Eucharist in The Catholic Church

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org/wiki/Eucharist_in_the_Catholic_Church
Eucharist in the Catholic Church

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Eucharist in the Catholic Church is the celebration of Mass, the

eucharistic liturgy. The term Eucharist is also used for the bread and
wine when transubstantiated (their substance having been changed),
according to Catholic teaching, into the body and blood of Jesus Christ.
"At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Saviour instituted
the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood."[1]
Blessed Sacrament is a devotional term used in the Roman Catholic

Church to refer to the eucharistic species (the Body and Blood of
Christ).[2] Consecrated hosts are kept in a tabernacle after Mass, so that Ecce Agnus Dei during a Solemn
the Blessed Sacrament can be brought to the sick and dying outside the High Tridentine Mass
time of Mass. This makes possible also the practice of eucharistic
adoration. Because Christ himself is present in the sacrament of the
altar, he is to be honored with the worship of adoration. "To visit the Blessed Sacrament is ... a proof of
gratitude, an expression of love,... and a duty of adoration toward Christ our Lord."[3]
Contents
1 New Testament foundations
1.1 The First Eucharist in Scripture
1.2 Other New Testament accounts of the Eucharist
2 Old Testament prefigurings
3 Eucharistic liturgy
3.1 Transubstantiation
3.2 Minister of the sacrament
3.3 Receiving the Eucharist
3.4 Matter for the Sacrament
3.5 Historical development
3.6 Communion of reparation
3.7 Nuptial Mass and other Ritual Masses
4 Adoration and Benediction outside of the Liturgy
5 See also
6 References
7 Works cited
8 Further reading
9 External links
New Testament foundations

The First Eucharist in Scripture
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Eucharist in the Catholic Church - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eucharist_in_the_Catholic_Church
The Catholic Church sees as the main basis for this belief the words of
Jesus himself at his Last Supper: the Synoptic Gospels (Matthew 26-28
(http://www.usccb.org/bible/Matthew.26:1); Mark 14:22-24
(http://www.usccb.org/bible/Mark.14:22); Luke 22:19-20
(http://www.usccb.org/bible/Luke.22:19)) and Saint Paul's 1 Corinthians
11:23-25 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/1Corinthians.11:23) recount that
in that context Jesus said of what to all appearances were bread and
wine: "This is my body this is my blood." The Catholic
understanding of these words, from the Patristic authors onward, has
The Breaking of Bread (fractio panis) emphasized their roots in the covenantal history of the Old Testament.
in the Eucharist[4] at a
The Gospel of John in Chapter 6, The Discourse on the Bread of Life,
Neocatechumenal Way celebration
presents Jesus as saying: "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man
and drink his blood, you do not have life within you... Whoever eats my
flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him" (John 6:53-56 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/John.6:53)).
According to John, Jesus did not tone down these sayings, even when many of his disciples abandoned him
(John 6:66 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/John.6:66)), shocked at the idea.[5]
Saint Paul implied an identity between the apparent bread and wine of the Eucharist and the body and blood of
Christ, when he wrote: "The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The
bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:16 (http://www.usccb.org
/bible/1Corinthians.10:16))." and elsewhere: "Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord
unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord" (1 Corinthians 11:27 (http://www.usccb.org
/bible/1Corinthians.11:27)).
Moreover, and uniquely, in the one prayer given to posterity by Jesus, the Lord's Prayer, the word epiousios
which does not exist elsewhere in Classical Greek literaturehas been linguistically parsed to mean "super-
substantial" (bread), and interpreted by the Vatican as a reference to the Bread of Life, the Eucharist.[6]
Other New Testament accounts of the Eucharist
Accounts of Eucharist services in the New Testament are often, though not always, denoted by the phrase "the
Breaking of Bread."[7] The first example, after the Last Supper, of this phrase used in a way that recalls a
Eucharist celebration occurs when, in the Gospel of Luke, the resurrected Christ walked with two disciples on
their way to Emmaus (see: Road to Emmaus appearance). The disciples were unable to recognize him for who
he was until "while he was at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that their
eyes were opened and they recognized him. (Luke 24:30-31 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/Luke.24:30))" After
this they returned to Jerusalem, where "the two recounted what had taken place on the way and how he was
made known to them in the breaking of the bread. (Luke 24:35 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/Luke.24:35))" This
same phrase is used to describe a core activity of the first Christian community: "They devoted themselves to
the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to prayers... every day
they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes" (Acts
2:42-47 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/Acts.2:42)).
Old Testament prefigurings

