The body of Christ

[puzzleannie]

Originally Posted by dangel

When the bread and wine is turned into the body of Christ, and we eat it, are we supposed to believe that we are truly eating remnants of the body of Christ himself and is it ok to refer to this act of changing the bread and wine as a 'ritual'?




When I was younger (about 7-8 years old) my mum didn't let me take the bread but she only said 'I was too young' but never went into detail of why I wasn't allowed to take it. Anyone have any idea why this may be? Is it a common trait?

no we are not consuming the remnants of anything. When we receive Holy Communion we receive the entire whole undivided the resurrected Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, sacramentally and substantially present in the Eucharistic elements. We do not "take" anything, we receive our Lord in the Eucharist from the priest who has confected the sacrament or from his assisting minister. The Catholic who has been baptized and has attained the age designated by the bishops conference of his country (generally age 7 or 8), has been properly prepared and is well disposed, and understands that he is receiving Jesus Christ in the Eucharist, not common bread and wine, and desires to receive Him, may approach the sacrament.

Your mother probably meant you had not yet been instructed in the nature of the sacrament and so were not prepared, did not understand, and were not yet disposed. If you have since been instructed in the faith ask your pastor to direct you on how to receive this sacrament. As I say, this is the rule for the baptized Catholic. If you are not yet Catholic, and would like to be, speak to the pastor and he will arrange for your instruction and preparation for the sacraments of initiation.

[PAboy57]

Hi Grateful Fred,

Great post!!!!!!! Thank you for explaining this topic so fully in a way all can understand. Take care

[dangel]

Originally Posted by MrZetterlund

It means exactly what Jesus said: "This is the blood of the New Covenant that is shed for many for the repentance of sin." Because death comes by man's sin, and Christ came and paid the ultamite price for our salvation. He is an eternal sacrafice. I believe one quote was "He was bruised for our inequities."

Sorry, I'll be more specific, I meant 'stripes'. what exactly does this mean in that context?

[dangel]

Originally Posted by GratefulFred

Hi Dangel,

In helping ourselves and others reach a better understanding of the Mystery of God, we have the exact words in the Bible. We also have the writtings of the early Church Fathers, given in a response above. And we other writtings of many theologians through time. Still we search for common everyday words to make God's Mystery clear. I can see how some would use the term, "remnant." But, to me, it is too loose a term that can bring up a false image and misunderstanding. However, I am not a theologian.

Not trying to steel Mr Z's answer to what does "By His stripes we are healed." mean:

"Stripes" is the Passion of Christ. The brutal whipping He received, the Crown of Thorns, the pain and suffering and His Crucifixion. THE Son of God, perfect in every way, suffered greatly by these stripes and thus, He earned for us Salvation from our sins, our healing.

Oh! Stripes as in his lashings he got from the Romans. That makes sense now.


His suffering is our salvation. Much clearer for me now, thanks for that.