Education in Faith
The Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist is a central doctrine of the Catholic faith. It is regarded as a revealed truth proved by both scripture and tradition. This week’s gospel, indeed the entire ‘Bread of Life’ discourse (Jn 6:26-72), is an essential passage of scripture that supports the teaching of Christ present in the Eucharist. Along with scripture, the other proof of the doctrine is tradition. Since the first century, only a brief time after the death of Jesus, Christians linked their celebration of Eucharist with the words of Jesus at the last supper – they celebrated Eucharist as a memorial of Jesus.
In a world that is obsessed with health and fitness and yet, ironically, also experiencing an ever-increasing overweight and obese population, what we eat has come under greater scrutiny than ever before. ‘You are what you eat’ has become a catch cry for healthy eating but Catholics have known the truth of this statement for centuries. When we participate in the Eucharist, we not only receive the body of Christ; we become the body of Christ. The people who make up the Church in the world are indeed the body of Christ. In the words of St Teresa, ‘Christ has no body now but yours!’