Gospel e-Letter

After writing a few sentences about death on my facebook page, someone responded that she did not like what I said. ‘There is nothing to like about it,’ I assured her, ‘except for the glimmer of hope at the end of my entry, namely, that death is not the final word.’ ‘But,’ she replied, ‘that is not what you meant.’ I smiled. Of all people, I should know what I meant. It is so easy to misunderstand or to misinterpret what others say. This applies to the Bible as well as other writings and speeches. The following quotation from Augustine, and a few similar ones, are often used to prove that the doctrine of transubstantiation was already accepted in the early church. That bread which you see on the altar, having been sanctified by the word of God, is the Body of Christ. That chalice, or rather, what is in that chalice, having been sanctified by the word of God, is the Blood of Christ. (Augustine, Sermons, 227). Augustine held that the bread and wine are the body and blood of Chris...

Jesus’ words, ‘This is my body … this is my blood’, can be understood in a figurative sense, namely, ‘The bread represents my body; the cup represents my blood.’ That does not mean that both the literal and figurative meanings are correct, or that we are free to pick and choose whichever interpretation we prefer. However, it would be unwise to exclude either the literal or figurative meaning at the outset. We have to keep both possibilities in mind, and then examine the immediate and broader context for evidence to support each possibility. We can begin by comparing the words of Christ as recorded by the evangelists and the apostle Paul. We note that the four gospels often record the same event and the same speech in different ways. The different perspectives help us get a more complete picture. If we look at Jesus’ words about the cup, both Matthew and Mark quote Jesus as saying, ‘This is my blood’. ‘For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for...

What did our Lord mean when he said, ‘This is my body … this is my blood’? Was he speaking literally or figuratively? It is not my intention to prove conclusively that the figurative interpretation is correct. The issue is complex and it deserves our serious consideration of the relevant biblical texts. I hope that this short letter will shed some light on this question and encourage you to study the subject further. It is quite obvious, one may argue, that Jesus is not speaking figuratively. He emphatically said, ‘This is my body.’ He did not say, ‘This represents my body,’ or ‘This is a sign of my body.’ Similarly, he said, ‘This is my blood’, and not, ‘This is a symbol of my blood’. A Catholic website states, ‘The grammatical construction of the phrases, This is My Body, and This is My Blood, does not admit of a figurative or symbolic meaning. When the verb to be is used, the antecedent must always be identical with the consequent, i.e., This must be identical with My Body...

(Gospel e-Letter - August 2009) Some Catholic apologists claim that the prophecy in Malachi 1:11 is fulfilled in the Roman Catholic sacrifice of the Mass. A footnote in the New American Bible says that this verse is a reference to ‘the pure offering to be sacrificed in messianic times, the universal Sacrifice of the Mass, as we are told by the Council of Trent.’ The scripture reads: My name will be great among the nations, from the rising to the setting of the sun. In every place incense and pure offerings will be brought to my name, because my name will be great among the nations, says the LORD Almighty. (NIV) A Catholic translation of the same verse reads: For from the rising of the sun, even to its setting, my name is great among the nations; And everywhere they bring sacrifice to my name, and a pure offering; For great is my name among the nations, says the LORD of hosts. (NAB) The Jews and their priests despised and profaned God’s name by offering blemished animals while keeping t...

How can we eat the flesh of Jesus according to the context of John chapter 6? Eating the Eucharistic Bread 54 (64%) Believing in the Lord Jesus 30 (35%) Total votes: 84. Poll closed. Comments: The context of John 6 clearly favours the latter option. We 'eat' and 'drink' of Christ's body and blood by believing on him. The Eucharist, as important as it is in the life of the church, is not the focus of Jesus discourse and indeed it was not as yet established (until a couple of years later during the Last Supper). The unbelieving Jews understood Jesus' words incorrectly. They misunderstood him because they would not believe in him as the Son of God sent from heaven. Augustine puts it vividly: It seemed unto them hard that He said, ‘Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, ye have no life in you:’ they received it foolishly, they thought of it carnally, and imagined that the Lord would cut off parts from His body, and give unto them; and they said, ‘This...