Am I correct about transubstantiation?

[sambos671]

I’m not sure I really understand the implications of this doctrine. I was reading Justin Martyr and he said in his argument to Caesar that (not a direct quote) as Jesus, God’s word becomes incarnate, the Eucharist (thanksgiving freely offered) is then believed to be Jesus. So if I’m following this right, Justin Martyr believes that Jesus is God. Jesus became incarnate. He became human. We cannot determine his divinity from his human form. He’s human in every way. However, this does not diminish his divine person. He is still divine in every way. So the Eucharist, when consecrated by prayer (Justin Martyr), is Jesus. Jesus is of the same substance as God. And when consecrated, the Eucharist is of the same substance as Jesus. However, it’s still a wafer in everyway just as Jesus was human in everyway. Is this correct?

 

[Fr.Vincent_Serpa]

Hi,

No—incorrect. When the bread and wine are consecrated by the words of the priest, they become the body and blood of Christ. They retain the appearances of bread and wine, but they have been substantially changed into His body and blood. The wafer only appears to be a wafer. It’s appearance, and other physical properties appear to be that of a wafer, but it is actually now the body of Christ. It should no longer be called a wafer.

Fr. Vincent Serpa, O.P.