Jesus thought of themselves as one with their ancestors 4 a# t$ou!$ t$ey t$em#elve# $ad %led %rom E!y"t. 2s one ancient Jewish commentator e5plained, In every generation a man must so regard himself as if he came forth himself out of Egypt. 6e now consider ourselves to have .een delivered from our own Egypt ".ondage from sin+ and thus truly united in 7ods covenant family. Just as the Jews really participated in their ancestors e5odus through the /assover feast, Christians participate in the new e5odus, Christs victorious death on the cross, through the new /assover, the Eucharist. The mystery of Christs going to the 8ather! through 0is suffering, death, resurrection and ascension is called the /aschal 9ystery!. Through the mass, the sacrifice of Christ on the cross is perpetuated throughout the centuries until he should come again. The Church teaches that the 9ass is the re)presentation of the sacrifice of Calvary, which also is invaria.ly misunderstood .y non)Catholics. The Catholic Church does not teach that the 9ass is a re)crucifi5ion of Christ, who does not suffer and die again in the 9ass. 3n the 9ass, there is no real shedding of .lood, no real death' .ut the separate consecration of the .read and wine sym.oli:es the separation of the .ody and .lood of Christ and thus sym.oli:es his death upon the cross. The Sacrifice of the 9ass was prefigured in the ;ld Testament in which it was predicted that Christ would offer a true sacrifice to 7od in .read and wine 4 that he would use those elements. 9echi:edek, the king of Salem and a priest, offered sacrifice under the form of .read and wine "7en. %($%<+. /salm %%= predicted Christ would .e a priest according to the order of Mechizedek, that is, offering a sacrifice of .read and wine. The prophet 9alachi, after foretelling the re>ection of the Jewish priesthood, predicted a new sacrifice would .e offered in every place. rom the rising of the sun, even to the going do!n, my name is great among the "entiles# and in every place there is a sacrifice and there is offered to my name a clean oblation. "9alachi %$%=)%%+ ?ote that he speaks of one sacrifice, not many sacrifices, .ut one that is offered everywhere.

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0e.rews also stresses that the .loody sacrifices of animals in the ;ld Testament prefigured the .loody sacrifice of Christ for the remission of sin. "0e.. &$%%)#<+ & A SA'RIFI'E( A) OFFERI)* OF OURSEL+ES The 9ass is also called a #acri%ice .ecause, as @atican 33 e5plains, $cting in the person of %hrist, and proclaiming &is mystery, they 'priests( )oin the offering of the faithful to the sacrifice of their &ead. . . . "The Church, #<+ 2 dimension to the 9ass sees in the gifts of .read and wine an offering of our own lives. These gifts, which earth has given and human hands have made! ";ffertory of the 9ass+, signify our daily #tru!!le# to "ut to deat$ our o,n #el%i#$ne## so that we might love as Christ loves. 8undamentalists re>ect the Catholic teaching on the 0oly Sacrifice of the 9ass for two reasons. They claim that the 9ass violates many passages in 0e.rews that tell us -e#u# ,a# only #acri%iced once, and that, ,it$out t$e #$eddin! o% .lood( t$ere i# no %or!ivene## o% #in#. "0e.. &$##, #*, #<, %=$%%)%#+. They think Catholics teach Jesus is sacrificed again at every 9ass. They cite Catholic catechisms that teach that in the 9ass Jesus is offered in an un.loody manner. They completely miss the conte5t under which the .ook of 0e.rew was written, i.e. the many sacrifices of the ;ld Testament religion, which could not atone for sin nor reconcile mankind to 7od since the one sacrifice of Christ alone did atone for all sins and reconcile mankind to 7od. Catholic doctrine affirms that the one death of Jesus .roke the hold of sin. It i# "reci#ely %rom t$i# one #acri%icial deat$ t$at t$e Lord# Su""er( and $ence( t$e Ma##( dra,# it# #i!ni%icance. The 9ass is cele.rated .ecause the Lord commanded us to remem.er him together .y eating and drinking his 1ody and 1lood "Luke ##$%&' % Cor. %%$#*+. The 9ass is therefore no mere ritualistic contrivance, invented .y the Catholic Church to waste everyones time, .ut an o.edient response to Christs final command.

'. A MEAL
The /assover sacrifice of the /aschal lam. and other sacrifices made in the Jewish Temple attest to the practice of having the sacrifice also as a meal. ;ne of these sacrifices was the *ebah +odah in which a meal was shared with 7od. /art of the *ebah +odah sacrifice was .urnt up at the altar, and part of it was given .ack to the offeror who then ate it with friends. Even in the /assover sacrifice, it was commanded that the lam. .e consumed. Thus, anyone who considers the 9ass a sacrifice and not a meal, or a meal and not a sacrifice, has lost touch with the Jewish roots of the mass. The meal is a sacrifice in the tradition of the Jewish +odah and the ,assover meal. The Lords Supper, now cele.rated in memory of Jesus at every 9ass, turns our attention .ack to Calvary and forward to his ultimate coming. The last supper mysteriously anticipated Christs sacrifice on Calvary. Eating is an affirmation of life. Every time we eat, we agree somewhere deep inside of ourselves to continue life. Eating together is even more significant, .ecause it entails all kinds of conseAuences. 3t weaves you together with the people with whom you are sharing the meal. 3n a way, eating always has a sym.olic meaning. Bou eat only with people you associate with in one way or another.

