Holy Eucharist | Benedictine Divine W

The Holy Eucharist

1. What is the Holy Eucharist?
ANSWER: The Holy Eucharist is the Sacrament which contains the body and blood, soul and divinity of Our Lord Jesus Christ under the appearances of bread and wine. When we say "contains," we mean the Sacrament which is the body and blood, etc. The Holy Eucharist is the same living body of Our Lord which He had upon earth; but it is in a new form, under the appearances of bread and wine. Therefore, Our Lord in the tabernacle can see and hear us.

2. When did Christ institute the Holy Eucharist?
ANSWER: Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist at the Last Supper, the night before He died.

3. Who were present when Our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist?
ANSWER: When Our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist the twelve Apostles were present.

4. How did Our Lord institute the Holy Eucharist?
ANSWER: Our Lord instituted the Holy Eucharist by taking bread, blessing, breaking, and giving to His Apostles, saying: "Take ye and eat. This is My body"; and then by taking the cup of wine, blessing and giving it, saying to them: "Drink ye all of this. This is My blood which shall be shed for the remission of sins. Do this for a commemoration of Me." "Eucharist" means thanks. Hence this Sacrament is called Eucharist, because Our Lord gave thanks before changing the bread and wine into His body and blood, and because the offering of it to God is the most solemn act of thanksgiving. "Do this"--that is, the same thing I am doing, namely, changing bread and wine into My body and blood. "Commemoration"--that is, to remind you of Me, that you may continue to do the same till the end of time.

5. What happened when Our Lord said, "This is My body, this is My blood"?
ANSWER: When Our Lord said, "This is My body," the substance of the bread was changed into the substance of His body. When He said, "This is My blood," the substance of the wine was changed into the substance of His blood.

"Substance" literally means that which stands underneath. Underneath what? Underneath the outward appearances or qualities--such as color, taste, figure, smell, etc.--that are perceptible to our senses. Therefore, we never see the substance of anything. Of this seat, for instance, I see the color, size, and shape; I feel the hardness, etc.; but I do not see the substance, namely, the wood of which it is made. When the substance of anything is changed, the outward appearances change with it. But not so in the Holy Eucharist; for by a miracle the appearances of bread and wine remain the same after the substance has been changed as they were before. As the substance alone is changed in the Holy Eucharist, and as I cannot see the substance, I cannot see the change. I am absolutely certain, however, that the change takes place, because Our Lord said so; and I believe Him, because He could not deceive me. He is God, and God could not tell a lie, because He is infinite truth. This change is a great miracle, and that is the reason we cannot understand it, though we believe it. Once at a marriage in Cana of Galilee (John 2) Our Lord changed water into wine. The people were poor, and Our Lord, His Blessed Mother, and the Apostles were present at the wedding when the wine ran short; and our Blessed Lady, always so kind to everyone, wishing to spare these poor people from being shamed before their friends, asked Our Lord to perform the miracle, and at her request He did so, and changed many vessels of water into the best of wine. In that miracle Our Lord changed the substance of the water into the substance of the wine. Why, then, could He not change in the same way and by the same power the substance of bread and wine into the substance of His own body and blood? When He changed the water into wine, besides changing the substance, He changed everything else about it; so that it had no longer the appearance of water, but everyone could see that it was wine. But in changing the bread and wine into His body and blood He changes only the substance, and leaves everything else unchanged so that it still looks and tastes like bread and wine; even after the change has taken place and you could not tell by looking at it that it was changed. You know it only from your faith in the words of our divine Lord, when He tells you it is changed. Again, it is much easier to change one thing into another than to make it entirely out of nothing. Anyone who can create out of nothing can surely change one thing into another. Now Our Lord, being God, created the world out of nothing; and He could therefore easily change the substance of bread into the substance of flesh. I have said Our Lord's body in the Holy Eucharist is a living body, and every living body contains blood; and that is why we receive both the body and the blood of Our Lord under the appearance of the bread alone. The priest receives the body and blood of Our Lord under the appearance of both bread and wine, while the people receive it only under the appearance of bread. The early Christians used to receive it as the priest does--under the appearance of bread and under the appearance of wine; but the Church had to make a change on account of circumstances. First, all the people had to drink from the same chalice or cup, and some would not like that, and show disrespect for the Blessed Sacrament by refusing it. Then there was great danger of spilling the precious blood, passing it from one to another; and finally, some said that Christ's blood was not in His body under the appearance of bread. This was false; and to show that it was false, and for the other reasons, the Church after that gave Holy Communion to the people under the appearance of bread alone. The Church always believes and teaches the same truths. It always believed that the Holy Eucharist under the appearance of bread contained also Our Lord's blood; but it taught it more clearly when it was denied.

