Eucharistic theologies summarised

Part of the series on Communion

also known as "The Eucharist", "The Lord's Supper", "Divine Liturgy", or "Blessed Sacrament"

Theology Real Presence Transubstantiation Transignification Sacramental Union Memorialism Consubstantiation Impanation Consecration Words of Institution Theologies contrasted Anglican Eucharistic theology Eucharist (Catholic Church) Eucharist (Lutheran Church) Divine Liturgy (Orthodox Church)

Important theologians Paul · Aquinas Luther · Calvin Chrysostom · Augustine Zwingli · Basil of Caesarea

Related Articles Christianity Sacramental bread Christianity and alcohol Catholic Historic Roots Closed and Open Table Divine Liturgy Eucharistic adoration Eucharistic discipline First Communion Infant Communion Mass · Sacrament Sanctification

This article contrasts the views of a number of churches regarding Eucharistic theology:

Roman Catholic Church

Main article: Eucharist (Catholic Church)

• Transubstantiation as a statement of what is changed when the bread and wine are consecrated, not an explanation of the means or mode by which the Real Presence is effected, since "[t]he signs of bread and wine become, in a way surpassing understanding, the Body and Blood of Christ."
• Christ is really (not just in sign or symbol), truly (not just subjectively or metaphorically) and substantially (not just in his power) present in the Eucharist.
• Because the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist is indeed real, not merely figurative or virtual, Eucharistic adoration (adoration of the Eucharist as the body, blood, soul and divinity of Jesus Christ) is practised.
• The Eucharist is a sacrifice in that it re-presents (makes present again) the sacrifice of the cross. The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one single sacrifice. Christ, of course, is not sacrificed again because the Cross cannot be repeated. The Mass is a liturgical representation of a sacrifice that makes present what it represents through the action of God in an unbloody manner.
• Theological development: Saint Ignatius of Antioch, Saint Justin Martyr, the first writer to describe the celebration in Rome of the Eucharist, Saint Ambrose, Saint Thomas Aquinas, the Council of Trent.
• Closed communion, admitting Christians not in full communion with the Church only in the circumstances indicated in the Code of Canon Law, canon 144 §§3-4 and the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 671 §§3-4
• Frequency and conditions: All Catholics are obliged to attend celebration of the Eucharist at least on every Sunday and on other days known as holy days of obligation. Priests are highly encouraged to celebrate the Eucharist daily, and the laity are likewise highly recommended to communicate daily. Catholics are obliged to receive Holy Communion at least once a year (at Easter time). While they are free to attend Mass without conditions, they may receive Holy Communion only if they are in a state of grace (free from unconfessed mortal sin, which destroys the supernatural life of charity within the soul) and if they observe the prescribed pre-Communion fast, which for Latin Rite Catholics is one hour before the reception of Holy Communion. Priests celebrating the Eucharist are bound by the same rules.

Eastern Orthodox Church

• The Eucharistic mystery bears an objective Real Presence. The bread and wine are believed to become the genuine Body and Blood of the Christ Jesus (a mode of thought supported by such verses as John 6:55) through the operation of the Holy Spirit. The Eastern Orthodox Church has never described exactly how this occurs: without going into details, it is satisfied in accepting that the change is a mystery beyond human understanding.
• The Church's spiritual and bodily sacrifice (by way of prayer, fasting, and confession) is, in a mystical and inexplicable union, fully one with Christ's actual sacrifice on the cross.
• The primary theological developments in regard to the Eucharist are mainly derived from earlier Church Fathers, especially the teachings of John Chrysostom, Ignatius of Antioch, and the Cappadocian Fathers, among others.
• Closed communion is almost exclusively administered. Communion is given only to baptized, chrismated Orthodox Christians who have prepared by fasting, prayer, and confession. From baptism young infants and children are carried to the chalice to receive Holy Communion.

