Questions tagged [communion]

A sacrament initiated by Jesus where his followers remember his death on the cross by eating bread and wine

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Do Catholics believe that they are actually eating the body of Christ? Does this make them cannibals?

The Roman Catholic celebrates the Holy Eucharist in commemoration of the Last Supper in which during the celebration, Catholics believed that bread and wine are transformed into blood and body of ...
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As a protestant, may I participate in the Eucharist (Communion) when visiting a Catholic church?

I think the title sums it up. I'm a protestant Christian, and have many Catholic friends. When I visit their churches, is it permissible for me to participate in the Eucharist/Communion ceremony by ...
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What is transubstantiation?

According to Wikipedia: When at his Last Supper, Jesus said: "This is my body", what he held in his hands still had all the appearances of bread: these "accidents" remained unchanged. However, the ...
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Why does only the priest receive Communion under both kinds at a Catholic Mass?

In a Catholic Mass, why does only the priest receive Communion under both kinds (under the species of bread and wine)?
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On the Eucharist and Human Digestion?

My Question: Does the real presence of the Eucharist persist even after digestion to the point of being taken out of the body by defecation? Yes this is a serious question. In case the answer is no, ...
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Was the Last Supper not the Passover meal?

The accepted answer on How long was Jesus in the tomb? would only have been possible if the Last Supper was not the Passover meal, which I had always thought it was. Was the Last Supper in fact not ...
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Who may receive Holy Communion in a Catholic Church?

Who in the following groups may receive Holy Communion in a Catholic Church? Among Catholics. (cf. the current debate on communion for divorced-and-remarried Catholics). Among non-Catholic Christians....
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What is the Lutheran doctrine of consubstantiation and how does it differ from transubstantiation and a more general protestant sacramental view?

In transubstantiation, the bread and wine are said to become the literal body and blood of Jesus. Consubstantiation appears to affirm that "this is my body" does apply to the bread and wine, but not ...
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During communion, when does the wafer stop being Jesus' body?

So according to Catholicism, the wafer/wine becomes Jesus' body/blood instantly when the priest says so, but when does it stop being Jesus' body/blood? When it is chewed up, or when it is in the ...
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Why does communion frequency vary in different denominations?

Different churches celebrate the Eucharist (Communion, Lord's Supper, ...) with different frequency. At one extreme, Catholic and high Anglican churches tend to celebrate it at least daily. Many ...
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What do Catholics mean when they talk about the Real Presence in the Eucharist?

The Catholic Church is one of several denominations that teach the Real Presence, but they don't all have the same understanding of this doctrine. What is the Catholic understanding?
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When did the Latin Catholic Church begin to generally require fasting only one hour prior to the Eucharist?

According to Wikipedia's article on eucharistic discipline, the Latin rite of Catholicism requires only one hour of fasting before the Eucharist (cf. Canon 919 §1), but that prior to 1955, the fasting ...
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Why do some denominations not wash feet before taking communion?

Why is it that some denominations follow the ordinance of humility as described in John 13 while others do not? What reason is there for not performing the foot washing ceremony before partaking in ...
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According to traditional Catholicism, what is the spiritual solution for the divorcee who hasn't had their marriage annulled?

There has been quite a bit of controversy over what is becoming known as 'modern Catholicism' (post-Vatican II) and 'traditional Catholicism' (pre-Vatin II). 'Modern Catholicism' thought generally ...
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Was the wine in The Last Supper fermented? [duplicate]

I was reading "When the Bible talks about wine does it mean alcoholic wine?" and I thought, The Last Supper was during the Passover, when the Jews ware forbidden to use leaven: Exodus 12:15 ...
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Is the Roman Catholic church condemning Protestants?

In the early church the apostles often use the term 'let them be anathema'. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, were to preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto ...
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What is the significance of the Eucharist's sacramental species?

When we receive the Holy Eucharist we consume Jesus's glorified body. Now many say it is purely spiritual food. The sacrament of the Holy Eucharist was instituted as a food, a spiritual food(...
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How do Catholics support transubstantiation?