Early medieval block-printed Catholic prayer books or psalters
Wikimedia Commons has
contained many illustrations of pairings of prefigurings of the events of media related to Biblia
the New Testament in the Old Testament, a form known as biblical
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typology. In an age when most Christians were illiterate, these visual pauperum.
depictions came to be known as biblia pauperum, or poor man's bibles.
The Bible itself was predominantly a liturgical book used at Mass, costly to produce and illuminate by hand.
The custom of praying the Liturgy of the Hours spread to those who could afford the prayer books required to
follow the textual cycle that mirrored the pastoral seasons of Jewish temple worship.
Saint Thomas Aquinas taught that the most obvious Old Testament
prefiguring of the sign aspect of the Eucharist was the action of
Melchizedek in Genesis 14:18 (http://bible.oremus.org
/?passage=Genesis+14:1814:18&version=nrsv), that all the Old
Testament sacrifices, especially that of the Day of Atonement,
prefigured the content of the sacrament, namely Christ himself
sacrificed for us, and that the manna was a special prefiguration of the
effect of the sacrament as grace; but he said that the paschal lamb was
the outstanding type or figure of the Eucharist under all three aspects of
The Speculum humane salvationis
sign, content and effect.[8]
contains illustrations of related scenes
Concerning the first of the Old from the Old and New Testament
Testament prefigurations that
Aquinas mentioned, Melchizedek's action in bringing out bread and
wine for Abraham has been seen, from the time of Clement of
Alexandria (c.150 - c. 215), as a foreshadowing of the bread and wine
used in the sacrament of the Eucharist,[9][10] and so "the Church sees in
the gesture of the king-priest Melchizedek, who 'brought out bread and
wine', a prefiguring of her own offering" (in the Eucharist).[11]
The reverence Moses showed before
The second prefiguration mentioned by Aquinas is that of the Old
the burning bush on Mt. Sinai is Testament sacrifices, especially that on the Day of Atonement. Other
equated with the adoration of the
theologians too see these as foreshadowing the Eucharist.[12] They point
Shepherds and the priest celebrating
out that Jesus "himself said, as he committed to the Apostles the Divine
the sacrifice of the Mass.
Eucharist during the Last Supper, 'This is my blood of the New
Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins'."[13]
The manna that fed the Israelites in the wilderness is also seen as a symbol of the Eucharist.[14] The connection
between that sign and the Eucharist is seen as having been made both in John 6 (http://bible.oremus.org
/?passage=John+66&version=nrsv) and also in the version of the Lord's Prayer in the Gospel of Luke: where
the version in the Gospel of Matthew speaks of epiousios bread, the Lucan version speaks of "bread for each
day", interpreted as a reminiscence of Exodus 16:19-21 (http://bible.oremus.org
/?passage=Exodus+16:1921:19&version=nrsv), which recounts that the manna was gathered in amounts
sufficient only for a single day.[15] Saint Ambrose saw the Eucharist prefigured both by the manna that provided
food and by the water from the rock that gave drink to the Israelites.[16][17]
The ritual of Passover night described in Exodus contains two main physical elements: a sacrificial lamb "male
and without blemish" and unleavened bread (Exodus 12:1-10 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/Exodus.12:1)). In
addition to this ritual for Passover night itself, Exodus prescribed a "perpetual institution" associated with the
Passover that is celebrated by feasts of unleavened bread (Exodus 12:14-20 (http://www.usccb.org/bible
/Exodus.12:14)). The New Testament book of 1 Corinthians represents the Passover in terms of Christ: "... For
our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the
yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 Corinthians 5:7-8
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(http://www.usccb.org/bible/1Corinthians.5:7)" Christ is the new lamb, and the Eucharist is the new bread of the
Passover.[18][19]
Among the many proscription of the Old Testament Law that affirm the covenant, one stands out, being called
"most sacred among the various oblations to the Lord " : a sacrifice of bread anointed with oil. "Regularly on
each Sabbath day this bread shall be set out afresh before the Lord, offered on the part of the Israelites by an
everlasting agreement. (Leviticus 24:5-9 (http://www.usccb.org/bible/Leviticus.24:5))" Since the time of
Origen, some theologians have seen this "showbread" as a prefiguring of the Eucharist described in Luke 22:19.
[20][21][22]
Eucharistic liturgy
Eucharistic liturgy and Mass are the terms used to describe celebration of the Eucharist in the Western or Latin
liturgical rite of the Catholic Church. The term Mass is derived from the Late Latin word missa (dismissal), a
word used in the concluding formula of Mass in Latin: "Ite, missa est" ("Go, the dismissal is made")[23]
Transubstantiation
According to the Catholic Church, when the bread and wine are
consecrated by the priest at Mass, they cease to be bread and wine, and
become instead the Most Precious Body and Blood of Christ. The
empirical appearances and attributes are not changed, but the underlying
reality is. The consecration of the bread (known afterwards as the Host)
and wine represents the separation of Jesus' body from his blood at
Calvary; thus, this separation also represents the death of Christ.
However, since according to Catholic dogma Christ has risen, the
Church teaches that his body and blood are no longer truly separated,
even if the appearances of the bread and the wine are. Where one is, the Mass at the Grotto at Lourdes. The
other must be. This is called the doctrine of concomitance. Therefore, chalice is displayed to the people
although the priest (or minister) says, "The body of Christ", when immediately after the consecration of
administering the host, and, "The blood of Christ", when presenting the the wine.
chalice, the communicant who receives either one receives Christ, whole
and entire "Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity".
Transubstantiation (from Latin transsubstantiatio) is the change of the substance of bread and wine into that of
the body and blood of Christ, the change that, according to the belief of the Catholic Church, occurs in the
Eucharist. It concerns what is changed (the substance of the bread and wine), not how the change is brought
about.
"Substance" here means what something is in itself. (For more on the philosophical concept, see Substance
theory.) A hat's shape is not the hat itself, nor is its colour the hat, nor is its size, nor its softness to the touch,
nor anything else about it perceptible to the senses. The hat itself (the "substance") has the shape, the colour, the
size, the softness and the other appearances, but is distinct from them. Whereas the appearances, which are
referred to by the philosophical term accidents are perceptible to the senses, the substance is not.
When at his Last Supper Jesus said: "This is my body", what he held in his hands had all the appearances of
bread. However, the Catholic Church teaches that the underlying reality was changed in accordance with what
Jesus said, that the "substance" of the bread was converted to that of his body. In other words, it actually was his
body, while all the appearances open to the senses or to scientific investigation were still those of bread, exactly
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as before. The Church believes that the same change of the substance of the bread and of the wine occurs at
every Catholic Mass throughout the world.
The Catholic Church accordingly believes that through