Anglican Churches

Main article: Anglican Eucharistic theology

• There is a divergence of opinion over eucharistic theology, which broadly corresponds to the lines of churchmanship within Anglicanism. Roman Catholic transubstantiation, Lollard consubstantiation, Lutheran sacramental union, and Calvinist pneumatic (i.e., spiritual) presence can all be found. Which of these views is considered to represent "authentic" Anglican eucharistic theology depends on wider theological and ecclesiological understandings of Anglicanism, in particular the role of pre-English Reformation doctrine and practices, versus a more Magisterial Reformation theology, in interpreting the Book of Common Prayer (which has its origins in the works of Thomas Cranmer) and the Thirty-Nine Articles (an Anglican formulary developed in the sixteenth century).
• High Church Anglicans tend to believe in the literal, carnal (bodily) Presence. While a minority of Anglo-Catholics adhere to transubstantiation (despite its denunciation in Article XXVIII of the Thirty-Nine Articles), the majority of High Church Anglicans do not and are content simply to let the mystery of the manifestation of Christ remain a mystery. In practice, High Church parishes tend to celebrate the Eucharist weekly (or more frequently) and prefer the term "Eucharist" or "Mass". Reservation and adoration of the sacrament are common practice among many "High Church" Anglicans. The pioneering Anglo-Catholic Edward Bouverie Pusey argued for a theology of sacramental union.
• Low Church Anglicans, in accordance with the Articles of Religion, reject the doctrine of transubstantiation as well as reservation itself and adoration of the reserved sacrament. Low Church Anglicans believe in Pneumatic presence, or that Christ is mystically present in the faithful participation of the sacrament, but his physical person is in no way attached to the elements, nor do the elements become his physical body and blood. An imprecisely defined view known as receptionism common among 16th and 17th-century Anglican theologians is that, although in the Eucharist the bread and wine remain unchanged, the faithful communicant receives together with them the body and blood of Christ. These views are similar to those of other Reformed bodies, such as the Presbyterians and the Continental Reformed Churches. Low Church parishes tend to celebrate the Eucharist less frequently (e.g., monthly, but this varies from place to place) and prefer the terms used in the historic Book of Common Prayer, "Holy Communion" or "Lord's Supper".
• Between the High and Low Church positions lies the view that Anglicanism (as a Broad Church) permits a range of theological views, each of which (with the possible exception of the Roman Catholic notion of transubstantiation) is an equally welcome expression of Eucharistic theology within the Anglican context. In practical terms, most Broad Church Anglicans believe Christ is spiritually present in the elements — a theology of consubstantionism or Sacramental Union.^{[citation needed]}

Lutheran Churches

Main article: Sacramental union

Further information: Eucharist in the Lutheran Church

See also: The Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ—Against the Fanatics

• Primary theological development from Martin Luther, Philipp Melanchthon, and the Lutheran Book of Concord of the 16th century.
• Eucharistic theology: the sacramental union is the mode of the Real Presence, the means is the mandate and institution of Christ. This mandate and institution is expressed in the Lutheran divine service as the Words of Institution or the Verba. Statement of Martin Luther:

Why then should we not much more say in the Supper, "This is my body", even though bread and body are two distinct substances, and the word "this" indicates the bread? Here, too, out of two kinds of objects a union has taken place, which I shall call a "sacramental union", because Christ's body and the bread are given to us as a sacrament. This is not a natural or personal union, as is the case with God and Christ. It is also perhaps a different union from that which the dove has with the Holy Spirit, and the flame with the angel, but it is also assuredly a sacramental union (WA 26, 442; LW 37, 299-300).

• Body and Blood are "in, with, and under the forms" of bread and wine:

For the reason why, in addition to the expressions of Christ and St. Paul (the bread in the Supper is the body of Christ or the communion of the body of Christ), also the forms: under the bread, with the bread, in the bread [the body of Christ is present and offered], are employed, is that by means of them the papistical transubstantiation may be rejected and the sacramental union of the unchanged essence of the bread and of the body of Christ indicated (FC SD VII, 35; Triglot Concordia, 983; emphasis added). Lutherans do not seek to explain the change, and some designate their beliefs as consubstantiation, while others reject the designation of their doctrine as consubstantiation in contradistinction to the transubstantiation of the Roman Catholic Church, which they also reject (see also, Smalcald Articles [1]).

• Lutherans do not believe that the eucharistic sacrifice (sacrifice of praise) of the Lord's Supper is propitiatory or that it "repeats" Christ's sacrifice on the cross. However, Lutheran denominations put a great emphasis on the importance of the Sacrament of the Eucharist, and of the main branches of the Reformation Era, the Lutheran view of "Real Presence" is regarded by many theologians to be the closest in theory and practice to the Sacrament of the Catholic and Orthodox Churches.

• Many congregations in Lutheran Church bodies practice closed communion. For example, in the LCMS and WELS, closed communion is practiced (meaning the Lutheran Eucharistic catechetical instruction as well as membership in a church body that shares the same Lutheran confession of faith is required for all people before receiving the Eucharist.). Recently, more liberal synods like the ELCA practice open communion (meaning the Eucharist is offered to adults without being members of the national church body, as long as they are a baptized Christian). Lutherans are to offer the Eucharist each Sunday. The weekly Eucharist has been strongly encouraged by the bishops and priests/pastors and is now the common practice among all Lutherans.

Moravian Church

Most Moravians hold an understanding of Holy Communion that is similar to Lutherans; however, because the exact meaning of the Eucharist is not defined in Scripture, all understandings of the ceremony are accepted. Each individual believer must arrive at their own understanding of the Eucharistic experience. As a result, during the Moravian service of Holy Communion, only the scriptural words of institution are used, and thematic hymns are sung during the serving of the sacrament. Believers may understand the ceremony to be Transubstantiation, Consubstantiation, or that Christ is spiritually present.

