3

In the Catholic Church, we believe that Jesus Christ is present -- body, blood, soul and divinity -- in the Holy Eucharist (Blessed Sacrament/Blessed Host).

I would like to know if it is only the second person of the Holy Trinity (God the Son) who is in the Blessed Sacrament or all three persons (God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit) are in it.

Improve this question

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
3

I think this is a very deep question which can only get a short answer and the rest we have to consider a mystery:

  • Because you cannot separate The Trinity and God is a pure spirit, we can say that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are Spiritually Present

  • Jesus's Body Blood Soul and Divinity is Sacramentally Present.

Sacramentally means, taking something visible and making it visible.

We believe this because Jesus says it is so ("This is My Body"), and the Catholic Church teaches it

In the most blessed sacrament of the Eucharist "the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained.

CCC 1374

Improve this answer
4
  • 3
    Aquinas discusses this in his Scriptural commentaries as "concomitance"
    – eques
    Commented Feb 28 at 15:09
  • @eques I believe concomitance is the doctrine that the whole Christ is present under both species, ie the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity are all present under the appearances of bread, and are all present under the appearances of wine. So, if you receive only the bread or only the wine, you have still received the whole Christ.
    – jaredad7
    Commented Feb 28 at 22:05
  • 2
    @jaredad7 it's both. Concomitance is not a doctrine per se; it's a term for how things occur (e.g. Aquinas also discusses ignorance which is concomitant with the act). In the Eucharist, we have the body of Christ is present with the accidents of the bread but by concomitance the blood of Christ is also present (your statement) but also, where the body and blood is, the soul of Christ is present by concomitance and where the soul is, the divinity is present, etc.
    – eques
    Commented Feb 28 at 23:07
  • "By concomitance, we say that God the Father and God the Holy Spirit are "spiritually" present in the Eucharist because of the presence of the divinity of Christ" => Can I make such a conclusion?
    – Paul Chuang
    Commented Mar 3 at 5:49
2

Think of the Holy Eucharist just as you would think of Jesus preaching in Galilee with you among the public around Him. Who are you looking at? The consubstantial Son of God Who has assumed a human nature.

Whereas the three divine Persons are consubstantial, i.e. they are the same divine Essence or Substance (Ousia), Jesus' human nature, soul and body, was assumed by the Son, not by the Father or the Holy Spirit.

Improve this answer
3
  • But because His Body, Blood, and Soul cannot be separated from the Divine Essence, the Father and Holy Spirit are present through the presence of Christ's divinity in the Holy Eucharist.
    – jaredad7
    Commented Feb 28 at 22:04
  • The "consubstantial" is only referring to the divinity of Christ, not body, blood nor soul?
    – Paul Chuang
    Commented Mar 3 at 5:47
  • @ZhuangPaulus Yes, in my answer "consubstantial" refers only to the divinity of Christ.
    – Johannes
    Commented Mar 4 at 17:46

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .