EXPLORE
THE CHURCH
Do Christians really believe they are eating
the body and drinking the blood of Christ
when they receive Communion?
Yes
and No! One of the central characteristics of faith is
mystery. We, with our human minds, simply cannot fully
comprehend the "mysteries" of God. If God were such that
He could be encapsulated in a book or in a formula or in
words, and there was no mystery about God, we certainly
would not be better off. If God were "linear," if God could
be comprehended and apprehended on a computer, God would
not be greater than His Creation; God would be just another
part of the world.
That
said, many hold the spiritual power of the Eucharist truly
to be a mystery. How can a wafer and a sip of wine make
us stronger for coping with life? How can taking Communion
be part of the disciplines that make us stronger "inside"?
To try to respond to the question more directly: We believe
that the wafer, or the bread, and the wine, once "consecrated
(blessed)" ("set aside for God's use") are the Body of
Christ and the Blood of Christ, which can
feed us spiritually in our body. But we also believe that
the wafer is still
a wafer and the wine is still the fruit of the grape; we
do not deny the evidence of that which God has given us
eyes to see. The Lord's Supper is truly a wonderful mystery.
--The
Rev. William A. Kolb
In
the church of my childhood, communion Sunday was both a
welcome departure from the routine and a fearful balancing
act. On the one hand, a glass of grape juice and a cube
of white bread gave a child something to enjoy during the
otherwise dry worship service. On the other hand, if you
were to spill the silver tray packed with fifty glasses
of Welch's finest (its permanence for staining surpassing
that of India ink), how could you hope for God's forgiveness?
Mercifully,
adulthood and my church have changed my perspective on
the Eucharist. Today, it is a balancing act of the spirit.
Partaking of
the Eucharist may be the one moment in the week when my
willingness to believe and my desire to connect
with a power greater than myself outweigh my self-will
and late 20th century cynicism. When I accept the invitation
to the Lord's table, I acknowledge my hunger for the gifts
he has prepared for me. I surrender to my need for His
sustenance. The symbolism of the wine and the host are
a part of my faith today. I suppose, being an old English
major, symbolism feels like second nature to me. But I
cannot say with certainty that I experience the literal
transfiguration of the elements. But I do know that I leave
the altar rail feeling fed, and today, that's more than
enough.
--Jill
There
are some Christians who believe in the doctrine of transubstantiation,
meaning that when the bread and wine are consecrated, they
are actually transformed into the body and blood of Jesus
Christ. By contrast, the doctrine of consubstantiation
states that the sacrament of Holy Communion represents
the union of the elements (bread and wine) with Christ's
body and blood. I believe in the latter doctrine.
When
I go to the altar to take Communion on Sunday mornings,
I believe I am engaging in a symbolic and holy act. By
partaking of the bread and wine, which have been consecrated
and made holy by a priest, I am symbolically partaking
of Christ's body and blood which are represented in the
form of earthly elements. At the altar rail during Communion,
the priest reminds us that "this is the body and blood
of Jesus Christ," to "take them in remembrance that Christ
died for us," and to "feed on Him in our hearts by faith
with thanksgiving." This weekly act serves to nourish us
spiritually and is a critical part of my own worship and
spiritual growth.
--Catherine
I
have never thought that I was literally drinking blood
and eating flesh. Christ blessed wine and bread before
He was crucified and served them to His disciples at the
Last Supper. It was a symbolic act, but it was more than
just symbolism because his blessing made them holy. At
that meal, He told his disciples to eat and drink not just
for physical sustenance but for spiritual sustenance. I
believe that the act of communion is a holy ceremony, and
I do feel spiritually strengthened by it.
--Nick
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