![]() ![]() Ignatius said these people abstained from theĮucharist because they did not accept what true Christians believe, that in the Eucharist is the same Jesus Christ Who lived and died and rose from the dead for our salvation. ![]() It is actually the Body and Blood of Christ according to "the tradition which I handed on to you that came to me from the Lord Himself" (I Corinthians II: 23-26).Īt the turn of the first century, Ignatius of Antioch, on his way to martyrdom in Rome, had to warn the Christians not to be taken in by the Gnostics-a good modern term would be "visionaries," who denied the Real Presence. He reminded them that the Eucharist is no ordinary food. Paul's letter to the Corinthians rebuked them for making the Agape, which should have been a beautiful sign of unity, into an occasion of discord. "Lord," he answered, "to whom shall we go?" (John 6:66-68). Understand any more than those who left Christ, but his loyalty was more firm. The skepticism of Christ's followers, when He preached the reality of His Body and Blood as food and drink, made John record the fact that "many of His disciples withdrew and no longer went about with Him." Seeing this, Jesus asked the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave me?" Simon Peter did not They made it plain to the apostolic Church that the Eucharistic elements were literally Jesus Christ continuing His saving mission among men. Whatever I have said to you" (John 14:25).īelief in the real, physical presence of Christ in the Eucharist grew out of the teaching of the evangelists and St. He will teach you all things, and bring to your mind We are now witnessing what can only be described as the work of the Holy Spirit, Whom Christ promised, "the Father will send in My name. Our purpose in this short study is to show how the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist has undergone a marvelous development over the centuries. But through the light of the Holy Spirit, the subjective understanding of the truth becomes more clear, its meaning becomes more certain and its grasp by the believing mind becomes increasingly more firm. Adoration of the Eucharist, therefore, is simply another, though dramatic, example of doctrinal development.Īlways implied in such progress is that, objectively, the revealed truth remains constant and unchanged. The whole spectrum of Christology and Mariology has witnessed such dogmatic progress. Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, whom Christ promised to send to teach us, the Church comes to see more deeply what she had always believed, and the resulting insights find expression in devotion of the faithful that may have been quite uncommon in the Church's previous history. But it needs to be explained, and the explanation is a classic example of what we call development of doctrine.īy development of doctrine, we mean that some divinely revealed truth has become more deeply understood and more clearly perceived than it had been before. It is authentic Catholic doctrine and it rests on the unchangeable truth of our revealed faith. What to make of all of this? Is this another form of pious eccentricity, or is it founded on authentic Catholic doctrine and grounded on the solid rock of Christian revelation? Nocturnal Adoration societies, Perpetual Adoration groups, national associations of the faithful promoting organized visits to the Blessed Sacrament, Holy Hours before the tabernacle, monthly, weekly and even daily exposition of the Eucharist in churches and chapels, in one country after another, have become commonplace. The phenomenal growth of devotion to the Real Presence of Christ in the Holy Eucharist has puzzled not a few sincere people. WHY DEVELOPMENT OF EUCHARISTIC DOCTRINEĮxperienced Benefits of Eucharistic Adoration ![]()
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