Eucharist

Dear Brother Knights;

As we approach Easter and Holy Thursday, I thought that I would give you some thoughts on Eucharist. First of all, it IS in the Bible:

Biblical References to the Eucharist (Holy Communion)

• John 1:29
  The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and said, "Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
• Luke 22:20
  In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.
• John 6:53
  Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. 
• Mark 14:22-24
  While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take it; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, and they all drank from it. "This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many," he said to them.
• Hebrews 9:28
  so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
• 1 Corinthians 11:27-29
  Therefore, whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord. A man ought to examine himself before he eats of the bread and drinks of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without recognizing the body of the Lord eats and drinks judgment on himself.

My reflection begins with John 6:53 beginning with “unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you…” As this passage continues, it becomes very apparent, crystal clear, that Jesus was not speaking in mere images or parables, but literally. He challenges his follows with this passage to take him at his word.

53 Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. 54 Whoever eats 19 my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. 55 For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. 56 Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. 57 Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. 58 This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever."
59 These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. 60 20 Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" 61 Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, "Does this shock you? 62 What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 21 63 It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh 22 is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
64 But there are some of you who do not believe." Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him.
65 And he said, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father."
66 As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him.
67 Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?"
68 Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. 69 We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God." USCCB Bile Text, Click here to view.

John’s choice of words is significant when he translates what Jesus has said into the Greek, he uses the word, not for eating as in eating dinner, but the more profane term for gnawing or munching. The verb used in these verses is not the classical Greek verb used of human eating, but that of animal eating: "munch," "gnaw." This may be part of John's emphasis on the reality of the flesh and blood of Jesus, but the same verb eventually became the ordinary verb in Greek meaning "eat." This would very much explain the reaction of the majority of the disciples or followers of Jesus.

This passage has become the basis of my own faith. Whenever I have had the inclination that the Catholic Church is hard, that I was tired of all the Sacraments, that other churches might really be more entertaining and cater more to my desires rather than make so many demands upon me, there was John 6:67-69 staring me in the face. “Master, to whom shall we go?” Where else do we find this simple admonition? Where else do we find the TRUE Body and Blood of Christ? There is no place to turn, there is only the One True, Catholic and Apostolic Church. If I went to a place where I can just get on my knees to go to Confession, it is NOT the true path, “We have come to believe and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God”. There is only “whoever eats this bread will live forever” to direct us toward eternal life.