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D. PARTS OF THE MASS. The mass consists of two principal divisions$ the Liturgy of the 6ord, which proclaims and e5plains 7ods message to 0is people, and the Liturgy of the Eucharist, which focuses on the essential act of sacrifice in the Consecration and on the Eucharistic 1anAuet of 0oly Communion.

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2t the .eginning of the mass, the priest and the people prepare to enter into 7ods presence .y a common con%e##ion o% un,ort$ine##. This is followed .y the Cyrie Eleison! asking for 7ods mercy and the singing or praying of 7lory to 7od in the 0ighest! which was sung .y the angels on the first Christmas. The Liturgy of the 6ord proper usually contains three lessons from the .i.le. The first of these is ordinarily taken from the ;ld Testament followed .y the Desponsorial /salm that is intended to .e a meditation of the 6ord of 7od. The second lesson is always taken from the ?ew Testament and is usually from one of the Epistles. Then we have the reading of the 7ospel selected from 9atthew, 9ark, Luke, or John. The 7ospel and the previous Scripture lessons are arranged on a three year cycle so that once every three years the entire 1i.le is proclaimed. 2fter reading the 7ospel, the cele.rant may give a homily in which he ela.orates, e5plains, and shows practical application of the 7ospel message. The congregation then recites the Creed, which is the profession of faith in all that 7od has taught us. 3t is the summary of Christian ,octrine and our proclamation of .elief in it. The prayers of petition of the people conclude the Liturgy of the 6ord. 6e have carefully listened to 7ods message, we have professed faith in it, and we have asked 7od for mercy and help in fulfilling it.

Li !"#$ %& '( E!,'a"i- :

The Eucharistic part of the 9ass .egins with the ;ffertory, which is the offering of our lives in union with Christ to our heavenly 8ather. Typically, the ;ffertory is divided into two parts. 3n the first part, we are invited to make our offering of money for the work of the church. 2nd in the second part, a few mem.ers of the church .ring the gifts of .read and wine 4 as well as our offerings 4 up to the priest. ;ur offering of course is more than money. 3t is a sym.ol of our whole lives. 6e too were .eing taken to the altar and .eing offered to 7od as an accepta.le sacrifice.! 2s the priest offers the .read and wine to 7od, so do we offer ourselves. 2s water .ecame one with wine, in like manner we would wish to .e united with Christ. This is a way of prayer that transforms us and lifts us up. 3t changes us from spectators in the pews to an integral and necessary part of the whole cele.ration of the 9ass. 6e can then .ecome the very thing that we receive. 6e are transformed as we >oin ourselves to the offering upon the altar. 3n fact, the more fully we offer ourselves on the altar, the more fully we will e5perience 7ods power and grace when we receive Communion. The washing of the hands is sym.olic of the purification of the soul, so that the priest may approach the great sacrifice without .lemish. The heart of every 9ass is the Euc$ari#tic /rayer. Eucharist! means thanksgiving.! 3n this prayer, we thank 7od for the .lessing of salvation that has come Part 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page Eof %(

to us through Jesus. ,uring this prayer also, we recall the words and deeds of Jesus at the Last Supper when 0e gave us a living memorial of 0is redemption. Then the .read and wine is consecrated and we .elieve that the .read and wine truly .ecome the glorified 1ody and 1lood of Jesus Christ. 3n the Consecration, the cele.rant repeats the very words of Jesus at the Last Supper as 0e .lessed the .read, .roke it, and gave it to 0is disciples, saying Take this and eat it, this is 9y 1ody.! 0e does the same thing in the consecration of the wine. 6e then pray for intercessions for the Church, for Communion with the saints, for all of us, and for our needs and for the deceased. The Eucharistic /rayer is concluded with the do5ology! "through 0im, with 0im, and in 0im in the unity of the 0oly Spirit, all honor and glory is Bours, almighty 8ather, forever and ever!+ followed .y the 7reat 2men considered as important for the laity as the words of consecration are for the priest. The preparation for 0oly Communion then .egins with the Lords /rayer, our prayer for daily .read, for our Eucharistic .read and its fruits. Then follows the .reaking of the .read!. 3n the ?ew Testament, the name given to the 9ass came from the rite of .reaking .read. The first Christians had their communal life in the .reaking of the .read. 2cts #$#% states 4 +hey devoted themselves to the apostles- instruction and the communal life, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. The .reaking of the .read is a sign that all, though many, were one loaf, one .read, one 1ody of Christ. The 2gnus ,ei! is then sung and the cele.rant uses the words first used .y St. John the 1apti:er$ .ehold the /amb of "od# behold &im !ho takes a!ay the sins of the !orld. The congregation answers in a paraphrase the words of the hum.le centurion /ord, I am not !orthy to receive you but only say the !ord and I shall be healed. ,uring the 0oly Communion, the priest or the lay minister declares$ +he .ody of %hrist0 and +he .lood of %hrist and in .oth instances, each communicant replies$ $men professing his or her .elief that the .read or the wine is truly the .ody and .lood of our Lord Jesus Christ. Since our lives too have .een offered, we too can .ecome the very thing that we receive. 1ut we are transformed only as we >oin ourselves to the offering upon the altar. 3n fact, the more fully we offer ourselves on the altar, the more fully we will e5perience 7ods power and grace when we receive Communion. 2t the end of the mass, the priest sends the congregation forth to live the spirit of the Lord$ "o in peace to love and serve the /ord. 2s Jesus has offered 0imself for us, forgiven us, restored us to the grace of the 8ather, so now we resolve that we shall .e the light of the world and the salt of the earth' that we shall lead all men to 0im .y our lives of sacrificial love. ,uring the mass, our physical senses are constantly .eing engaged. 6e sit, kneel, and stand. 6e sing, pray out loud, and em.race one another. 7od wants to work in us during the mass in ways that involve our .odies and our spirits eAually. 9any spiritual realities are given .odily e5pression at 9ass.

