What is the scriptural basis for the Eucharist?

Answer 1

John 6:6-77 This the the Bread of Life discourse.

"I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world." The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us (his) flesh to eat?" Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever." These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum. Then many of his disciples who were listening said, "This saying is hard; who can accept it?" Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this, he said to them, "Does this shock you? What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life. But there are some of you who do not believe." Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe and the one who would betray him. And he said, "For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by my Father." As a result of this, many (of) his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. Jesus then said to the Twelve, "Do you also want to leave?" Simon Peter answered him, "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." The Eucharist is much more than a memorial service using Grape Juice and crackers. It is a sacrifice and a meal. The sacrifice comes in two forms: 1) us giving our whole selves to Christ and 2) the continuation of the sacrifice made by Christ of His flesh and blood. The meal is accepting the gift of holy food in the form of the body and blood of Christ. Many Protestant Churches misinterpret John 6 and believe it is symbolic. The passage "It is the spirit that gives life, while the flesh is of no avail. The words I have spoken to you are spirit and life." often confuse people that do not understand that the terms "flesh" and "blood" are used two different ways in the passage. Initially, Jesus is speaking literally of His flesh and blood. This is what we now call the Eucharist. His use of flesh and blood in the last portion is moving to the familiar analogy between flesh (earthly things) and spirit (heavenly things). He is simply stating that His (literal) flesh and blood are of spirit (of heaven) while flesh (all earthly things) are of no use. He is simply telling us that His flesh and blood are spiritual food. Real food! Most Protestant Churches teach the truth about Jesus, but do they teach the whole truth? Are you like one of the followers of Jesus who found this hard to believe? When considering the Catholic Church, remember these powerful words of Christ: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you." Shouldn't your answer be: "Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."

Answer 2

In The Bible there are many Sacraments mentioned. The one we are to concern ourselves with is the Sacrament of the Bread and Water. We partake of it so that we may remember the sacrifice our Lord made for us. The bread represents His Body and the water His Blood. The Sacrament is a time to renew the covenants that we have made with Him, to take upon ourselves His name, to always remember Him and to keep His commandments.

Answer

Roman Catholics believe in seven sacraments: Baptism, confirmation, marriage, ordination, holy communion, penance and extreme unction ('last rites'). However, five of these have no scriptural foundation. The only two which have such providence, the only two that are instituted by Our Lord himself, and the only two recognised by the majority of the Protestant Churches, are Holy Communion and baptism. These are mentioned in the gospels: Holy Communion at the Last Supper where Jesus broke bread and drank wine (representing his broken body and spilt blood) with his disciples commanding them to do that act in remembrance of him, and baptism, at the bapism of Jesus by John the Baptist, where the Holy Spirit descended on him 'as a dove'.

Answer 3

The Eucharist is known by many different names depending upon the denomination of church - such as the Eucharist, the mass, the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion. The rite of Holy Communion dates from the Last Supper of Christ, where he broke bread and drank wine, not as a symbol of the old covenant between God and humanity (as that meal used to be) but as a symbol of the new covenant in Jesus Christ. Therefore, as Jesus asked us to meet together, break bread and drink wine in remembrance of him, Christians all over the world still do this act in memorial of what Christ did for us. The details of the Last Supper can be found in Matthew 26: 17-35, Mark 14 12-26, Luke 22: 7-20 and John 13. 1 Cor 11: 23-25 also shows Paul knew of the New Covenant too in his letter to the Corinthians. There are also several references in Acts of the early church meeting to 'break bread' and, if you visit the catacombs in Rome (where early Christians met for fear of being executed by the Romans), there is a great deal of evidence - including ancient murals - of those Christians meeting to 'break bread' in the same way.

Answer 4

Roman Catholic AnswerThere are many Biblical references to the Eucharist, but the gold standard is the 6th chapter of John, also see Luke 22:19-20; Matt. 26-26-28; Mark 14:22-24, 1 Cor 10:16; 1 Cor 11:27-30.