The 40 Questions Most Frequently Asked
About The Catholic Church
By Non-Catholics
26.Communion -- One Form?
Why do you deny the people the right to receive Communion under the form wine as well as bread?
Protestants argue the necessity for receiving under both forms from three passages of Scripture:
| (1) |
St. John 6:55: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood, has life everlasting." |
| (2) |
St. John 6:57: "He who eats my flesh, and drinks my blood, abides in me and I in him." |
For each one of these passages where eating AND drinking are mentioned together, there is another
passage which mentions eating alone. For example:
| (1) |
St. John 6:59: "He who eats this BREAD shall live forever." |
| (2) |
St. John 6:52: "This BREAD that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." |
The third text used as an argument against the Catholic practice is:
- "Therefore, whoever eats this bread OR DRINKS the cup of the Lord unworthily, will be guilty of the body AND the blood of the Lord." 1 Cor. 11:27
The King James Version changed the reading "OR drink" to "AND drink." However, the reading
"OR drink" has such overwhelming evidence that the King James Revised and the Standard Revised
Versions have gone back to this Catholic reading. The Catholic reading COULD BE
PARAPHRASED as follows, if we break it down into its grammatical parts:
- "Whoever shall eat this BREAD UNWORTHILY, shall be guilty of the body AND the blood of the
Lord."
Likewise:
- "Whosoever shall drink the CHALICE of the Lord unworthily shall be guilty of the body AND the
blood of the Lord."
This is so because Christ is present entirely under EITHER form.
However, the important thing is not the mode of reception, for just as in Baptism, our Lord left the
form to BE DETERMINED by the Apostles and their successors. The important thing in the
reception of Holy Communion is that we receive the Body and Blood of Christ really and actually.
This fundamental fact is ignored in a discussion of the manner of reception.
The truth of the real presence is brought out very clearly in this passage which is so often quoted by
Protestants, 1 Corinthians 11:27, where we read that a person who RECEIVES CHRIST unworthily
is GUILTY of the Body and the Blood of Christ. Without the real presence this passage would be
meaningless. There could he no guilt attached to the reception of a mere memorial.
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