The Moravian Church practices open communion. All baptized Christians who have confirmed their faith may join in Holy Communion.

Reformed Churches

• Eucharistic theology: historically, real spiritual presence, i.e., pneumatic presence.
• Reformed theology has taught that Jesus' body is seated in heaven at the right hand of God and therefore is not present in the elements nor do the elements turn into his body. When the eucharist is received, however, not only the spirit, but also the true body and blood of Jesus Christ (hence "real") are received in a pneumatic (spiritual) sense, but these are only received by those partakers who eat worthily (i.e., repentantly) with faith. The Holy Spirit unites the Christian with Jesus though they are separated by a great distance.
• See, e.g., Westminster Confession of Faith, ch. 19; Belgic Confession, Article 35; open communion.
• Theology in this tradition is in flux, and recent agreements, especially A Formula for Agreement, between these denominations and the Lutherans have stressed that: "The theological diversity within our common confession provides both the complementarity needed for a full and adequate witness to the gospel (mutual affirmation) and the corrective reminder that every theological approach is a partial and incomplete witness to the Gospel (mutual admonition) (A Common Calling, page 66)." Hence, in seeking to come to consensus about the Real Presence, the churches have written:

"During the Reformation both Reformed and Lutheran Churches exhibited an evangelical intention when they understood the Lord's Supper in the light of the saving act of God in Christ. Despite this common intention, different terms and concepts were employed which. . . led to mutual misunderstanding and misrepresentation. Properly interpreted, the differing terms and concepts were often complementary rather than contradictory (Marburg Revisited, pp. 103-104);"

and further:

"In the Lord's Supper the risen Christ imparts himself in body and blood, given up for all, through his word of promise with bread and wine....we proclaim the death of Christ through which God has reconciled the world with himself. We proclaim the presence of the risen Lord in our midst. Rejoicing that the Lord has come to us, we await his future coming in glory....Both of our communions, we maintain, need to grow in appreciation of our diverse eucharistic traditions, finding mutual enrichment in them. At the same time both need to grow toward a further deepening of our common experience and expression of the mystery of our Lord's Supper (A Formula for Agreement)."

• Communion is now celebrated either the First Sunday of the Month or some congregations weekly. In the past is was generally held less frequently than some . In the Church of Scotland Holy Communion in the past was traditionally held four times a year, the first Sunday of March, June, September and December, though many churches hold it more frequently . It was traditionally taken by all confirmed members of the church, but nowadays is also often open to children baptized in the church.

Methodist Churches

• Primary theological development from John and Charles Wesley, 18th-century Anglican presbyters
• Because of its historical roots, much Methodist Eucharistic thought is similar to "Broad Church" Anglican thought. Some elements of "High Church" and "Low Church" Anglicanism can be found among Methodists. United Methodists tend to be more "High" in theology, if not in practice, whereas Nazarenes tend to be "Low" in both theology and practice.^{[citation needed]}
• Eucharist is celebrated on Sundays and Holy Days, like Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, but never without a congregation. While monthly observance was once the most commonly found experience, since the 1980s weekly celebration has become more common, and not just on Sundays.
• Eucharistic theology: "Jesus Christ...is truly present in Holy Communion...The divine presence is a living reality and can be experienced by participants; it is not a remembrance of the Last Supper and the Crucifixion only." (from This Holy Mystery). Like the Eastern Orthodox, Methodists typically affirm the Real Presence while refraining from speculation about the nature of the transformation. Methodists do, however, officially reject the Roman Catholic dogma of transubstantiation.
• See John Wesley, open communion, This Holy Mystery

Baptists and related Protestants

• primary theological development from 16th and 17th centuries
• Eucharistic theology: Memorialism
• Independent Baptist hold to the Relational Presence
• Calvinistic Baptists, in agreement with Presbyterians and the Reformed churches, hold to the doctrine of Pneumatic Presence. The doctrine is articulated in the 1689 Baptist Confession of Faith and the Catechism.
• "The bread and cup that symbolize the broken body and shed blood offered by Christ remind us today of God's great love for us..." [2]
• see Huldrych Zwingli, open communion

Quakers and the Salvation Army

• primary theological development from 17th century
• Eucharistic theology: suspension/Memorialism
• "The bread and wine remind us of Jesus' body and blood." [3]
• see George Fox
• Quakers understand all of life as being sacramental and thus do not practice baptism or holy communion. "We believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit and in communion with that Spirit. If the believer experiences such spiritual baptism and communion, then no rite or ritual is necessary. ...The Quaker ideal is to make every meal at every table a Lord's Supper." [4]
• Quakers and Salvationists do not practice Holy Communion in their worship, believing it was not meant to be a perpetually mandated ritual

External links

• Lutheran full communion with Reformed Churches (Presbyterian Church USA, Reformed Church in America, United Church of Christ)