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THE HOLY EUCHARIST

The greatest treasure in the Catholic Church is the Eucharist. 3n it, Jesus hum.ly assumes the appearance of .read and wine proving his desire to .e with us always and never to .e separated .odily from us. The Eucharist is the heart of the Catholic faith. The new Catechism of the Catholic Church calls the Eucharist the #ource and #ummit o% t$e '$ri#tian li%e! and the #um and t$e #ummary o% our %ait$!. "CCC, %E#( and %E#F+. 6hy- 1ecause the Eucharist is .oth the origin and the end of that supernatural reality which is the point of everything in the Catholic religion. That reality consists in participating in the very life of 7od. The Eucharist is the most intimate union .etween us. 3t is alarming, however, that in the %&&# 7allup poll, the ma>ority of Catholics are confused in their .eliefs a.out Christs presence in the Eucharist. ?early F=G of all Catholics in this country hold erroneous .eliefs a.out Christs presence in the EucharistH #&G .elieve they are receiving the .read and wine that #ym.oli/e the .ody and .lood of Christ "which is the predominant /rotestant .eliefH+. %=G .elieve they receive .read and wine in which Jesus is also present "which is Luthers position called consu.stantiation! or with! or alongside! the su.stance of .read and wine+. #(G .elieve they are receiving what has .ecome Christs .ody and .lood .ecause of their personal .elief "holding of some other /rotestants like the Calvinists+. ;nly E=G .elieve they are really and truly receiving the .ody, .lood, soul and divinity of the Lord Jesus ChristH There are three "E+ different ways .y which Jesus can .e present$ 0e is present everywhere as 7od "omnipresent+. 0e is present spiritually in those who are in the state of grace. 0e is present in his flesh and .lood in the Eucharist. The presence of 7od in 0is 6ord is a true presence, of course, .ut Aualitatively different from Christs /resence in the Eucharist. Christs presence in the Eucharist is sacramental .ut still physical "although not in the normal sense of the word+ in that it is a material presence. /ope /aul @3 e5plained this in Mysterium idei no.(I, stating that %hrist is present !hole and entire in &is physical 1reality,- corporeally present, although not in the manner in !hich bodies are in place. 3n his glorified human .ody, Jesus is present only in two places$ at the right hand of the 8ather in heaven, and in the 0oly Eucharist on earth.

CATHOLIC TEACHIN. ABOUT THE EUCHARIST

The Church has always taught from the very .eginning Deal /resence of Christ in the Eucharist. The early Church 8athers, our link to early Christianity, testify to this teaching as follows$ Part 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page *of %(

