Ecumenical Convergences on the Eucharist

by William H. Lazareth

This is the seventh of eight articles on the Trinitarian foundations of the Christian faith. In these essays our attention focuses on the Biblical revelation supporting the adoration and praise of the Holy Trinity: one God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity was only later defined by universal Councils as the official dogma of the Church.

We have already noted in article six of this series that “one baptism” is the only sacrament of the Church that is explicitly mentioned in the Nicene Creed. However, in the later Apostle’s Creed, at that very same location treating the churchly work of the Holy Spirit, the communio sanctorum is confessed. Taken in Latin as masculine, this expression can grammatically mean the communion of “holy ones” (members). Taken in Latin as neuter, it can mean the communion of “holy things” (sacraments), within the Church as the Body of Christ. Indeed, in Christ the two meanings are ecclesially inseparable (1.Cor.10:14-17).

Hence, it is now ecumenically agreed that “if the divided churches are to achieve the visible unity they seek, one of the essential prerequisites is that they should be in basic agreement on baptism, eucharist and ministry” (preface to Faith and Order No. 111—see below). After all, these are central actions of the Holy Trinity that graciously enable Christian worship, salvation and service.

Consequently, we now devote our final two articles to the Biblical basis and theological agreements achieved on the doctrines of the eucharist (holy communion, sacrament of the altar, last supper) and the ordained ministry. Continuing our series methodology, the documentation in these essays, in condensed and excerpted form, is mostly derived from the original convergence texts produced over decades by the Faith and Order Commission of the World Council of Churches. These are specifically:

“Confessing the One Faith: An Ecumenical Explication of the Apostolic Faith as it is Confessed in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed” (No. 153, 1991),and “Baptism.Eucharist and Ministry” (No.111, 1982).

The Institution of the Eucharist

The Church receives the eucharist as a gift from the Lord. St. Paul wrote:

I have received from the Lord what I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus on the night when he was betrayed took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said: “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in ‘remembrance’ (anamnesis) of me.” In the same way also he took the cup, after supper, saying: “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.” (I Cor. 11:23-25; cf. Matt. 26:26-29; Mark 14: 22-25; Luke 22: 14-20).

The meals which Jesus is recorded as sharing during his earthy ministry proclaim and enact the nearness of the Kingdom, of which the feeding of the multitudes is a sign. In his last meal, the fellowship of the Kingdom was connected with the imminence of Jesus’ suffering. After his resurrection, the Lord made his presence known to the disciples in the breaking of the bread.

Thus the eucharist continues these meals of Jesus during his earthly life and after his resurrection, always as a sign of the Kingdom.

Christians see the Eucharist prefigured in the Passover memorial of Israel’s deliverance from the land of bondage and in the meal of the Covenant on Mount Sinai (Ex.24). It is the new paschal meal of the Church, the meal of the New Covenant, which Christ gave to his disciples as the “remembrance” (anamnesis) of his death and resurrection, as the anticipation of the Supper of the Lamb (Rev. 19:9).

Christ commanded his disciples thus to remember and encounter him in this sacramental meal, as the continuing people of God, until his return. The last meal celebrated by Jesus was a liturgical meal employing words and actions.

Consequently the eucharist is a sacramental meal which by visible signs communicates to us God’s love in Jesus Christ, the love by which Jesus loved his own “to the end” (John 13:1). It has acquired many names: for example, the Lord’s Supper, the breaking of bread, the holy communion, the divine liturgy, the mass. Its celebration continues as the central act of the Church’s worship.

The Meaning of the Eucharist

The eucharist is essentially the sacrament of the gift which the triune God makes to us in Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. Every Christian receives this gift of salvation through communion in the body and blood of Jesus Christ.

In the eucharistic meal, in the eating and drinking of the bread and wine, Christ grants communion with himself. God himself acts, giving life to the body of Christ and renewing each member. In accordance with Christ’s promise, each baptized member of the body of Christ receives in the eucharist the assurance of the forgiveness of sins (Matt. 26:28) and the pledge of eternal life (John 6:51-58).

Although the eucharist is essentially one complete act, it will here be considered only under the following Trinitarian aspects: thanksgiving to the Father, memorial of Christ, and invocation of the Spirit. Unfortunately, we do not have space here to explore the ecumenical text’s further ecclesial development as communion of the faithful, and as meal of the Kingdom).

The Eucharist as Thanksgiving to the Father

The eucharist, which always includes both word and sacrament, is a proclamation and a celebration of the work of God. It is the great thanksgiving to the Father for everything accomplished in creation, redemption and sanctification, for everything accomplished by God now in the Church and in the world in spite of the sins of human beings, and for everything that God will accomplish in bringing the Kingdom to fulfillment.

Thus the eucharist is the “benediction” (berakah) by which the Church expresses its thankfulness for all of God’s benefits.

The eucharist is the great sacrifice of praise by which the Church speaks on behalf of the whole creation. For the world which God has reconciled is present at every eucharist: in the bread and wine, in the persons of the faithful, and in the prayers they offer for themselves and for all people. Christ unites the faithful with himself and includes their prayers within his own intercession so that the faithful are transfigured and their prayers accepted.

This sacrifice of praise is possible only through Christ, with him and in him. The bread and wine, fruits of the earth and of human labor, are presented to the Father in faith and thanksgiving. The eucharist thus signifies what the world is to become: an offering and hymn of praise to the Creator; a kingdom of justice, love and peace in the Holy Spirit.

The Eucharist as Memorial (Anamnesis) of Christ

The eucharist is the memorial of the crucified and risen Christ, i.e., the living and effective sign of his sacrifice, accomplished once and for all on the cross and still operative on behalf of all humankind. The Biblical idea of “memorial” as applied to the eucharist refers ro this present efficacy of God’s work when it is celebrated in a liturgy.