As I understand it, the doctrine of transubstantiation maintains that bread and wine literally* become the body and blood of Christ... yet it is impossible to detect this. That is, they do not ...
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Does transubstantiation apply to the Last Supper, which occurred prior to the crucifixion?

The Roman Catholic church teaches the doctrine of transubstantiation--that the bread and wine literally become the body and blood of Jesus. It seems that the sacrament of taking the body and blood ...
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When does the bread and wine become Body and Blood?

Exactly when during the Mass does transubstantiation occur? I am aware that it occurs during the Eucharistic Prayer, but at exactly what moment? Would this change if a priest were to consecrate ...
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What did Jesus mean when He said we must "eat His flesh and drink His blood"? [closed]

In John 6, Jesus states that unless we eat His flesh and drink His blood, we have no life in us: Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink ...
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How do protestants understand Jesus' statement that unless we eat the flesh of the Son of Man we will have no life? [duplicate]

Catholics teach that they literally eat the body of Jesus during communion, a belief called Transubstantiation. Protestant churches mostly do not share this belief and there is no obligation to ...
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Why do Catholics make the sign of the cross at the Eucharist?

I know that no where in the Catholic Rite of Communion does it state that the communicant must make the sign of the cross after reception of the Eucharist in either species. So why is it that so many ...
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What feast does Paul refer to in 1 Corinthians 5:8?

What feast is Paul referring to? Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. (1 ...
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Is it a sacrilege to take communion in hand?

Is it a sacrilege to take communion in hand? In the Old Mass, Catholics receive communion by kneeling down and receive the Holy Eucharist in tongue. In the new mass, this has been changed, Catholics ...
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Transubstantiation and John 6:27

Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him." NKJV John 6:27 I ...
user329957's user avatar
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According to Catholics (and Mark 7:19) what happens to Jesus' flesh after it is ingested? [duplicate]

According to a commentary by Thomas Aquinas, [pita] bread (and I suppose those extremely leavened (aerated) wafers) become "the indestructible flesh of God, the Son": ...The food that sustains the ...
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Multiple marriages and divorces

I have been married 3 times and divorced twice. My 3rd husband died of cancer. All marriages were not in the Catholic Church. Now returning to my Catholic faith after 4 decades, am I allowed to ...
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How are Roman Catholics to receive the holy Eucharist at Mass?

What is the etiquette to be followed when receiving the holy Eucharist? Is one to kneel down? Does one receive in the hand or directly on the tongue? Are there any prescribed procedures from Vatican?
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10 answers
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Why do many churches use grape juice in communion?

Some Baptists and many other evangelicals use grape juice in communion. Is this explained on any catechism (or systematic theology available online) ? Does the reason for not using wine have to do ...
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Why does the Salvation Army not administer the sacraments of baptism and the Lord's Supper?

While reading a book on Reformed theology (The Shorter Westminster Catechism, by G. I. Williamson), I came across a brief criticism of the Salvation Army's views on the sacraments: A very different ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
17 votes
7 answers
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Why does transubstantiation refer only to communion?

Why does the doctrine of transubstantiation consider Jesus’ words regarding the bread and wine of communion to be literal while considering these other similes used by Jesus to be metaphorical? ...
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15 votes
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What are the first references to a tradition of fasting before partaking of the Lord's Supper?

I recently learned that in Roman Catholicism, it's expected that partakers of the Eucharist will fast for at least an hour. Canon 919, §1 reads: A person who is to receive the Most Holy Eucharist ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
13 votes
3 answers
17k views

Why did Jesus use bread to turn into His body? [closed]

In the Catholic church you have communion, in which you receive the body and blood of Christ in the form of bread and wine. Why do bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ, rather than ...
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What are the Biblical arguments against Transubstantiation?

Catholics believe that the bread and wine in the communion change into the body and blood (and divinity) of the Lord Jesus Christ. They taught that the bread and wine are no longer bread and wine ...
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11 votes
2 answers
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Why do LDS use water and leavened bread in communion when the Jews used wine and unleavened bread?