%. St. I!natiu# o% Antioc$, a disciple and contemporary of the 2postle John, wrote around %%= 2.,. 2 I desire the .read of "od, !hich is the lesh of 3esus %hrist . . . and for drink I desire &is .lood, !hich is love incorruptible. #. St. -u#tin Martyr wrote in his apology to the emperor at Dome "around %*= 2.,.+$ 4e call this food Eucharist# and no one else is permitted to partake of it, e5cept one !ho believes our teaching to be true . . . or not as common bread nor common drink do !e receive these# but since 3esus %hrist our 6avior !as made incarnate by the !ord of "od and had both flesh and blood for our salvation, so too, as !e have been taught, the food !hich has been made into the Eucharist by the Eucharistic prayer set do!n by &im, and by the change of !hich our blood and flesh is nourished, is both the lesh and the .lood of that incarnated 3esus. E. St. Irenaeu#( .i#$o" o% Lyon#, a pupil of St. /olycarp who had .een taught .y St. John the 2postle, wrote around %&* 2.,.$ &e '3esus( had declared the cup, a part of creation, to be &is o!n .lood, from !hich &e causes our blood to flo!# and the bread, a part of creation, &e has established as &is o!n .ody, from !hich &e gives increase to our bodies. (. St. 'yril o% -eru#alem, in a catechetical lecture given in the middle of the fourth century "E*= 2.,.+, said$ Do not, therefore, regard the bread and !ine as simply that2 for they are according to the Master-s declaration, the .ody and .lood of %hrist. Even though the senses suggest to you the other, let faith make you firm. Do not )udge in this matter by taste, but be fully assured by the faith, not doubting that you have been deemed !orthy of the .ody and .lood of %hrist. The 8ourth 7eneral Council of the Lateran in %#%* defined that the 1ody and 1lood of Christ are truly contained in the Sacrament of the 2ltar .y Transu.stantiation!. "2s distinguished from transformation, a carpenter can transform a log of wood into all kinds of furniture.+ The Council of Trent summari:es the Catholic faith .y declaring$ .ecause %hrist our 7edeemer said that it !as truly his body that he !as offering under the species of bread, it has al!ays been the conviction of the %hurch of "od, and this holy %ouncil no! declares again, that by the consecration of the bread and !ine there takes place a change of the !hole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of %hrist our /ord and of the !hole substance of the !ine into the substance of his blood. +his change the holy %atholic %hurch has fittingly and properly called transubstantiation. 2ll the outward appearances and sensi.le Aualities "accidents+ of the .read and wine remain, i.e. color, si:e, shape, taste, weight or whatever is apparent to the senses. Christ has not .een converted into .read .ut the .read into the .ody of Christ. Just as we can change Aualities without changing the su.stance "e5. powdered iron+ 7od can change the su.stance without changing the accidents or its Aualities. St. Thomas 2Auinas in his 6umma +heologiae 333, F*, %+ declared 4 +he presence of %hrist-s true body and blood in this sacrament cannot be detected by sense, nor understanding, but by faith alone, !hich rests upon divine authority. 6e neither feel nor see Christ as he really is so that faith, not feelings or seeing, can .e e5ercised, trained, and emerge triumphant. 2 faith that does not go .eyond human feelings is not faith at all, >ust as faith that does not go .eyond seeing 4 a faith that says, seeing is .elieving! is no faith at all. Part 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page Iof %(

CCC %EF( reads$ In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist the body and blood, together !ith the soul and divinity, of our /ord 3esus %hrist and, therefore, the !hole %hrist is truly, really, and substantially contained. +his presence is called 1real8 by !hich is not intended, to e5clude the other types of presence as if they could not be 1real- too, but because it is presence in the fullest sense# that is to say, it is a substantial presence by !hich %hrist, "od and man, makes himself !holly and entirely present. 1ecause Jesus is truly present, we adore the Eucharist as 7od. Thats why we genuflect "or .ow deeply+ .efore the ta.ernacle. Thats why the Church reserves the consecrated hosts with such care. Thats why the Church carries the consecrated hosts in processions and e5poses them for solemn adoration. "?ote$ There is no middle road 4 the other side results in idolatry+. The moment the priest says the words of consecration 4 This is my .ody! and This is my .lood! 4 7od miraculously changes the su.stance of ordinary .read and wine in the su.stance of the .ody and .lood of Christ. Christs presence in the Eucharist .egins at the moment of consecration and lasts as long as the appearance of .read and wine remains. 6hen a consecrated host is digested or dissolved and no longer has the appearance of .read, it is no longer Jesus. 6hen we receive 0oly Communion, Jesus remains in our .odies for a.out %* minutes. 6e should adore him within us as long as he is su.stantially present in us. 8or a short time, we are living ta.ernacles of the all)holy 7od. This is also the reason why we should make thorough preparations in receiving Jesus. To receive 0im, we must .e in a state of grace. 1ecause the Eucharist is our 7od and Savior Jesus Christ, we dare not receive him in the state of mortal sin. 3f we have committed a mortal sin, we cannot receive 0oly Communion without first receiving a.solution in the sacrament of confession. ;ut of great reverence, we are also reAuired to fast at least one "%+ hour .efore communion. Jesus, present wholly and entirely in each of the Eucharistic element as well as in each of its parts. The smallest particle of the consecrated host or the tiniest drop from the chalice contains the whole Christ. 6e can receive Jesus under the form of .read alone, under the form of wine alone, or .oth together. 3n each case, we receive the same perfect sacrament, the same Jesus into our souls. CCC %EFF reads 4 %hrist is present !hole and entire in each of the species and !hole and entire in each of their parts, in such a !ay that the breaking of the bread does not divide %hrist. The Catechism further teaches that the Eucharist strengthens our charity, and this living charity wipes away venial sins and remits the punishment due to sin. 1y the same charity that it enkindles in us, the Eucharist preserves us from future mortal sins and lessens our inclination to evil. The more we share the life of Christ and progress in his friendship, the more difficult it is to .reak away from him .y mortal sin. Those who receive the Eucharist are united more closely to Christ. "CCC %E&(, %E&*, J %E&I+.