Christ himself with all that he has accomplished for us and for all creation (in his incarnation, servanthood, ministry, teaching, suffering, sacrifice, resurrection, ascension and sending of the Spirit) is present in this memorial, granting us communion with himself. The eucharist is thus a foretaste of his “return in glory” (parousia) and of the final Kingdom.

The memorial in which Christ acts through the joyful celebration of his Church is therefore both representation and anticipation. It is not only a calling to mind of what is past and of its significance. It is the Church’s effective proclamation of God’s mighty acts and promises.

Representation and anticipation are expressed in thanksgiving and intercession. The Church, gratefully recalling God’s mighty acts of redemption, beseeches God to give the benefits of these acts to every human being. In thanksgiving and intercession, the Church is united with the Son, its great High Priest and Intercessor (Rom.8:34; Heb. 7:25).

The eucharist is the sacrament of the unique sacrifice of Christ, who ever lives to make intercession for us. It is the memorial of all that God has done for the salvation of the world. What it was God’s will to accomplish in the incarnation, life, death, resurrection and ascension of Christ, God does not repeat. These events are unique and can neither be repeated nor prolonged. In the memorial of the eucharist, however, the Church offers its intercession in communion with Christ, our great High Priest.

It is in the light of the significance of the eucharist as intercession that references to the eucharist in Catholic theology as “propitiatory sacrifice” may be understood. The understanding is that there is only one “expiation” (hilasterion), that of the unique sacrifice of the cross, made actual in the eucharist and presented before the Father in the intercession of Christ and of the Church for all humanity.

In the light of this Biblical conception of “memorial” (anamnesis), all churches might want to review the old controversies about “sacrifice,” and deepen their understanding of the reasons why other traditions than their own have either used or rejected this term.

The words and acts of Christ at the institution of the eucharist stand at the heart of the celebration; the eucharistic meal is the sacrament of the body and blood of Christ, the sacrament of his real presence. Christ fulfills in a variety of ways his promise to be always with his own even to the end of the world. But Christ’s mode of presence in the eucharist is unique.

Jesus said over the bread and the wine of the eucharist: “This is my body…This is my blood….” What Christ declared is true, and this truth is fulfilled every time the eucharist is celebrated. The Church confesses Christ’s real, living, and active presence in the eucharist. While Christ’s real presence in the eucharist does not depend on the faith of the individual, all agree that to discern the body and the blood, faith is required.

Many churches believe that by the words of Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit, the bread and the wine of the eucharist become, in a real though mysterious manner, the body and blood of the risen Christ. i.e., of the living Christ present in all his fullness. Under the signs of the bread and wine, the deepest reality is the total being of Christ who comes to us in order to feed us and transform our entire being.

Some other churches, while affirming a real presence of Christ at the eucharist, do not link the presence so definitely with the signs of bread and wine. The decision remains for the churches whether this difference can be accommodated within the convergence formulated in the text itself.

The Eucharist as Invocation of the Spirit

The Spirit makes the crucified and risen Christ really present to us in the eucharistic meal, fulfilling the promise contained in the words of institution.

The presence of Christ is clearly the center of the eucharist, and the promise contained in the words of institution is therefore central to the celebration. Yet it is the Father who is the primary origin and final fulfillment of the eucharistic event. The incarnate Son of God by and in whom it is accomplished is its living center.

The Holy Spirit is the immeasurable strength of love which makes it possible and continues to make it effective. The bond between the eucharistic celebration and the mystery of the triune God reveals the role of the Holy Spirit as that of the One who makes the historical words of Jesus present and alive. Being assured by Jesus’ promise in the words of institution that it will be answered, the Church prays to the Father for the gift of the Holy Spirit in order that the eucharistic event may be a reality: the real presence of the crucified and risen Christ giving his life for all humanity.

It is in virtue of the living word of Christ and by the power of the Holy Spirit that the bread and wine become the sacramental signs of Christ’s body and blood. They remain so for the purpose of communion.

The whole action of the eucharist has an invocational, or “epikletic” (epiklesis) character because it depends solely upon the work of the Holy Spirit. In the words of the liturgy, this aspect of the eucharist finds varied expression. The Church, as the community of the new covenant, confidently invokes the Spirit, in order that it may be sanctified and renewed, lead into all justice, truth and unity, and empowered to fulfill its mission in the world.

The Holy Spirit through the eucharist gives a “foretaste” (arabon) of the Kingdom of God: the Church receives the life of the new creation and the assurance of the Lord’s return.

This is not to spiritualize the eucharistic presence of Christ, but to affirm the indissoluble union between the Son and the Spirit. This union makes it clear that the eucharist is not a magical or mechanical action, but a prayer addressed to the Father, one which emphasizes the Church’s utter dependence.

There is an intrinsic relationship between the words of institution, Christ’s promise and the epiklesis, the invocation of the Spirit, in the liturgy. The epiklesis in relation to the words of institution is located differently in various liturgical traditions.

In the early liturgies, the whole “prayer action” was thought of as bringing about the reality promised by Christ. The invocation of the Spirit was made both on the community and upon the elements of bread and wine. Recovery of such an understanding may help us overcome our difficulties concerning a special moment of consecration.

The best way towards unity in eucharistic celebration and communion is the renewal of the eucharist itself in the different churches in regard to teaching and liturgy. The increased mutual understanding expressed in the present statement may allow some churches to attain a greater measure of eucharistic communion among themselves, and so bring closer the day when Christ’s divided people will be visibly reunited around the Lord’s Table.