transubstantiation Christ is really, truly and substantially present under
the remaining appearances of bread and wine, and that the
transformation remains as long as the appearances remain. For this
reason the consecrated elements are preserved, generally in a church
tabernacle, for giving Holy Communion to the sick and dying, and also
for the secondary, but still highly lauded, purpose of adoring Christ
present in the Eucharist.
In the judgment of the Catholic Church, the concept of

transubstantiation, with its accompanying unambiguous distinction
between "substance" or underlying reality, and "accidents" or humanly
perceptible appearances, safeguards against what it sees as the mutually
opposed errors of, on the one hand, a merely figurative understanding of
the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (the change of the substance
Virgin Mary by the Host by Jean is real), and, on the other hand, an interpretation that would amount to
Auguste Dominique Ingres cannibalistic (a charge which pagans leveled at early Catholic Christians
who did not understand the rites of the Catholic Church in that it was
considered an "unbloody sacrifice") eating of the flesh and corporal
drinking of the blood of Christ (the accidents that remain are real, not an illusion) and that Christ is "really,
truly, and substantially present" in the Eucharist,[24] not physically present, as he was physically present in the
Judea of two millennia ago).[25]
Some put forward the idea that transubstantiation is a concept intelligible only in terms of Aristotelian
philosophy. But the earliest known use of the term "transubstantiation" to describe the change from bread and
wine to body and blood of Christ was by Hildebert de Lavardin, Archbishop of Tours (died 1133) in about 1079,
long before the Latin West, under the influence especially of Saint Thomas Aquinas (c. 1227-1274), accepted
Aristotelianism. (The University of Paris was founded only between 1150 and 1170.) The term "substance"
(substantia) as the reality of something was in use from the earliest centuries of Latin Christianity, as when they
spoke of the Son as being of the same "substance" (consubstantialis) as the Father.[26] The corresponding Greek
term is "" the Son is said to be "" with the Father and the change of the bread and wine into the
body and blood of Christ is called "". The doctrine of transubstantiation is thus independent of
Aristotelian philosophical concepts, and these were not and are not dogmata of the Church.
Minister of the sacrament
The only minister of the Eucharist (someone who can consecrate the Eucharist) is a validly ordained priest[27]
(bishop or presbyter). He acts in the person of Christ, representing Christ, who is the Head of the Church, and
also acts before God in the name of the Church.[28] Several priests may concelebrate the same offering of the
Eucharist.[29]
Others, who are not priests, may act as extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, distributing the sacrament
to others, but not as ministers of the Eucharist, ordinary or extraordinary. "By reason of their sacred Ordination,
the ordinary ministers of Holy Communion are the Bishop, the Priest and the Deacon, to whom it belongs
therefore to administer Holy Communion to the lay members of Christ's faithful during the celebration of Mass.
In addition to the ordinary ministers there is the formally instituted acolyte, who by virtue of his institution is an
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extraordinary minister of Holy Communion even outside the celebration

of Mass. If, moreover, reasons of real necessity prompt it, another lay
member of Christ's faithful may also be delegated by the diocesan
Bishop, in accordance with the norm of law, for one occasion or for a
specified time. Finally, in special cases of an unforeseen nature,
permission can be given for a single occasion by the Priest who presides
at the celebration of the Eucharist."[30]
"Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion" are not to be called

"Eucharistic ministers", even extraordinary ones,[31] since that would
imply that they, too, somehow transubstantiate the bread and wine into
the Body and Blood of Christ.
"Extraordinary ministers may distribute Holy Communion at eucharistic

celebrations only when there are no ordained ministers present or when
those ordained ministers present at a liturgical celebration are truly
unable to distribute Holy Communion. They may also exercise this
function at eucharistic celebrations where there are particularly large
numbers of the faithful and which would be excessively prolonged Roman Catholic priest in Sicily
because of an insufficient number of ordained ministers to distribute distributing the Eucharist to a child at
her first Holy Communion
Holy Communion."[32] "Only when there is a necessity may
extraordinary ministers assist the Priest celebrant in accordance with the
norm of law."[33]
Receiving the Eucharist
"A person who is conscious of grave [mortal] sin is not to celebrate Mass or receive the body of the Lord
without previous sacramental confession unless there is a grave reason and there is no opportunity to confess; in
this case the person is to remember the obligation to make an act of perfect contrition which includes the
resolution of confessing as soon as possible." [34] In some countries a custom has recently arisen whereby
someone who for some reason, such as not being a Catholic or not being in the state of grace, or not old enough
to receive communion, cannot receive Communion may with arms crossed approach the priest who is
distributing the Eucharist and receive from him a blessing instead.
A rule for Catholics who are members of the Latin Church is: "A person who is to receive the Most Holy
Eucharist is to abstain for at least one hour before holy communion from any food and drink, except for only
water and medicine."[35] Eastern Catholics are obliged to follow the rules of their own particular Churches,
which generally require a longer period of fasting.[36]
Catholics must make an outward sign of reverence before receiving. "When receiving Holy Communion, the
communicant bows his or her head before the Sacrament as a gesture of reverence and receives the Body of the
Lord from the minister. The consecrated host may be received either on the tongue or in the hand, at the
discretion of each communicant. When Holy Communion is received under both kinds, the sign of reverence is
also made before receiving the Precious Blood."[37]
Catholics may receive Communion during Mass or outside of Mass, but "a person who has already received the
Most Holy Eucharist can receive it a second time on the same day only within the eucharistic celebration in
which the person participates", except as Viaticum (Code of Canon Law, canon 917).[38]
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In the Western Church, "the administration of the Most Holy Eucharist