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II EUCHARIST PREFI.URED AND FULFILLED IN SCRIPTURES

A P"(&i#!"(* i/ '( Ol* T(- a0(/
The ;ld Testament contains many signs and sym.ols of the Eucharist that are fulfilled in the ?ew Testament. 2mong them are$ %. 7en. %($%< 4 The .read and wine offered .y the priest)king 9elchi:edek prefigure the .read and wine offered .y the eternal priest)king Jesus at the Last Supper. "0e.. I$#= calls Jesus high priest! forever according to the order of 9elchi:edek!.+ #. E5odus %#$ %)#= 4 The same victim that was offered up to save the lives of the first).orn of 3srael was also the victim consumed as food for .odily nourishment as the 3sraelites .egan their >ourney to the /romised Land. This prefigures the Eucharist where the same victim, Jesus, who was offered up for our sins to save us from spiritual death, is consumed in the Eucharist to provide spiritual nourishment during our pilgrimage on earth on our way to heaven. The Eucharist was cele.rated on /assover, and so the Eucharist is the fulfillment of the Jewish /assover sacrifice. John the 1aptist calls Jesus the Lam. of 7od! "John %$#&+ and St. /aul calls Christ our paschal lam. who has .een sacrificed! "% Cor *$F+. E. E5odus %I$E* 4 The manna from heaven sustained the 3sraelites throughout their pilgrimage in the desert, .ut ceased to .e provided when they entered the /romised Land. Similarly, the Eucharist nourishes us spiritually in this life of pilgrimage until we enter the promised land of heaven. Jesus, however, claims the superiority of his .read over the manna given to the 3sraelites. 0e said$ 3 am the .read of life. Bour ancestors ate manna in the desert, .ut they died' this is the .read that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die.! "John I$ (<)*=+. The miracle of the manna was enormous$ every day several million 3sraelites received an omer "a.out two Auarts+ of manna per person. This amounts to several hundred tons of manna raining down daily "e5cept for the Sa..ath+ for (= yearsH Jesus says that he will perform an even greater miracle than the manna. 3t is superior .ecause the .read Christ gives is 0imself, more real and more miraculous than even the manna. 3f the Eucharist were merely commemorative .read and wine, instead of .eing superior, it would really .e inferior to the manna, for the manna was supernatural, heavenly, miraculous food, while .read and wine are a natural, earthly food.

B F!l&ill(* i/ '( N(1 T(- a0(/

Christ fulfilled his promise to give his literal flesh and .lood as food and drink and instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper. The words of the 3nstitution of the Eucharist are given in almost the same e5pressions .y St. 9atthew, St. 9ark, and St. Luke. 3n 9t. #I$#I)#<, 9ark %($##)#(, Luke ##$%F)#= and % Cor. %%$#E)#I, the all)powerful words of Christ, +his is my body . . . +his is my blood, completely changed the .read and the wine into 0is actual flesh and .lood. The clearest e5pression of the doctrine of the Deal /resence is found in the si5th chapter of Johns gospel. 3t has two "#+ main themes, namely$ 8aith and Eucharist.

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Fai '

Jesus stressed the uniAue and special faith needed to accept his difficult teaching a.out the 0oly Eucharist. 2s we read John I, we will see how many of Jesus own disciples lacked the faith reAuired to .elieve in the Deal /resence. 6hen he walked the earth, it took great faith to .elieve Jesus was 7od since his humanity veiled his divinity. 0owever, to .elieve that Jesus is present in the Eucharist reAuires even greater faith, .ecause the Eucharist veils .oth his divinity and his humanity. This is why Jesus stresses the theme of faith so strongly at the time he reveals his teaching on the Eucharist. 3mmediately prior to the Eucharistic discourse, Jesus performs two of his most famous miracles, .oth of which emphasi:e faith, namely$ The multiplication of the loaves and the feeding of the *=== and the calming of the storm at sea. The miracle of the multiplication of the loaves tests /hillips faith "John I$I+. The 2postles distri.ute five loaves of .read to a huge crowd. The very same five loaves feed thousands of hungry people at the same time, filling twelve .askets with leftoversH This clearly prefigures the one .ody of Christ .eing really and truly present to millions of people, without .eing divided or diminished. 2s CCC %EE* puts it 4 +he miracles of the multiplication of the loaves, !hen the /ord says the blessing, breaks and distributes the loaves through his disciples to feed the multitude, prefigure the superabundance of this uni9ue bread of the Eucharist. 6hen Jesus walked on water and /eter followed suit, /eters attention was diverted from Jesus to the stormy seas around him and Jesus reprimanded /eter for his lack of faith. 9an of little faith, why did you dou.t-! "9t. %($E%+ Jesus clearly indicated that a mystery was a.out to unfold since his teaching on the Eucharist is .eyond human comprehension and .eyond reason. "0owever, we also .elieve that 7od created everything seen and unseen .y >ust his word!+. 6e wonder why many so)called 1i.le Christians cannot comprehend how 7od could perform so stupendous a miracle as to give 0is .ody and .lood for our spiritual nourishment. 0as not 7od created the heavens and the earth out of nothing- ,oes 0e not transform the tiny .lade into nutritious grain- ,id 0e not rain down manna from heaven for forty years to feed the children of 3srael in the desert- ,id he not change rivers into .lood in Egypt, and water into wine at the wedding of Cana- 3s not everything around us a mystery- 2re we not a mystery to ourselves- 3s not the Scripture full of incomprehensi.le mysteries- 6e can understand why rationalists, who admit nothing a.ove their reason, re>ect the Deal /resence' .ut that 1i.le Christians should re>ect it is incomprehensi.le.

T(a,'i/# a2%! '( E!,'a"i-

John I$E= .egins a discussion that took place in the synagogue at Capernaum. The Jews asked Jesus what sign he could perform so that they might .elieve in him. 2s a challenge, they noted that our ancestors ate manna in the desert.! Could Jesus top that0e then told them that the real .read from heaven comes from the 8ather. "ive us this bread al!ays, they said. Jesus replied, I am the bread of life# !hoever comes to me !ill never hunger, and !hoever believes in me !ill never thirst. 3n this Eucharistic Part 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page &of %(

discourse, Jesus clearly teaches that we must consume his flesh and .lood as food$ . . . and the bread I !ill give is my flesh for the life of the !orld "verse *%+. The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, &o! can this man give us his flesh to eat: "@erse *#+. Jesus then affirms, $men, $men, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the 6on of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life !ithin you "verses (< J *E+' My flesh is real food and my blood real drink "verse **+.

III JESUS WAS SPEAKING LITERALLY AND NOT SYMBOLICALLY ABOUT HIS FLESH AND BLOOD.
A Li ("al Bi2l( A--(" i%/9ost /rotestants, especially fundamentalists, are literalists in approaching scriptures. 3t is parado5ical, however, that in John I, while the scriptural passages clearly indicate them to .e literal in meaning, they suddenly flip)flop and refuse to accept what Jesus said literally. The reasons why we .elieve Jesus was speaking literally are$ %. 6hen Jesus said that the .read 0e will give is his own flesh, his listeners were stupefied .ecause now they understood him to .e speaking literally. The .est and most relia.le interpreters of our Saviors words are certainly the multitude and the disciples who are listening to 0im. They all understood the import of his language precisely as it is e5plained .y the Catholic Church. They .elieved that our Lord spoke literally of 0is .ody and .lood. The fact that they never asked Jesus to e5plain himself shows that they understood perfectly that Jesus meant precisely what he saidH 0ad they interpreted his words in a figurative sense, it would have not have .een a hard saying, nor have led them to a.andon their 9aster. #. 9any of Jesus own disciples could not accept the literalness of his teaching and left him "verse II+. This is the only record we have of any of Christs followers forsaking him for purely doctrinal reasons. 3f it had all .een a misunderstanding, if they erred in taking a metaphor in a literal sense, why didnt he call them .ack and straighten things out- 3nstead of e5plaining that his listeners were misunderstanding him, or correcting them that he was only speaking figuratively, Jesus, using the strongest possi.le language 4 emphatically repeats the literalness of this teaching, si5 times in si5 verses. "verses *E)*<+H 0e said 4 2men, amen, 3 say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of 9an and drink his .lood, you do not have life within you "verse *E+. 9y flesh is real %ood and my .lood real drin "verse **+. This is not the language of sym.olism. 2men, 2men means 4 So .e it, So .e it, Bou got it, Bou got it, Thats right, thats rightH 3n John I$I= we read$ 9any of his disciples, when they heard it, said, This is a hard saying, who can listen to it-! Even the twelve 2postles were shaken. 1ut Jesus did not compromise one .it. 3nstead, he challenges his own handpicked 2postles$ 6ill you also go away- "verse IF+. 3n faith /eter answers$ Lord, to whom shall we go- Bou alone have the words of eternal life.! "verse I&+. E. 6henever Jesus spoke sym.olically, 0e would so e5plain that he was only speaking figuratively, especially when his disciples would mistake him as speaking literally. 8or e5ample, in John ($E%)E(, Jesus says I have food to eat of !hich you do not kno!. 0is disciples took him literally, so Jesus e5plained$ My food is to do the !ill of the one !ho sent me. 3n 9t. %I$*)%#, Jesus says, be!are of the leaven of the Part 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page %=of %(

