The Theology and Idea of Transubstantiation

The Theology and Idea of Transubstantiation

      The idea of ordinary bread and wine taking on the form of the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ has been around since the birth of the Church.  At the Last Supper, Christ directed Peter and the Apostles to consecrate bread and wine in memory of him, hence his words, “Do this in memory of me.”  In one moment, Christ gifted his Church two gifts: the priesthood and the Eucharist, two gifts which we still enjoy today.  But where did this word transubstantiation come from?

      The issue in the Early Church was less about terminology and more about the idea of ordinary bread and wine becoming the consecrated body and blood of our beloved Lord, Jesus Christ.  Did it really change into something other than bread and wine or was the change more symbolic?  What was Christ’s intention in giving us bread and wine as his body and blood?

Many of the early Church fathers, such as Justin Martyr, Eusebius of Caesarea, and Clement of Alexandria regarded the change as a more symbolic one, rather than a literal one.

      The word transubstantiation can find its roots in the philosophy of Aristotle, primarily in his ideas of substance and accidents.  Transubstantiation translates into “cross substances”, where a substance crosses over from reality to another but still maintaining his appearance.  This seems like too much a technical term to apply to such a significant theological concept.  It was not until the 16^th century that the Church identified the transformation of bread and wine under the identifier, transubstantiation, which lives on in the modern Church today.

 

    How do we reconcile other Christian churches including a eucharist in their worship, but only regard it in a symbolic sense?  What makes our Eucharist true, while others are symbolic?  As mentioned earlier, two things happened at the Last supper: priesthood and Eucharist.  The priesthood of Christ is what is necessary to facilitate the transformation of bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ.  No other institution can facilitate such a change.