to children requires that they have sufficient knowledge and careful
preparation so that they understand the mystery of Christ according to
their capacity and are able to receive the body of Christ with faith and
devotion. The Most Holy Eucharist, however, can be administered to
children in danger of death if they can distinguish the body of Christ
from ordinary food and receive communion reverently" (Code of Canon
Law, canon 913).[39] In Catholic schools in the United States and
Canada, children typically receive First Communion in second grade. In
the Eastern Catholic Churches, the Eucharist is administered to infants
immediately after Baptism and Confirmation (Chrismation).
Holy Communion may be received under one kind (the Sacred Host
alone), or under both kinds (both the Sacred Host and the Precious
Blood). "Holy Communion has a fuller form as a sign when it is
In the Western Church, the distributed under both kinds. For in this form the sign of the eucharistic
administration of the Most Holy banquet is more clearly evident and clear expression is given to the
Eucharist to children requires that
divine will by which the new and eternal Covenant is ratified in the
they have sufficient knowledge and
Blood of the Lord, as also the relationship between the Eucharistic
banquet and the eschatological banquet in the Father's Kingdom...
careful preparation so that they
(However,) Christ, whole and entire, and the true Sacrament, is received
understand the mystery of Christ
even under only one species, and consequently that as far as the effects
according to their capacity and are
are concerned, those who receive under only one species are not
able to receive the body of Christ
deprived of any of the grace that is necessary for salvation" (General
with faith and devotion.
Instruction of the Roman Missal).[40]
"The Diocesan Bishop is given the faculty to permit Communion under both kinds whenever it may seem
appropriate to the priest to whom, as its own shepherd, a community has been entrusted, provided that the
faithful have been well instructed and there is no danger of profanation of the Sacrament or of the rite's
becoming difficult because of the large number of participants or some other reason" (General Instruction of the
Roman Missal).[41]
In Eastern Catholic Churches the Eucharist is always received under both species (bread and wine), as was done
at Mass also in the West until the opposite custom came into use, beginning in about the twelfth century.[42]
With the change from receiving the Eucharist under both kinds to receiving under the form of bread alone, it
also became customary in the West to receive the Host placed directly on the tongue, rather than on the hand,
but this was prescribed neither by the Roman Missal nor by the Code of Canon Law. Since the late twentieth
century many Episcopal Conferences allow communicants (at their personal discretion) to receive the Host on
the hand, except when Communion is distributed by intinction (partly dipping the Host in the Chalice before
distributing it).
The General Instruction of the Roman Missa, 118 mentions a "Communion-plate for the Communion of the
faithful", distinct from the paten, to prevent the Host or fragments of it falling on the ground.[43]
Non-Catholics may only receive the Eucharist in special situations:
"1. Catholic ministers administer the sacraments licitly to Catholic members of the Christian faithful alone,
who likewise receive them licitly from Catholic ministers alone, without prejudice to the prescripts of 2, 3,
and 4 of this canon, and can. 861, 2.
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2. Whenever necessity requires it or true spiritual advantage suggests it, and provided that danger of error or of
indifferentism is avoided, the Christian faithful for whom it is physically or morally impossible to approach a
Catholic minister are permitted to receive the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing of the sick from
non-Catholic ministers in whose Churches these sacraments are valid.
3. Catholic ministers administer the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing of the sick licitly to
members of Eastern Churches which do not have full communion with the Catholic Church if they seek such on
their own accord and are properly disposed. This is also valid for members of other Churches which in the
judgment of the Apostolic See are in the same condition in regard to the sacraments as these Eastern Churches.
4. If the danger of death is present or if, in the judgment of the diocesan bishop or conference of bishops, some
other grave necessity urges it, Catholic ministers administer these same sacraments licitly also to other
Christians not having full communion with the Catholic Church, who cannot approach a minister of their own
community and who seek such on their own accord, provided that they manifest Catholic faith in respect to
these sacraments and are properly disposed. (Some dioceses have allowed pastors to make this determination as
regards those in hospitals, nursing homes, and correctional centers.[44])
5. For the cases mentioned in 2, 3, and 4, the diocesan bishop or conference of bishops is not to issue
general norms except after consultation at least with the local competent authority of the interested non-Catholic
Church or community." (Code of Canon Law, Canon 844)[45]
Matter for the Sacrament
The bread used for the Eucharist must be wheaten only, and recently made, and the wine must be natural, made
from grapes, and not corrupt. The bread is unleavened in the Latin, Armenian and Ethiopic Rites, but is
leavened in most Eastern Catholic churches. A small quantity of water is added to the wine.[46]
For questions on the use of gluten-free or low-gluten bread and of "mustum" (natural grape juice) see the 24
July 2003 letter (http://www.adoremus.org/CDF_Lowgluten-mustum2003.html) of the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith, which resumes and clarifies earlier declarations.
Historical development
Whether the agape feast, a full meal held by Christians in the first centuries, was in all cases associated with a
celebration of the Eucharist is uncertain.[47] In any case, abuses connected with the celebration of the full meal,
abuses denounced by the apostles Paul[48] and Jude,[49] led to a distinct celebration of the Eucharist. The form
of this celebration in the middle of the second century is described by Justin Martyr as very similar to today's
Eucharistic rites known in the West as the Mass and in much of the East as the Divine Liturgy. The regular
celebration was held each week on the day called Sunday,[50] which Christians were also calling the Lord's
Day.[51] They included readings from Scripture, a homily, prayer by all, a prayer by "the president of the
brethren" over bread and wine mixed with water, to which all respond with "Amen", and then a distribution to
those present of that over which thanks have been given, while "deacons" take portions to those who are absent.
[50][52] There was also a collection to help widows and orphans and those in need because of reasons such as
sickness.[50] Justin wrote that the Christians did not receive the bread and the wine mixed with water over
which the thanksgiving was pronounced and which they called (the Eucharist - literally,
Thanksgiving),[53] as common bread and common drink, having been taught that "the food which is blessed by
the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and
blood of that Jesus who was made flesh."[53]
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As Justin indicated, the word Eucharist is from the Greek word