,harisees and 6adducees. ;nce again, his disciples think Jesus is speaking literally. 2gain, Jesus corrects them and e5plains that he is not talking a.out real .read. Then they understood that he was not telling them to .eware of the leaven .read, .ut of the teaching of the /harisees and Sadducees. 3n John E$E)*, Jesus e5plained what he meant .y .eing .orn again!' in 9t. %&$#()#I, Jesus e5plained that his e5pression that it is easier for a camel to enter the eye of a needle! simply stresses the impossi.ility of entering heaven without 7ods help and in Jn. <$E#)EI, Jesus e5plains that the phrase the truth will set you free! means not emancipation from slavery per se .ut from slavery of sin.! (. Jesus could not have .een speaking figuratively .ecause the e5pression eating .read and drinking .lood! in 0e.rew means to persecute, assault, and destroy!. "These e5pressions are found in /salm #F$#' 3saiah &$%<)#=' 3saiah (&)#I' 9icah E$E' # Sam #E$%*)%F and Dev. %F$I, %I.+ 3f Jesus were speaking only figuratively a.out eating his flesh and drinking his .lood, then it would give an a.surd meaning that he wanted his disciples to persecute, assault and destroy him in order for them to have eternal life. *. Consider also the following warnings of /aul$ 3n % Cor. %%$#F, St. /aul warns Christians not to receive the Eucharist unworthily 2 +herefore !hoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the /ord un!orthily !ill have to ans!er for the body and blood of the /ord. 3n St. /auls time, the e5pression to ans!er for the body and blood of someone meant to .e guilty of murder, of shedding that persons .lood. 3f we receive the Eucharist in an unworthy manner, we are guilty of shedding Christs .lood, of doing violence to Christ himself. 0ow can we .e held to answer for the .ody and .lood of the Lord! if his .ody and .lood are not really there in the Eucharist- /auls words are meaningless without the Deal /resence. 3n % Cor. %%$#<)#&, St. /aul continues 4 $ person should e5amine himself, and so eat the bread and drink the cup. or anyone !ho eats and drinks !ithout discerning the body, eats and drinks )udgment on himself. 0e is saying that we are condemned for not recogni:ing and acknowledging the .ody of the Lord. 0ow can we .e held accounta.le for not discerning the .ody of the Lord in the Eucharist if it is only a .it of .read and wine-

B A/-1("i/# %23(, i%/0. 3n John I$E*, Jesus refers to himself as the 1read of Life! and that whoever comes to him will never hunger and whoever .elieves in him will never thirst. 0e said 4 I am the bread of /ife# !hoever comes to me shall never be hungry, and !hoever believes in me shall never be thirsty. They claim coming to him is .read, having faith in him is drink. Thus, eating his flesh and .lood merely means coming to and .elieving in him!. 2nswer$ The pro.lem with that interpretation is that in the following verses, verses (<) *&, he told us e5actly what he means .y calling himself .read., i.e. his own flesh, the very same flesh that he is going to offer for the life of the world. "verse *%+. Christ takes John I$E* far .eyond sym.olism .y saying, My flesh is food indeed and my blood is drink indeed. "verse **+. 0e continues$ $s the living ather sent me, and I live because of the ather, so he !ho eats me !ill live because of me "verse *F+. The 7reek word used for eats! "trogon+ is very .lunt and has the sense of chewing! or gnawing!. This is not the language of metaphor. Part 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page %%of %(

1. 3n John I$IE, Jesus said$ It is the spirit that gives life, !hile the flesh is of no avail. +he !ords I have spoken to you are spirit and life. They say this means that eating real flesh is a waste. Therefore, it is clear that Jesus was only speaking sym.olically in the previous verses. 2nswer$ The argument >ust does not make sense. 2re we to understand that Christ, who had >ust commanded his disciples to eat his flesh, then said their doing so would .e pointless- 3s that what the flesh is of no avail! means- Eat my flesh, .ut youll find its a waste of time! 4 is that what he was saying- 0ardlyH The fact is that Christs flesh avails muchH 3f it were of no avail, then the Son of 7od incarnated for no reason, he died for no reason, and he rose from the dead for no reason. Christs flesh profits us more than anyone elses in the world. The words 3 have spoken to you are spirit! does not mean 6hat 3 have >ust said is sym.olic.! The word spirit! is never used that way in the .i.le. The spiritual is every .it as real as the material. "0e.. %$%( 4 2ngels are spirit' Jn. ($#( 4 7od is Spirit+ The line means that what Christ has said will .e understood only through faith' only .y the power of the Spirit. 2ctually, in verse IE, Jesus was contrasting the natural or carnal man " the flesh!+ with the spiritual or faith)filled man. The natural man "flesh+ does not perceive the things of 7od. "% Cor. #$%(+ ?otice 0e says the flesh! not my flesh! in other verses. Jesus was actually warning them not to think carnally, according to what their human >udgment would tell them, .ut according to the power of 7ods spirit. 8lesh profits nothing! refers to mankinds inclination on a natural level, using only what their natural human reason would tell them rather than what 7od would tell them. ?atural human >udgment, unaided .y 7ods grace, is unrelia.le' .ut 7ods >udgment is always true. Jesus Eucharistic talk ends with verse *<. ?ote verse *& 2 +his he said in the synagogue, as he taught at %apernaum. The dialogue of verses I=)F= occurs later and deals with faith, not the Eucharist. E. Jesus calls himself a vine! "John %*$%+ and a door! "John %=$&+ and it is clear that he could not have meant them to .e literal. 2nswer$ 0ere, the conte5t clearly shows that Jesus was speaking figuratively. 3 am the door! and 3 am the vine! make sense as metaphors .ecause Jesus is like a vine that gives spiritual life to all Christians, the .ranches i.e. we get our spiritual sap through him and Jesus is like a door through which all men must come who seek salvation. The same thing cannot .e said of the .read and wine!. 1read and wine are not normal or natural sym.ols of flesh and .lood. 0ow can his .ody .e like .read and his .lood .e like wineTo call a man .read! is not an understanda.le sym.ol, without some e5planation. Either the sym.ols would have .een clearly e5plained "which is not the case+ or Jesus spoke literally "which is the caseH+. (. 3snt consuming Jesus real .ody and .lood canni.alism-! 2nswer$ ?o. Jesus revealed that they would receive his true .ody and .lood sacramentally "present in a hidden way.+ Christ is not in his natural condition .ut under the appearance of .read and wine. *. 6hat a.out the .i.lical prohi.ition against drinking .loodPart 2; Talk #3 Holy Eucharist Page %#of %(

