Since her early beginning, the Church
has all along recognized the Eucharist as the most important of the seven
sacraments. It is the “Most Blessed Sacrament”, the “Sacrament of sacraments”
(CCC 1330). According to St. Thomas Aquinas, “Absolutely speaking, the
sacrament of the Eucharist is the greatest of all the sacraments” for three
reasons. First of all, there is real presence of Jesus in the Eucharist whereas
the other sacraments contain a certain instrumental power which is a share of
Christ's power for bringing about
the sacramental effects. Secondly, all the other six sacraments have
Eucharist as their end or objective, e.g., only a baptized person is entitled
to receive the Eucharist; holy orders are ordained to the consecration of the
Eucharist; by reconciliation and anointing of the sick one is prepared to
receive the Eucharist worthily. Thirdly, it is most fitting for the rites of
the other sacraments to include the Eucharistic celebration, e.g., the spouses
receive the Eucharist as a sign of their unity with Christ after the sacrament
of matrimony has been conferred (ST III, Q 65, A 3).
Jesus instituted this great sacrament at
the Last Supper. When Christ consecrated
bread and wine into his body and blood, he said, “This is my body, which will
be given up for you. Do this in memory of me … This cup that is poured out for
you is the new covenant in my blood” (Lk 22:19-20). In instituting the
Eucharist, he did not merely say: “This is my body”, “this is my blood”, but
went on to add: “which is given up for
you”, “which is poured out for you.”
(EdeE 12) It is by the Lord’s own words that the Church unceasingly celebrates
the Eucharist using the above formula since the days of the apostles. Above all,
it was on the first day of the week, Sunday, the day of Jesus' resurrection
that the Christians met to break bread (c.f. Acts 20:7). The Eucharistic
celebration remains the center of the Church's life (CCC 1343).
Jesus used bread
and wine as the matter for the sacrament because their symbolic meanings were
so apparent to the people of his days. In the Old Covenant, the signs of bread
and wine signify the goodness of creation. Bread and wine were offered in
sacrifice among the first fruits of the earth as a sign of grateful
acknowledgment to the Creator. It was recorded that King Melchizedek of Salem
brought out bread and wine; he was priest of God Most High (Gen 14:18).
Unleavened bread is eaten as a Jewish tradition during Passover to commemorate
the haste of departure when God liberated the Israelites from Egypt. Manna in
the desert kept the Israelites alive and it reminds the Jewish people to live
by the bread of the Word of God (c.f Deut 8:3, Matt 4:4). The cup of blessing
(c.f. 1 Cor 10:16) at the end of the Jewish Passover meal adds to the festive
joy of wine an eschatological dimension: the messianic expectation of the
rebuilding of Jerusalem (CCC 1134).
The signs of
bread and wine also have great significance in the Gospel. Jesus performed his
first miracle in Cana to turn water into wine. He fed thousands of followers
with the multiplication of loaves. Also important are the narratives of Jesus
in the synagogue of Capernaum recorded in the Gospel of John that prepare for
the institution of the Eucharist. Different from the three synoptic gospels,
the Gospel of John does not include the institution of the Eucharist by Jesus
at the Last Supper. On the other hand, Jesus told his disciples during the
discourse on the Bread of Life that:
“I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever
believes in me will never be thirsty” (John 6:35). He went on to say, “I am the
living bread that comes down from heaven. Whoever eats of this bread will live
forever; and the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh” (John 6:51). Jesus gave us
a new commandment at the Last Supper: “This is my commandment, that you love
one another as I have loved you. No one has greater love than this, to lay down
one’s life for one’s friends” (John 15:12-13). According to Pope Benedict XVI,
Jesus’ Last Supper can be recognized as the real act of founding the Church. In
the Last Supper, Jesus renewed the covenant of Sinai: what was then only a
symbolic start now becomes a reality – the communion of blood and life between
God and man. “The Eucharist joins human beings together, not only with one
another, but also with Christ, and that in this way it makes people into the
Church” (Ratzinger 17).