(eucharistia), which means thanksgiving. Catholics typically
restrict the term 'communion' to the reception of the Body and Blood of
Christ by the communicants during the celebration of the Mass and to
the communion of saints.
Earlier still, in about 106, Saint Ignatius of Antioch criticized those who
"abstain from the Eucharist and the public prayer, because they will not
admit that the Eucharist is the self-same Body of our Savior Jesus
Christ, which [flesh] suffered for our sins, and which the Father in His
goodness raised up again" (Epistle to the Smyrnaeans 6, 7). Similarly,
St. Ambrose of Milan countered objections to the doctrine, writing "You
may perhaps say: 'My bread is ordinary.' But that bread is bread before
the words of the Sacraments; where the consecration has entered in, the
bread becomes the Flesh of Christ" (The Sacraments, 333/339-397 A.D.
v.2,1339,1340).
Pope Benedict XVI celebrates the
The earliest known use, in about 1079, of the term "transubstantiation"
Eucharist at the canonization of Frei
to describe the change from bread and wine to body and blood of Christ
Galvo in So Paulo, Brazil on 11
was by Hildebert de Savardin, Archbishop of Tours (died 1133). He did
May 2007.
this in response to Berengar of Tours declaring that the Eucharist was
only symbolic. This was long before the Latin West, under the influence
especially of Saint Thomas Aquinas (c. 1227-1274), accepted Aristotelianism. (The University of Paris was
founded only between 1150 and 1170.)
In 1215, the Fourth Lateran Council used the word transubstantiated in its profession of faith, when speaking of
the change that takes place in the Eucharist.
In 1551 the Council of Trent officially defined that "by the consecration of the bread and of the wine, a
conversion is made of the whole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord, and of
the whole substance of the wine into the substance of His blood; which conversion is, by the holy Catholic
Church, suitably and properly called Transubstantiation." (Session XIII, chapter IV (http://history.hanover.edu
/texts/trent/ct13.html); cf. canon II).
The attempt by some twentieth-century Catholic theologians to present the Eucharistic change as an alteration
of significance (transignification rather than transubstantiation) was rejected by Pope Paul VI in his 1965
encyclical letter Mysterium fidei (http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-
vi_enc_03091965_mysterium_en.html) In his 1968 Credo of the People of God (http://www.ewtn.com/library
/papaldoc/p6credo.htm), he reiterated that any theological explanation of the doctrine must hold to the twofold
claim that, after the consecration, 1) Christ's body and blood are really present; and 2) bread and wine are really
absent; and this presence and absence is real and not merely something in the mind of the believer.
In his encyclical Ecclesia de Eucharistia of 17 April 2003, Pope John Paul II taught that all authority of bishops
and priests is primarily a function of their vocation to celebrate the Eucharist. Their governing authority flows
from their priestly function, not the other way around.
Communion of reparation
Receiving Holy Communion as part of First Friday Devotions is a Catholic devotion to offer reparations for sins
through the Sacred Heart of Jesus. In the visions of Christ reported by St. Margaret Mary Alacoque in the 17th
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century, several promises were made to those people that practice the First Fridays Devotions, one of which
included final perseverance.[54]
The devotion consists of several practices that are performed on the first Fridays of nine consecutive months.
On these days, a person is to attend Holy Mass and receive communion.[55] In many Catholic communities the
practice of the Holy Hour of meditation during the Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament during the First Fridays
is encouraged.[56]
Nuptial Mass and other Ritual Masses
A Nuptial Mass[57] is simply a Mass within which the sacrament of

Marriage is celebrated. Other sacraments too are celebrated within
Mass. This is necessarily so for the sacrament of Orders, and is normal,
though not obligatory, for the Sacrament of Confirmation, as well as that
of Marriage. Unless the date chosen is that of a major liturgical feast, the
prayers are taken from the section of the Roman Missal headed "Ritual
Masses". This section has special texts for the celebration, within Mass,
of Baptism, Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick, Orders, and Marriage,
leaving Confession (Penance or Reconciliation) as the only sacrament
not celebrated within a celebration of the Eucharist. There are also texts
for celebrating, within Mass, Religious Profession, the Dedication of a
Church and several other rites.
Holy Communion at a Nuptial Mass
If, of a couple being married in the Catholic Church, one is not a
Catholic, the rite of Marriage outside Mass is to be followed. However, if the non-Catholic has been baptized in
the name of all three persons of the Trinity (and not only in the name of, say, Jesus, as is the baptismal practice
in some branches of Christianity), then, in exceptional cases and provided the bishop of the diocese gives
permission, it may be considered suitable to celebrate the Marriage within Mass, except that, according to the
general law, Communion is not given to the non-Catholic (Rite of Marriage, 8).
Adoration and Benediction outside of the Liturgy