6. Is Jesus Christ whole and entire both under the form of bread and under the form of wine?
ANSWER: Jesus Christ is whole and entire both under the form of bread and under the form of wine.

7. Did anything remain of the bread and wine after their substance had been changed into the substance of the body and blood of Our Lord?
ANSWER: After the substance of the bread and wine had been changed into the substance of the body and blood of Our Lord there remained only the appearances of bread and wine.

8. What do you mean by the appearances of bread and wine?
ANSWER: By the appearances of bread and wine I mean the figure, the color, the taste, and whatever appears to the senses.

"Senses"--that is, eyes, ears, etc. Thus, we have the sense of seeing, the sense of hearing, the sense of tasting, the sense of smelling, the sense of feeling. The Holy Eucharist is the body of Our Lord just as long as the appearances of bread and wine remain, and when they go away Our Lord's body goes also. For example, if a church, tabernacle and all, was buried by a great earthquake, and after many years the people succeeded in getting at the tabernacle and opening it, and then found in the ciborium--that is, the vessel in which the Blessed Sacrament is kept in the tabernacle--only black dust, Our Lord would not be there, although He was there when the church was buried. He would not be there, because there was no longer the appearance of bread there: it had all been changed into ashes by time, and Our Lord left it when the change took place. But if the appearance of bread had remained unchanged, He would be there even after so many years. When we receive Holy Communion, the appearance of bread remains for about fifteen or twenty minutes after we receive, and then it changes or disappears. Therefore, during these fifteen or twenty minutes that the appearance remains Our Lord Himself is really with us; and for that reason we should remain about twenty minutes after Mass on the day we receive, making a thanksgiving, speaking to Our Lord, and listening to Him speaking to our conscience. What disrespect some people show Our Lord by rushing out of the church immediately after Mass and Holy Communion, sometimes beginning to talk or look around before making any thanksgiving! When you receive Holy Communion, after returning to your seat you need not immediately begin to read your prayer book, but may bow your head and speak to Our Lord while He is present with you. After the appearances of bread vanish, Our Lord's bodily presence goes also, but He remains with us by His grace as long as we do not fall into mortal sin.

9. What is this change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of Our Lord called?
ANSWER: This change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of Our Lord is called Transubstantiation. "Transubstantiation"--that is, the changing of one substance into another substance; for example, the changing of the wood in a seat into stone.

10. How was the substance of the bread and wine changed into the substance of the body and blood of Christ?
ANSWER: The substance of the bread and wine was changed into the substance of the body and blood of Christ by His almighty power.

11. Does this change of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ continue to be made in the Church?
ANSWER: This change of bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ continues to be made in the Church by Jesus Christ through the ministry of His priests.

12. When did Christ give His priests the power to change bread and wine into His body and blood?
ANSWER: Christ gave His priests the power to change bread and wine into His body and blood when He said to His Apostles, "Do this in commemoration of Me."

13. How do the priests exercise this power of changing bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ?
ANSWER: The priests exercise this power of changing bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ through the words of consecration in the Mass, which are the words of Christ: "This is My body; this is My blood." "Consecration." At what part of the Mass are the words of consecration pronounced? Just before the Elevation; that is, just before the priest holds up the Host and the chalice, while the altar boy rings the bell.

14. Why did Christ institute the Holy Eucharist?
ANSWER: Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist:

(1) To unite us to Himself and to nourish our souls with His divine life.

(2) To increase sanctifying grace and all the virtues in our souls.

(3) To lessen our evil inclinations.

(4) To be a pledge of everlasting life.

(5) To fit our bodies for a glorious resurrection.

(6) To continue the sacrifice of the Cross in His Church. "To nourish." The Holy Eucharist does to our souls what natural food does to our bodies. It strengthens them and makes up for the losses we have sustained by sin, etc. "A pledge," because it does not seem probable that a person who all during life had been fed and nourished with the sacred body of Our Lord should after death be buried in Hell. "To fit our bodies," because Our Lord has promised that if we eat His flesh and drink His blood, that is, receive the Holy Eucharist, He will raise us up on the last day, or Day of Judgment. (John 6:55).