God loved the
world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him
may not perish but may have eternal life (John 3:16). The purpose of Christ’s
sacrifice on the Cross is for the forgiveness of sins and to re-establish man’s
relationship with God. Our Savior once and for all sacrificed himself on the
altar of the Cross to accomplish an everlasting redemption. He has become a
high priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek (Heb 6:20). But his
priesthood is not to end with his death. He wanted to leave his Bride – the
Church a visible sacrifice by which the bloody sacrifice on the Cross would be
re-presented (or made present) through the celebration of the Eucharist, so
that its memory may be perpetuated until the end of the world, and its salutary
power be applied to the forgiveness of the sins we daily commit (CCC 1366). Because
it is the memorial of Christ's Passover (i.e., his own sacrifice on the Cross
for the salvation of all), the Eucharist is also a sacrifice (CCC 1365). In
reality, the sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one
single sacrifice. The sacrificial victim, who is Christ, remains the same. The
priest, who is the ordinary minister of the Eucharist, is an icon of Christ the
priest. Only the manner of sacrificial offering is different. “In this divine
sacrifice which is celebrated in the Mass, the same Christ who offered himself
once in a bloody manner on the altar of the Cross is contained and is offered
in an unbloody manner” (CCC 1367). Jesus is the Lamb of God; he surrendered his
life on the Cross to save us from the slavery of sins, and enable us to become
the adopted sons of the Father. Upon the consecration of bread and wine into
the body and blood of Christ, we proclaim the Mystery of Faith by saying, “Save
us, Savior of the world, for by your Cross and Resurrection, you have set us
free”. By our faith in Christ and God’s grace, we are
the chosen ones who may believe in the mysteries of God of things unsensed. Indeed, the sacramental grace of the
Eucharist frees us from the slavery of sins and preserves, improves, and renews
our relationship with God.
The
communication between God and man in the Eucharistic celebration is bi-directional.
Christ is the Head of the Church, his Mystical Body. He pours out his grace to
members of his Mystical Body who have prepared themselves well to accept it,
particularly through proclaiming the Word of God to them in the liturgy of the
Word and their participation in the liturgical banquet by receiving the Lord’s
body and blood. On the receiving end, the sacrifice of Christ also becomes the
sacrifice of the celebrating assembly. “The lives of the faithful, their
praise, sufferings, prayer, and work, are united with those of Christ and with
his total offering, and so acquire a new value” (CCC 1368). Where the two ends
meet, the faithful with the right disposition will be able to receive the
abundant grace of Christ. Through communion with the Lord, the Eucharist
separates us from sins. The sacrament strengthens our charity and this living
charity wipes away venial sins (CCC 1394). Moreover, the Eucharist preserves us
from future mortal sins, since the more we share the life of Christ and
progress in his friendship, the more difficult it is to break away from him by
mortal sin (CCC 1395). Indeed, God's salvation plan is directed toward our
participation in the life of the Trinity, the communion of Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit. Jesus said, “Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because
of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me” (John 6:57). Through
the sacraments of baptism and confirmation, we have already become temples of
the Holy Spirit. The Eucharist allows us to be united more closely with Christ
and participate in the intimate unity of the Trinity.
Apart from the
above “vertical communication” between God and man in the Eucharistic
celebration, there is also a horizontal dimension of the communication. “The
celebrating assembly is the community of the baptized who, by regeneration and
the anointing of the Holy Spirit, are consecrated to be a spiritual house and a
holy priesthood, that . . . they may offer spiritual sacrifices.” This common
priesthood is that of Christ the sole priest, in which all his members
participate (CCC 1140). Christ's sacrifice on the altar makes it possible for
all Christians to be united with his offering. Those who receive the Eucharist
are united more closely to the Mystical Body of Christ. Holy Communion renews,
strengthens, and deepens our incorporation into the Church, already achieved initially
by the sacrament of baptism (CCC 1396). In this way, the Eucharistic sacrifice
becomes a beautiful image of the Cross – the vertical pole forms the communion
between God and man, while the horizontal pole is made up of the communion
among the faithful of the Church.
The whole Church
is indeed united in the sacrificial offering and intercession of Christ. Since
the Pope is the representative of Christ as the visible head of the Church on
earth, he is named as the sign and servant of the unity of the universal
Church. The bishop's name is also mentioned to signify his presidency over the
particular Church, in the midst of his presbyterium and with the assistance of
deacons (CCC 1369). Thus, in the Eucharistic Prayer, the priest prays,
“Remember, Lord, your Church, spread throughout the world, and bring her to the
fullness of charity, together with N. our Pope and N. our Bishop and all the
clergy.” Moreover, as the offering is also made with the Church Triumphant and
the Church Penitent, the Eucharistic Prayer includes them:
Remember
… all who have died in your mercy: welcome them into the light of your face …
with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, with blessed Joseph, her spouse,
with the blessed Apostles, and all the Saints who have pleased you throughout
the ages, we may merit to be coheirs to eternal life …
This wholly redeemed city, the assembly and society of the
saints, is offered to God as a universal sacrifice by the high priest (CCC
1372). Besides, the Church never forgets her faithful members who are old or
sick and hence not able to participate in the Eucharistic sacrifice on Sundays.