Exposition of the Eucharist is the display of the consecrated host on an altar
in a Monstrance. The rites involving exposition of the Blessed Sacrament
are the Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament and Eucharistic adoration.
Adoration of the Eucharist is a sign of devotion to and worship of Christ,

who is believed to be truly present. The host is generally reserved in the
tabernacle after Mass and displayed in a monstrance during adoration. As a
Catholic devotion, Eucharistic adoration and meditation are more than
merely looking at the host, but a continuation of what was celebrated in the
Host displayed in a monstrance, Eucharist.[58] From a theological perspective, the adoration is a form of
flanked by candles being adored latria, based on the tenet of the presence of Christ in the Blessed
by a kneeling altar server Host.[59][60]
Christian meditation performed in the presence of the Eucharist outside of Mass is called Eucharistic
meditation. It has been practiced by saints such as Peter Julian Eymard, Jean Vianney and Thrse of Lisieux.
[61][62][63][64][65] Authors such as the Venerable Concepcion Cabrera de Armida and Blessed Maria Candida of
10 of 15 6/27/17, 11:26 AM
the Eucharist have produced large volumes of text based on their Eucharistic meditations.[66][67][68]
When the exposure and adoration of the Eucharist is constant (twenty-four hours a day), it is called Perpetual
adoration. in a monastery or convent, it is done by the resident monks or nuns and in a parish, by volunteer
parishioners since the 20th century.[69] On June 2, 1991 (feast of Corpus Christi), the Pontifical Council for the
Laity issued specific guidelines that permit perpetual adoration in parishes.[69] In order to establish a "perpetual
adoration chapel" in a parish, the local priest must obtain permission from his Bishop by submitting a request
along with the required information for the local "perpetual adoration association", its officers, etc.[69]
Since the Middle Ages the practice of Eucharistic adoration outside Mass has been encouraged by the popes.[70]
In Ecclesia de Eucharistia Pope John Paul II stated that "The worship of the Eucharist outside of the Mass is of
inestimable value for the life of the Church.... It is the responsibility of Pastors to encourage, also by their
personal witness, the practice of Eucharistic adoration, and exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.[71] In the
opening prayer of the Perpetual chapel in St. Peter Basilica Pope John Paul II prayed for a perpetual adoration
chapel in every parish in the world.[72] Pope Benedict XVI instituted perpetual adoration for the laity in each of
the five districts of the Diocese of Rome.[73]
See also
Bread of Life Discourse
Eucharistic credo
Paschal mystery
Sacraments of Initiation
Directory for Masses with Children
Communion as perichoresis
References
1. Catechism of the Catholic Church 1323
2. CCC 1330 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm) Archived
(https://web.archive.org/web/20160818210304/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism
/p2s2c1a3.htm) August 18, 2016, at the Wayback Machine.
3. CCC 1418
4. "The meaning of the sign demands that the material for the Eucharistic celebration truly have the appearance of food.
It is therefore expedient that the Uucharistic bread, even though unleavened and baked in the traditional shape, be
made in such a way that the priest at Mass with a congregation is able in practice to break it into parts for distribution
to at least some of the faithful. Small hosts are, however, in no way ruled out when the number of those receiving
Holy Communion or other pastoral needs require it. The action of the fraction or breaking of bread, which gave its
name to the Eucharist in apostolic times, will bring out more clearly the force and importance of the sign of unity of
all in the one bread, and of the sign of charity by the fact that the one bread is distributed among the brothers and
sisters." General Instruction of the Roman Missal (http://www.acbc.catholic.org.au/documents/200707031933.pdf)
Archived (https://web.archive.org/web/20080720091216/http://www.acbc.catholic.org.au/documents
/200707031933.pdf) July 20, 2008, at the Wayback Machine., 321.
5. Catechism of the Catholic Church (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994) 1336
6. CCC 2837 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s2a3.htm)
7. "Paragraph 1329" (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm). Catechism of the
Catholic Church, Second Edition. Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 2012.
8. Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica III, q. 73, art. 6 (http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&tbo=1&
q=Aquinas+Barden+%22outstanding+type%22&btnG=Search+Books)
11 of 15 6/27/17, 11:26 AM
9. Horton, Fred L., The Melchizedek Tradition (https://books.google.com/books?id=2tnEgSfuq_MC&pg=PA89)