2nswer$ ?o. 2 ?ew Testament commandment, Eat my flesh and drink my .lood! always supersedes an ;ld Testament commandment against drinking .lood. This is similar to the allowance of divorce in the ;ld Testament ",t. #($%+ .ecause of the hardness of their heart. Jesus made it clear that it was not so from the very .eginning and in % Cor. F$%=)%%, one who remarries after divorce is committing adultery. 1esides, the Levitical law prohi.its actual drinking of .lood. Jesus in the Eucharist is not giving his .ody and .lood in the natural form as discussed a.ove. 1esides, the Levitical laws have passed away in Christ. "0e.. F$%%)%# 4 a new priesthood. 6here there is a change of priesthood, there is a change of the law. I. 3ts impossi.le for Jesus .ody and .lood to .e in two places at the same time. 2nswer$ 9ysterious, yes, .ut not impossi.le. Christ was present at the Last Supper in two ways$ at the ta.le with his disciples in a natural way and under the appearance of .read and wine in a sacramental way. 2. Even after consecration, Jesus calls the contents of the cup, the fruit of the vine! "9t. #I$#&+ and St. /aul continues to call the other element .read! "% Cor. %%$ #I)#<++. ,oesnt this prove that they are still .read and wine2nswer. ?o. Scripture often calls things .y appearance. 2ngels who appear as men are called men "7en. %<$#, ##' %&$%+. 2fter Jesus changed the water into wine in the miracle at Cana, it is still referred to as water "John #$&+. <. 3s inter)communion with non)Catholic Christians in the Eucharist possi.le2nswer$ ?o. 6e must .e in full communion with the Catholic Church which reAuires union in doctrine and authority. This sacrament signifies oneness$ union with Christ and with his church. 6e may not signify Church unity when it does not e5ist' that would make the sign a countersign, a false sign. CCC %(== provides 4 Ecclesial communities derived from the 7eformation and separated from the %atholic %hurch, have not preserved the proper reality of the Eucharistic mystery in its fullness, especially because of the absence of the sacrament of &oly ;rders. It is for this reason that, for the %atholic %hurch, Eucharistic intercommunion !ith these communities is not possible.

C P'$-i,al E4i*(/,(: E!,'a"i- i, Mi"a,l(-.

Through the centuries, 7od has performed miracles to confirm his Deal /resence in the Eucharist. 2mong them is the miracle at Lanciano, 3taly in the < th century. 2 priest had serious dou.ts a.out the Deal /resence of Christ in the Eucharist. ;ne morning at 9ass, as he finished saying the words of consecration, the host suddenly turned into a circle of flesh and the wine .ecame visi.le .lood. The host and .lood were put on permanent display in the church to this day. This miracle was e5amined through the centuries. 2 scientific investigation was conducted in %&F% .y 3talian doctors using sophisticated instruments. The doctors concluded that the flesh is real human flesh from a heart, e5pertly dissected while the .lood is real human .lood, type 21, and has all the normal proteins found in the fresh human .lood. Even though the flesh and .lood have .een e5posed to the air of %#== years, they are .iologically undamaged.

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2nother miracle is a.out a 7erman lay woman, Therese ?eumann "%<&< 4 %&I#+, who lived the last EI years of her life without any food or water than 0oly Communion. Deceiving 0oly Communion gave her a surge of energy. She reAuired no sleep. The host would sustain her for almost one full day. 2t the end of each #()hour period, she could feel her life e..ing .ut would regain her strength as soon as she received 0oly Communion. ,octors and scientist who e5amined her concluded that the only thing keeping her alive was 0oly Communion. 9any other people have lived on nothing .ut the Eucharist for varying lengths of time. St. Catherine of Siena, St. Joseph of Cupertino, and St. Dose of Lima are some of the .etter)known saints who have lived on 0oly Communion alone.

CONCLUSION
6hy do 8undamentalists and Evangelicals re>ect the plain, literal interpretation of John I- 8or them Catholic sacraments imply a spiritual reality ) ) grace ) ) .eing conveyed .y means of matter. This seems to them to .e a violation of the divine plan. 8or many /rotestants, matter is not to .e used, .ut overcome or avoided. 1ut 7od, Auite literally, loves matter 4 he loves it .ecause he created it ) ) and he loves it so much that he comes to us under the appearances of .read and wine.

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