Catholics believe the Eucharist is truly the Body and Blood of Christ. Here's what "transubstantiation" and the "Real Presence" mean, how they differ, and why the Church adores the Eucharist.
Transubstantiation and the Real Presence: Is the Eucharist Really Jesus?
At the heart of the Mass is the belief that the bread and wine become the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ. In this session of The Mass Explained, Dr. Brant Pitre distinguishes two things often confused: the Real Presence (that the whole Christ — Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity — is "truly, really, and substantially" present) and transubstantiation (the Church's word for how the whole substance of bread and wine is changed into Christ, while the outward appearances remain) (CCC 1374–1377). He contrasts this with the three main Protestant views — Zwingli's purely symbolic presence, Calvin's spiritual-only presence, and Luther's "consubstantiation" — and then unfolds the striking Old Testament background of the "Bread of the Presence" (Exodus 25; Leviticus 24), the twelve loaves of "everlasting covenant" set before God in the Temple, fulfilled in the Last Supper as the new Bread of the Presence (Luke 22). He closes with the faith and reverence of the early Church — St. Cyril of Jerusalem ("do not consider them as bare bread and wine"), St. Augustine ("no one eats that flesh without first adoring it"), and St. Thomas Aquinas on how long the Presence lasts.
Key passages & sources examined: the Bread of the Presence (Exodus 25:23–30; Leviticus 24:5–8); David and the Bread of the Presence (Matthew 12:1–6; 1 Samuel 21); the Last Supper as the new Bread of the Presence (Luke 22:19–20); the Catechism on the Real Presence and transubstantiation (CCC 1374–1377); St. Cyril of Jerusalem (Mystagogical Catecheses); St. Augustine on adoring the Eucharist; and St. Thomas Aquinas on the duration of the Presence.
What is transubstantiation? The change of the whole substance of the bread and wine into the substance of Christ's Body and Blood, while the appearances of bread and wine remain (CCC 1376).
What's the difference between transubstantiation and the "Real Presence"? The Real Presence is what results — Christ truly present, Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity; transubstantiation is how the change happens.
How is the Catholic view different from Protestant views? Unlike the purely symbolic (Zwingli), spiritual-only (Calvin), or "alongside the bread" (Luther's consubstantiation) views, the Church teaches the bread and wine are truly changed into Christ himself.
How long does the Real Presence last? As long as the appearances of bread and wine remain (CCC 1377) — which is why the Church reserves and adores the Blessed Sacrament.
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It is a great service to provide the excellent Mass Reading Explained by Dr. Brant Pitre. I like the feature to download the transcript of the video which is very helpful. However, there are some rooms for improvement as followed:
1. The media player's controls are spotty. Very often, the Closed Caption button is not available. Therefore, I could not enable the subtitle.
2. It will be very helpful if the videos can be searched or sorted by the calendar date, and not just the "Number of Sunday in Ordinary Time".
3. It will be nice if you have an app (for both iOS and MacOS) to launch it, such that I do not have to open a web browser and type in the URL address manually every time. I talked to your support folks on this and I was informed that an app is coming soon. Please make sure it supports both iOS and MacOS.
Thank you very much for your hard work.
Yours in Christ
simon
The only thing I'd prefer is to have a search options within the readings/explanations. For example, like youtube, except now that I purchased the service, I'd like to have Sunday explanations for Purgatory or Predestination. It would really help when I'm debating Calvinists because I could resource back to Pitre.
It is a great service to provide the excellent Mass Reading Explained by Dr. Brant Pitre. I like the feature to download the transcript of the video which is very helpful. However, there are some rooms for improvement as followed:
1. The media player's controls are spotty. Very often, the Closed Caption button is not available. Therefore, I could not enable the subtitle.
2. It will be very helpful if the videos can be searched or sorted by the calendar date, and not just the "Number of Sunday in Ordinary Time".
3. It will be nice if you have an app (for both iOS and MacOS) to launch it, such that I do not have to open a web browser and type in the URL address manually every time. I talked to your support folks on this and I was informed that an app is coming soon. Please make sure it supports both iOS and MacOS.
Thank you very much for your hard work.
Yours in Christ
simon
The only thing I'd prefer is to have a search options within the readings/explanations. For example, like youtube, except now that I purchased the service, I'd like to have Sunday explanations for Purgatory or Predestination. It would really help when I'm debating Calvinists because I could resource back to Pitre.