(Cambridge University Press 2005 ISBN 978-0-521-01871-5), p. 89
10. Crockett 1989, p. 75.
11. CCC 1333 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P3Z.HTM)
12. Nash, Tom. Worthy Is the Lamb (https://books.google.com/books?id=TFML2HYN8j0C&pg=PA105) (Ignatius Press
2004 ISBN 978-0-89870-994-0), 105
13. Tyneh, Carl S., Orthodox Christianity (https://books.google.com/books?id=clcAYIDSQnAC&pg=PA74) (Nova
Science 2002 ISBN 978-1-59033-466-9), p. 74, quoting Matthew 26:28 (http://bible.oremus.org
/?passage=Matthew+26:2826:28&version=nrsv)
14. Arinze, Francis, Celebrating the Holy Eucharist (https://books.google.com/books?id=PqvAzJVBrDMC&pg=PA18)
(Ignatius Press 2006 ISBN 978-1-58617-158-2), p. 18
15. LaVerdiere, Eugene. The Eucharist in the New Testament and the Early Church (https://books.google.com
/books?id=j1BjjBe4dL4C&pg=PA192) (Liturgical Press 1996 ISBN 978-0-8146-6152-9), p. 192
16. O'Connor, James Thomas. The Hidden Manna (https://books.google.com/books?id=5ncOiWK48YsC&pg=PA39)
(Ignatius Press 2005 ISBN 978-1-58617-076-9), pp. 37-38
17. Crockett 1989, p. 76.
18. Hahn, Scott. The Lamb's Supper. New York: Doubleday, 1999. p 14-27.
19. Catechism of the Catholic Church (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994) 1334
20. Salza, John. The Biblical Basis for the Eucharist. Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division: Huntinton Indiana. 2008.
bottom of page 104 to middle of p 106.
21. Origen of Alexandria, On Leviticus 13. Quoted in Aquilian, Mike. The Mass of the Early Christians. Our Sunday
Visitor Publishing Division: Huntington Indiana. 2007.
22. Aquilian, Mike. The Mass of the Early Christians. Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division: Huntington Indiana.
2007. p25-27
23. Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Liturgy of the Mass". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton
Company.
24. CCC 1374 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P41.HTM) Archived (https://web.archive.org
/web/20150101045530/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P41.HTM) January 1, 2015, at the Wayback
Machine.
25. Cannibalism (http://members.aol.com/johnprh/eucharist.html#Prot%201); cf. Another Letter to an Agnostic
(http://www.catholicworker.org/dorothyday/daytext.cfm?TextID=54)
26. "Substance" continued to be used to mean the reality of something, and there are writings from the ninth century (by
Radbertus, Ratramnus and Rabanus Maurus) that use the word to refer to the reality of the Eucharist. "Around the
year 860 A.D. (400 yrs before Aquinas), we have the writings of renowned teacher, St. Paschasius Radbertus. A
foundling, who became schoolmaster and abbot of Corbie in Picardy, France, he was a voluminous writer, and the
author of the first speculative treatise on Transubstantiation (although this Latin word was not invented until the first
half of the 13th Century). However, Radbertus did use the word 'substance' in his famous book, On the Body and
Blood of the Lord. He taught, echoing the Church fathers, that after the words of Consecration, through the
conversion of the substance, there is present on the altar the Eucharistic Body of Christ which is identical with His
historical Body. This 9th-century theologian, who was not an Aristotelian (like Aquinas), nor much influenced by
philosophy of any kind, used the word 'substance' to mean the reality that makes a thing what it is: so, after
Consecration, it is no longer true to say, 'This is bread', but rather, as Jesus said, 'This is my Body'." (Kalberer, Lives
of the Saints).
27. canon 900, CIC 1983
28. Canon 899, CIC 1983
29. Canon 902, CIC 1983
30. Redemptionis Sacramentum, 154-155 (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents
/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html) Archived (https://web.archive.org
/web/20080203210044/http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents
/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html) February 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.; cf.
also Instruction Ecclesiae de mysterio, article 8 (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/laity
/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html)
12 of 15 6/27/17, 11:26 AM
31. Redemptionis Sacramentum, 156 (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents

/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html) February 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
32. Instruction Ecclesiae de mysterio, article 8 (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/laity/documents
/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html)
33. Redemptionis Sacramentum, 88 (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents
/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html) February 3, 2008, at the Wayback Machine.
34. Code of Canon Law, canon 916 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM) Archived
(https://web.archive.org/web/20110628182123/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM) June 28, 2011,
at the Wayback Machine.
35. Code of Canon Law, canon 919 1 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM) Archived
(https://web.archive.org/web/20110628182123/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM) June 28, 2011,
at the Wayback Machine.
36. Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 713 2 (http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii
/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_19901018_codex-can-eccl-orient-2_lt.html#TITULUS_XVI) Archived
(https://web.archive.org/web/20121130144307/http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_constitutions
/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_19901018_codex-can-eccl-orient-2_lt.html#TITULUS_XVI) November 30, 2012, at the
Wayback Machine.
37. General Instruction of the Roman Missal, No. 160.
38. Code of Canon Law, canon 917 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM)
39. Code of Canon Law, canon 913 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM)
40. General Instruction of the Roman Missal (http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/roman-missal/general-
instruction-of-the-roman-missal/), 281282.
41. General Instruction of the Roman Missal (http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/roman-missal/general-
instruction-of-the-roman-missal/), 283.
42. Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Communion under Both Kinds". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert
Appleton Company.
43. General Instruction of the Roman Missal (http://www.nccbuscc.org/liturgy/current/GIRM.pdf), 118.
44. bayoulandcs. "Special Circumstances for the Admission of Other Christians to Communion at Catholic Celebrations
of the Eucharist in the Diocese of Rockville Centre - www.drvc.org" (https://www.drvc.org/the-chancery/special-
circumstances-for-the-admission-of-other-christians-to-communion-at-catholic-celebrations-of-the-eucharist-in-the-
diocese-of-rockville-centre.html). www.drvc.org. Retrieved 2017-02-28.
45. Code of Canon Law, Canon 844 (http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P2T.HTM)
46. Code of Canon Law, canon 924 and 926 (http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0017/_P39.HTM); cf. Code of Canons
of the Eastern Churches, canon 707 (http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG1199/_PJN.HTM), and General Instruction
of the Roman Missal, 319-324.
47. Catholic Encyclopedia: Agape (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01200b.htm)
48. 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 (http://bible.oremus.org/?passage=1+Corinthians+11:1734:17&version=nrsv)
49. Jude 1:12 (http://bible.oremus.org/?passage=Jude+1:11:12&version=nrsv)
50. Justin, First Apology, 67 (http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm)
51. Revelation 1:10 (http://bible.oremus.org/?passage=Revelation+1:101:10&version=nrsv)
54. Peter Stravinskas, 1998, OSV's Catholic Encyclopedia, OSV Press ISBN 0-87973-669-0 page 428
55. Roman Catholic worship: Trent to today by James F. White 2003 ISBN 0-8146-6194-7 page 35
56. Meditations on the Sacred Heart by Joseph McDonnell 2008 ISBN 1-4086-8658-9 page 118
57. Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Nuptial Mass". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
58. The seven sacraments by Anselm Grn, John Cumming 2003 ISBN 0-8264-6704-0 pages 82-83
59. The History of Eucharistic Adoration by John A Hardon 2003 ISBN 0-9648448-9-3 pages 4-10
60. Encyclopedia of World Religions by Johannes P. Schad 2006 ISBN 1-60136-000-2, see entry under Eucharistic
adoration
61. The Real Presence: eucharistic meditations by Saint Pierre Julien Eymard, Sentinel Press, 1938 ASIN B00087ST7Q
13 of 15 6/27/17, 11:26 AM
62. The eucharistic meditations of the Cur d'Ars by Saint Jean Baptiste Marie Vianney Carmelite Publications (1961)
ASIN B0007IVDMY
63. Eucharistic Meditations: Extracts from the Writings and Instructions of Saint John Vianney by H. Convert, Jean
Baptiste Marie, Saint Vianney, and Mary Benvenuta 1998 ISBN 0-940147-03-3
64. Therese and Lisieux by Pierre Descouvemont, Helmuth Nils Loose, 1996 ISBN 0-8028-3836-7 page 245
65. Collected poems of St Thrse of Lisieux by Saint Thrse (de Lisieux), Alan Bancroft 2001 ISBN 0-85244-547-4
page 75
66. Concepcin Cabrera de Armida. I Am: Eucharistic Meditations on the Gospel ISBN 0-8189-0890-4
67. Our Sunday Visitor's Catholic Almanac by Matthew Bunson 2008 ISBN 1-59276-441-X page 255
68. Vatican Website (http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20040321_candida_en.html)
69. In the presence of our Lord by Benedict J. Groeschel, James Monti 1997 ISBN 0-87973-920-7 pages 167-171
70. Ann Ball, 2003 Encyclopedia of Catholic Devotions and Practices ISBN 0-87973-910-X page 11
71. Vatican website Ecclesia de Eucharistia (http://www.vatican.va/edocs/ENG0821/__P4.HTM)
72. Vatican website (http://www.vatican.va/news_services/press/sinodo/documents/bollettino_21_xi-ordinaria-
2005/02_inglese/b10_02.html)
73. Vatican website (http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/speeches/2006/march/documents/hf_ben-
xvi_spe_20060302_roman-clergy_en.html)
Works cited
Crockett, William R. (1989). Eucharist: Symbol of Transformation (https://books.google.com
/books?id=98Aefvi_MTAC&pg=PA75). Liturgical Press. ISBN 978-0-8146-6098-0.
Further reading
Laferrire, P. M. New & Eternal Testament [i.e. the Holy Eucharist]. Trans. by Roger Capel, with a Foreword by C.
C. Martindale. London: Harvill Press, 1961. N.B.: The French text, of the rev. ed. of this work, had been published in
1958.
External links
http://www.savior.org/ - Live Video Stream of the Eucharist
Wikimedia Commons has
Fr. Nikolaus Gihr (1902). The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass: media related to
Dogmatically, Liturgically, and Ascetically Explained Monstrances.
(https://archive.org/details/holysacrificeofm00gihriala). St. Louis:
Freiburg im Breisgau. OCLC 262469879 Wikisource has original
(https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/262469879). Retrieved text related to this article:
2011-04-20. Thomas Aquinas, "On
The Council of Trent on the Eucharist (http://www.ewtn.com the Sacrament of the
Eucharist" (Summa
/library/COUNCILS/TRENT13.HTM)
Theologiae)
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Eucharist in the Catholic Church

The Eucharist in the Catholic Church is the celebration of Mass, the

Blessed Sacrament is a devotional term used in the Roman Catholic

New Testament foundations

Other New Testament accounts of the Eucharist

Old Testament prefigurings

The Catholic Church accordingly believes that through

In the judgment of the Catholic Church, the concept of

Minister of the sacrament

extraordinary minister of Holy Communion even outside the celebration

"Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion" are not to be called

"Extraordinary ministers may distribute Holy Communion at eucharistic

Receiving the Eucharist

In the Western Church, "the administration of the Most Holy Eucharist

Non-Catholics may only receive the Eucharist in special situations:

Matter for the Sacrament

As Justin indicated, the word Eucharist is from the Greek word

Nuptial Mass and other Ritual Masses

A Nuptial Mass[57] is simply a Mass within which the sacrament of

Adoration and Benediction outside of the Liturgy

Adoration of the Eucharist is a sign of devotion to and worship of Christ,

9. Horton, Fred L., The Melchizedek Tradition (https://books.google.com/books?id=2tnEgSfuq_MC&pg=PA89)

31. Redemptionis Sacramentum, 156 (http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents

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