I recently read somewhere that in the LDS observance of communion, water and leavened bread is used. The practice of communion comes from the Jewish Passover ceremony where wine and unleavened bread ...
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According to Catholicism, what is wrong with Luther's doctrine of ubiquity?

One of John Calvin's arguments against transubstantiation and consubstantiation was that the body of Christ, as a human body, could not be in more than one place at a time. His view of the Eucharist ...
Nathaniel is protesting's user avatar
9 votes
1 answer
341 views

In a Eucharistic miracle, do the communicants still partake of the sacrament?

In the miracle of Lanciano in the eighth century, not only the substance but also the accidents of the bread and wine became that of flesh and blood. Chemically, it was identical to human flesh and ...
Mr. Bultitude's user avatar
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2 answers
484 views

According to Catholicism, in the Eucharist, does the bread become Christ’s “spiritual body” or “natural body”?

According to Catholicism, in the act of transubstantiation which occurs during the Eucharist, when the bread becomes Christ’s body, and the wine becomes Christ’s blood, does the bread become the “...
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9 votes
6 answers
1k views

How do people who reject transubstantiation interpret these verses? [duplicate]

Luke 22:19 (The Message) Taking bread, he blessed it, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, given for you. Eat it in my memory.” It has been argued that even the grammar must ...
Double U's user avatar
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1 answer
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What isn't spiritual communion?

Spiritual communion is a prayer one can pray if they can't receive the Eucharist at Mass and it's a good prayer to pray if you're making a visit to a tabernacle outside of Mass. Sacramental communion ...
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What do Lutherans mean when they talk about the Real Presence in the Eucharist?

The Lutheran Church is one of several denominations that teach the Real Presence, but they don't all understand it the same way. The Lutheran understanding differs significantly from the Orthodox and ...
Bruce Alderman's user avatar
8 votes
2 answers
372 views

Why is the Eucharist referred to as «ἀναίμακτον θυσίαν» in consideration of "transubstantiation"?

If indeed transubstantiation occurs, and the bread and wine become the body and blood of Jesus Christ, why does John of Damascus1 (as an example) refer to the Eucharist as «ἀναίμακτον θυσίαν», "a ...
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8 votes
2 answers
1k views

When did the Catholic Church decide 'daily bread" is its Eucharist?

The Catholic Church Catechism defines daily bread is Eucharist (p 2837), but I have searched the early church in vain to find this definition. When did the Catholic Church decide that Jesus meant give ...
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What is the theological justification for only the priest drinking the wine in a Catholic Mass?

I recently attended a Catholic Mass for a funeral. When it came time for the observance of the Lord's Supper, only the priest drank the wine. There may be some protestant churches which also follow ...
Steven Doggart's user avatar
8 votes
2 answers
4k views

Why do Catholics believe that it is a priest's blessing that transforms the elements into the body and blood of Christ?

I understand that Catholicism teaches the doctrine of transubstantiation, that is, that the bread and wine of the Eucharist are transformed into the literal body and blood of Christ. This apparently ...
Narnian's user avatar
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3 answers
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How do Roman Catholics reconcile Acts 15:20 with transubstantiation?

I'm curious how a Roman Catholic Christian would defend the practice of transubstantiation in light of Acts 15:20 which states that Christians are "to abstain...from blood" (τοῦ ἀπέχεσθαι ἀπό...τοῦ ...
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7 votes
3 answers
575 views

What are the reasons for the Catholic Church's law regarding the Communion fast?

We know from scripture that the institution of the Eucharist was during supper with the taking of the cup being after supper. And it appears from St. Paul's first letter to the Corinthians that there ...
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7 votes
4 answers
2k views

Is communion service at the rail vs. in the pews a function of denomination or church size?

In the small baptist churches I've been a part of, (and the LDS service I attended), the communion elements are served to worshippers in the pews. In my Episcopal church, everybody comes up to the ...
Affable Geek's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
299 views

Catholic restricted from Communion

(Note: This is in Holland) A Catholic Charismatic woman desired to have her baptism blessed by immersion in water (she had been baptized as a child in the Catholic church). She presumed that it was ...
ted bauer's user avatar