Understanding and Celebrating the Eucharist
In the 1963 movie The Cardinal, towards the end of the film, you will remember that when the Nazi soldiers were trying to break open the front door in order to loot and destroy the Church, the protagonist Fr Stephen played by Tom Tryon, turns to his fellow clergymen and says, “Let’s save the Blessed Sacrament”. They would then go into the sanctuary and consume the Holy Eucharist before the Nazi soldiers would get to it. This scene clearly shows how important the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist is to a Catholic.
The Theology of Sacraments
Most Catholics are familiar with the seven sacraments recognised by the Catholic Church. According to the Church, the Sacraments are the visible and efficacious signs of Divine Grace instituted by Christ himself and are necessary for the salvation of the soul.
However, the theological view on the sacraments varies widely across the different denominations within Christianity. For example, the Anglicans recognise only two sacraments within their communion as essential – namely, Baptism and the Eucharist, which they call the Lord’s Supper, as the Sacraments of the Gospel. The remaining five sacraments recognised by Catholic and Eastern Orthodox Churches are mentioned in the Thirty-Nine Articles as not essential to the salvation of the soul.
The Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church
If you are a Catholic, you would probably know the Seven Sacraments by heart: Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Eucharist, Confession, Matrimony, Holy Orders and the Anointing of the Sick. While most of us will receive at least six of these Seven Sacraments, the luckiest among us will be blessed to receive all of them. I know a Priest who went on to take the Holy Orders after his wife passed away in childbirth.
All these sacraments are recognised by the Eastern Orthodox as well as the Oriental Orthodox Churches. As already mentioned, the Anglican Church only considers the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper as the essential Sacraments of the Gospel. The Lutherans also hold the same theological view on the sacraments as the Anglicans.
Holy Eucharist is the source and summit of the Catholic life
To the Catholics, the Holy Eucharist is the most important of all the sacraments. The Catechism refers to the Holy Eucharist as the source and summit of the Christian life. According to Catholic doctrine, the Holy Eucharist is the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ and should be treated with utmost respect. As mentioned above, in the movie The Cardinal, they were able to capture and convey this message very effectively.
To get a more thorough understanding of the theology of the Holy Eucharist, I recommend you read Do This In Memory Of Me by Fr Victor George D’Souza.
