J
James_S_Saint
Guest
{second inning} Batter up?
I know this, for some, is a very old and perhaps tired issue and I apologize for bring it up once again, but there is a significant philosophical concern for me in this issue.
In most Protestant churches, if not all, the “body of Christ” is said to be the body of Christianity itself. To me, this would mean to truly “consume the body of Christ” would mean that we would have to re-instigate human sacrifice and now and then invite a Christian for dinner perhaps with a little wine sauce.
To be honest, I never got a clear picture of how the “blood of Christ” is understood among the Protestant and have become a little hesitant to ask, but I suspect an answer like “the Holy Spirit, of course” might be the reply.
The well-known ritual of consuming a small bit of cracker and a little wine/grape juice/cool-aid, I have always accepted as merely a ritual and reminder. But then I heard a Catholic proclaim that “no, the consecrated cracker and wine are truly the real body and blood of Jesus himself very literally and if you do not believe that, you are not to participate.”
I could take that as a truth if I were to neglect some far deeper concerns. Of course, I have my own understanding that I demand upon no one, but I would like to know exactly how the Catholic really understands these things, or it is just another “mystery to never be revealed” or “choose what suits your fancy”?
I have no doubt that Jesus had a specific meaning and if misunderstood (by whatever cause) and thus the Church not truly obeying Jesus himself, I would have a serious issue.
I suspect the most common answer would be something like, “it is what the Church tells us it is” and although this might be true, it merely means that the speaker doesn’t really know or understand a very significant concern.
Play Ball!
I know this, for some, is a very old and perhaps tired issue and I apologize for bring it up once again, but there is a significant philosophical concern for me in this issue.
In most Protestant churches, if not all, the “body of Christ” is said to be the body of Christianity itself. To me, this would mean to truly “consume the body of Christ” would mean that we would have to re-instigate human sacrifice and now and then invite a Christian for dinner perhaps with a little wine sauce.
To be honest, I never got a clear picture of how the “blood of Christ” is understood among the Protestant and have become a little hesitant to ask, but I suspect an answer like “the Holy Spirit, of course” might be the reply.
The well-known ritual of consuming a small bit of cracker and a little wine/grape juice/cool-aid, I have always accepted as merely a ritual and reminder. But then I heard a Catholic proclaim that “no, the consecrated cracker and wine are truly the real body and blood of Jesus himself very literally and if you do not believe that, you are not to participate.”
I could take that as a truth if I were to neglect some far deeper concerns. Of course, I have my own understanding that I demand upon no one, but I would like to know exactly how the Catholic really understands these things, or it is just another “mystery to never be revealed” or “choose what suits your fancy”?
I have no doubt that Jesus had a specific meaning and if misunderstood (by whatever cause) and thus the Church not truly obeying Jesus himself, I would have a serious issue.
I suspect the most common answer would be something like, “it is what the Church tells us it is” and although this might be true, it merely means that the speaker doesn’t really know or understand a very significant concern.
Play Ball!
