Bread and Wine, Flesh and Blood

This deals with a meal and with family relations.

The Lord's Supper, Eucharist, Holy Communion, the Breaking of the Bread - this particular sacred act has several names, and has varied levels of depth and understanding in the different Christian groups.

Roman Catholic

          The Roman Catholic church celebrate the liturgy of the Eucharist every Sunday, in addition to the liturgy of the Word. It is a most essential part of the church service, because it is where the congregant meets the living Jesus Christ. It is how the believer is sustained in the faith. As every Sunday is a celebration of the resurrection of Jesus Christ, so is the Eucharist a gift of taking part in his death and resurrection. During the preparation of the element, by the miraculous power of God, the elements change into being the body and the blood of Jesus: a Transubstantiation occurs.

Eastern Orthodox

Likewise, in the Eastern Orthodox church, the elements become the actual body and blood of Christ. It is nourishment for the faith. Jesus says, during the occasion of his last supper with his disciples: This is my body. This is my blood.

          In both the Catholic and the Orthodox churches, they will freely admit that the actual elements are symbolic, but in a true and spiritual sense, because of the words of Jesus, what the congregants part-take of is His body and blood.

          

In the reformation churches, like the Lutheran Church and Anglican church, there is a slight variant understanding of the elements: There is a real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, but the element do not change as such.

In the non-liturgical churches, like the Baptists, there is no real presence of Christ in or by the elements. The focus s set on the commemoration, as Jesus said: Do this in remembrance of me.

So, we may have different understandings, but we all do it, and we all know it is important to do. A Christian need to receive communion.

          In the days of the early church, this was celebrated in the homes, since it is not based on a temple celebration. Jesus had a passover meal with his disciples, as we can read in the Gospel according to John. This annual celebration is the major Jewish holiday of Pesach to this day. Looking into the traditions around telling the story of liberation from slavery in the land of Egypt, we may gain some valuable insight into the setting for the rather unusual words of Jesus. We all know the familiar words of the initiation, the instructing commands Jesus gives the disciples. We repeat them every time we celebrate this time together: Eat my body. Drink my blood.

          During the retelling of the story of the exodus from Egypt, we are in a sense transported to being there: My father was a wandering Aramean... I was brought out of Egypt with a strong hand. The blood of the lamb was brushed on my door post, and the angel of death passed over...There is a sense of lived and real history; the aspect of time is not as sequential, but carries a presence, almost an existential reality in it. In this setting Jesus says: I am. I am the bread of affliction. I am the saving blood of that lamb. Through me, in me, you have eternal salvation, starting here and now. In me, through me, you are free.

We eat it - together, in communion - and the holy communion is with God - it is a sanctifying element. Jesus states that we are to do this together for the forgiveness of sins; it is a cleansing element.

We eat unleavened 'bread' - as the old Jewish blessing says:

"Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth."

ברוך אתה ה' א לוהינו, מלך העולם, המוציא לחם מן הארץ

We drink the wine - as the old Jewish blessing says:

Blessed are You, Lord our God, who creates the fruit of the vine.

ברוך אתה ה' א לוהינו, מלך העולם, בורא פרי הגפן.

And as we do this we become part of the flesh and blood of our Saviour, Jesus Christ. We are children of God, and Jesus is our brother. As I mentioned initially, this deals with family relations, and they are sacred relations.