15. How are we united to Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist?
ANSWER: We are united to Jesus Christ in the Holy Eucharist by means of Holy Communion.

16. What is Holy Communion?
ANSWER: Holy Communion is the receiving of the body and blood of Christ. Holy Communion is therefore the receiving of the Sacrament of Holy Eucharist.

17. What is necessary to make a good Communion?
ANSWER: To make a good Communion it is necessary to be in a state of sanctifying grace, to be fasting for one hour, and to have a right intention. "Fasting"--that is, not having taken any food or drink for one hour before the time of Communion. (Water and true medicine do not break the fast and may be taken at any time.) What, then, are you to do, if, without thinking, you break your fast? Do not go to Communion at that Mass; you can remain in church and receive Communion at the following Mass. Never, never, on any account, go to Holy Communion when you have broken your fast. Never let fear or shame or anything else make you do such a thing. It is no shame to break your fast by mistake; but it is a great sin to knowingly go to Communion after breaking your fast. "A right intention"--holy and spiritual motive, such as, to obey Our Lord's command, to receive strength to resist temptation, or to be united with Our Lord.

18. Does he who receives Communion in mortal sin receive the body and blood of Christ?
ANSWER: He who receives Communion in mortal sin receives the body and blood of Christ, but does not receive His grace, and he commits a great sacrilege. "The body and blood," because the appearance of bread and wine is there after consecration, and he receives it. He who receives the Holy Eucharist in mortal sin receives Our Lord into a filthy soul. If a great and highly-esteemed friend was coming to visit your house, would you not take care to have everything clean and neat, and pleasing to him? And the greater the dignity of the person coming, the more careful you would be. But what are all the persons of dignity in the world--kings or popes--compared with Our Lord, who leaves the beauties of Heaven to come to visit our soul? and the purest we can make it is not pure enough for Him. But He is kind to us, and is satisfied with our poor preparation if He sees we are doing our very best. But oh, what a shame to receive Him into our soul without any preparation! and more horrible still, to fill it with vile sins, that we know are most disgusting to Him! No wonder, therefore, that receiving Holy Communion unworthily is so great a crime, and so deserving of God's punishment. Why should not the heavenly Father punish us for treating His beloved Son with such shameful disrespect and contempt?

19. Is it enough to be free from mortal sin, to receive plentifully the graces of Holy Communion?
ANSWER: To receive plentifully the graces of Holy Communion it is not enough to be free from mortal sin, but we should be free from all affection to venial sin, and should make acts of lively faith, of firm hope and ardent love.

20. What is the fast necessary for Holy Communion?
ANSWER: The fast necessary for Holy Communion is the abstaining for one hour from everything which is taken as "food or drink." If you swallowed a button, for example, it would not break your fast, because it is not food or drink.

21. Is anyone ever allowed to receive Holy Communion when not fasting?
ANSWER: Anyone in danger of death is allowed to receive Communion when not fasting. "Not fasting." But then the Holy Communion is called by another name; it is called the Viaticum, and the priest uses a different prayer in giving it to the sick person. When a person dies, he goes, as it were, on a journey from this world to the next. Now, when persons are going on a journey they must have food to strengthen them. Our Lord wished, therefore, that all His children who had to go on this most important of all journeys--from this world to the next--should be first strengthened by this sacred food, His own body and blood. The Latin word for road or way is via, and Viaticum therefore means food for the way. Not only are persons in danger of death allowed to receive when not fasting, but they are obliged to receive; and the priest is obliged under pain of sin to bring Holy Communion to the dying at any hour of the day or night. When I speak of a great journey from this world to the next, from earth to Heaven, you must not understand me to mean that it is a great many miles from earth to Heaven, or that it takes a long time to go to the next world. No. We cannot measure the distance, nor does it take time to get there. The instant we die, no matter where that happens, our soul is in the next world, and judged by God.

22. When are we bound to receive Holy Communion?
ANSWER: We are bound to receive Holy Communion, under pain of mortal sin, during the Easter time and when in danger of death.

23. Is it well to receive Holy Communion often?
ANSWER: It is well to receive Holy Communion often, as nothing is a greater aid to a holy life than often to receive the Author of all graces and the Source of all good.

24. What should we do after Holy Communion?
ANSWER: After Holy Communion we should spend some time in adoring Our Lord, in thanking Him for the graces we have received and in asking Him for the blessings we need.