Priests, deacons and Extraordinary Eucharistic Ministers bring the Eucharist to
them at home so that they may also unite into the One Body of Christ. For those who are seriously ill, it is most appropriate for the
Eucharist, the sacrament of Christ's Passover, to be received as the last
sacrament of the earthly journey, the "viaticum"
or the way to pass over to eternal
life (CCC 1517). As such, the whole Church
continues to reproduce this sacrifice in the sacrament of the Eucharist where
she offers the only acceptable offering to God, while at the same time, she
herself together with her members is offered in unity to God (CCC 1372).
The Eucharistic
sacrifice does not end with the Church because she has been given a mission in
the world. The Eucharist commits us to the poor, including those people outside
the Church. All men are created equal because they are all created in the image
and likeness of God. By receiving the body and blood of Christ, we must
recognize Christ in the poorest (CCC 1397). Jesus said, “Truly I tell you, just
as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you
did it to me” (Matt 25:40). There is an urgent need in the modern world for
Christians to work for peace, to base relationships between peoples on solid
premises of justice and solidarity, and to defend human life from conception to
its natural end. Every day, so many defenseless embryos are killed in the mothers’ womb.
Moreover, in this globalized world, capitalism and utilitarianism are making
the weakest, the powerless and the poorest appear to have so little hope. In
fact, the “poor” and the “weak” should be extended to all those people who are
not aware that they are in the slavery of sins; those who want to make
themselves a “god” in the modern world where they think they are in full
control of it. “It is in this world that Christian hope must shine forth! For
this reason too, the Lord wished to remain with us in the Eucharist, making his
presence in meal and sacrifice the promise of a humanity renewed by his love”
(EdeE 20). That’s why the Eucharistic celebration is also called “Missa” (Holy
Mass), because the liturgy in which the mystery of salvation is accomplished
concludes with the sending forth (missio) of the faithful, so that they may
fulfill God's will in their daily lives. The priest says to the assembly at the
end of the Mass, “Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.” All the
faithful who take part in the Eucharist are committed to changing our lives and
making ourselves in a certain way completely “Eucharistic” (EdeE 20). The
Eucharist makes us holy and transforms us into a second christ.
God is love. It
is in God’s love that man was created. Although sins separate us from God, the
sacrifice of Christ on the Cross which is re-presented in every Eucharistic
celebration has conquered sin and the relationship between God and the sinful
humanity is reconciled. By receiving the Holy Communion, we are being sent by
Christ into the world to make disciplines of all nations (c.f. Matt 28:19). The
Eucharist joins human beings together with Christ in the Church. This
determines the fundamental constitution of the Church: Church lives in
Eucharistic communities. “Her worship service is her constitution, for by her
very nature she is service of God and therefore service of men, the service
that transforms the world” (Ratzinger 18). The Eucharist enables us to bring
the love of Christ to every person we meet. It completes our initiation into
the People of God which commenced from the sacrament of baptism and progressed
through the sacrament of confirmation. We are sons of the Father, temple of the
Holy Spirit and members of Christ. Our active participation in Eucharistic
celebrations enables us to continuously live out our identity as children of
God. Jesus told us, “You are the salt of the earth …
You are the light of the world” (Matt 5:13-14). Through the Church and her
members united with Christ, God’s salvific plan for all creation is being
carried out by Christians spreading the Gospel to all nations until the end of
the world. Actually, we may carry out this mission together with our separated
brothers and sisters in Christ. The
Holy Communion reminds us that the more urgent are our prayers to the Lord that
the time of complete unity among all Christians who believe in him may return
(CCC 1398). Seeing the world with the eyes of God, we may adopt a
sacramental worldview. Through the Eucharist, the real body and blood of
Christ, we are united together in the Church with Christ so as to partake in
the love of the Trinity, and by the transformative power of the sacrament, we
share His love with the world and actively participates in the salvific plan of
God for all creation.
Bibliography
Catechism of the Catholic Church. New York: Doubleday, 1995.
Print.
Chapp, Carmina.
Lecture Notes for TH 580 Lesson 8 Eucharist.
Coogan, Michael D. The
New Oxford Annotated Bible: New Revised Standard Version with Apocrypha.
N.p.: Oxford UP, 2010. Print.
Ecclesia de Eucharistia. http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/special_features/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_20030417_ecclesia_eucharistia_en.html
Ratzinger, Joseph.
Church, Ecumenism, and Politics: New
Endeavors in Ecclesiology. San Francisco: Ignatius, 2008. Print.
Summa Theologica, Part III.
The Order of the Mass Worship
Aid.
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