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Christianity is the best faith in the universe. Trust me. Jesus loves his people. He showed this by dying on the cross to save us from sin! That's my God and it should be your God as well.
{{Main|Mass in the Catholic Church}}
[[File:Ecce Agnus Dei.jpg|thumb|''[[Agnus Dei (liturgy)|Ecce Agnus Dei]]'' during a [[Solemn Mass|Solemn High]] [[Tridentine Mass]]]]
{{Eucharist}}
The '''Eucharist in the Islamic Church''' is a [[Sacrament]] celebrated as "the death of you" of the very prestigus
Christian life.<ref>[[Catechism of the Catholic Church]] §1324</ref><ref>[[Lumen Gentium]] §11</ref><ref>[[Presbyterorum Ordinis]] §5</ref> The Eucharist is celebrated daily (except on [[Good Friday]], when consecration takes place on [[Maundy Thursday]], but is distributed during [[Mass of the Presanctified|the Mass of the Presanctified]]) during the celebration of [[Mass (Catholic Church)|Mass]], the eucharistic [[Catholic liturgy|liturgy]]. The term ''[[Eucharist]]'' is also used for the bread and wine when [[transubstantiation|transubstantiated]] (their substance having been changed), according to Catholic teaching, into the [[Blessed Sacrament|body and blood]] of [[Jesus|Jesus Christ]]. "At the Last Supper, on the night he was betrayed, our Saviour instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of his Body and Blood."<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church §1323</ref>

''[[Blessed Sacrament]]'' is a [[Catholic devotions|devotional]] term used in the [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic Church]] to refer to the eucharistic [[Accident (philosophy)#Aristotle|species]] (the Body and Blood of Christ).<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm CCC §1330] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818210304/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm |date=August 18, 2016 }}</ref> Consecrated [[host (Holy Communion)|host]]s are kept in a [[Church tabernacle|tabernacle]] after Mass, so that the Blessed Sacrament can be brought to the sick and dying outside the time of Mass. This makes possible also the practice of [[eucharistic adoration]]. Because Christ himself is present in the sacrament of the altar, he is to be honored with the worship of adoration. "To visit the Blessed Sacrament is ... a proof of gratitude, an expression of love,... and a duty of adoration toward Christ our Lord."<ref>CCC §1418</ref>

==Dogmatic Nature==

Dogma includes [[divine revelation]], i.e., the word of God (bible and tradition) and the word of God incarnate (Jesus),<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p1s1c2a2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church 97] "Sacred Tradition and Sacred Scripture make up a single sacred deposit of the Word of God" (DV 10) in which, as in a mirror, the pilgrim Church contemplates God, the source of all her riches.</ref><ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p1s1c2a1.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church 73] God has revealed himself fully by sending his own Son, in whom he has established his covenant for ever. The Son is his Father's definitive Word; so there will be no further Revelation after him.</ref> and truths connected to divine revelation.<ref>[http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p1s1c2a2.htm#88 Catechism of the Catholic Church 88] ...dogmas, that is,...truths contained in divine Revelation or also...truths having a necessary connection with these.</ref> Dogma is immutable.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s1c2a2.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church 1205] "In the liturgy, above all that of the sacraments, there is an immutable part, a part that is divinely instituted and of which the Church is the guardian, and parts that can be changed, which the Church has the power and on occasion also the duty to adapt to the cultures of recently evangelized peoples."</ref> Of the Eucharist, there are certain matters that are dogma and certain matters that are not, for example, transubstantiation is dogma but how transubstantiation happens is not dogma.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church 1375] It is by the conversion of the bread and wine into Christ's body and blood that Christ becomes present in this sacrament. The Church Fathers strongly affirmed the faith of the Church in the efficacy of the Word of Christ and of the action of the Holy Spirit to bring about this conversion.</ref> An incomplete list of Eucharistic dogmas include:
* Jesus instituting the Eucharist (1 Cor 11:23-25)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/1corinthians/11 1 Cor 11:23-25] For I received from the Lord what I also handed on to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night he was handed over, took bread, and, after he had given thanks, broke it and said, “This is my body that is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”</ref>
* Jesus being the Eucharist (Luke 22:19-20)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/luke22 Luke 22:19-20] Then he took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me.” And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you</ref>
* Jesus celebrating the Eucharist after the Resurrection (Luke 24:30-31)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/luke/luke24.htm Luke 24:30-31] And it happened that, while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him, but he vanished from their sight. </ref>
* the Eucharist being the re-presentation of Jesus' Sacrifice (1 Cor 11:26)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/1corinthians/11 1 Cor 11:26] For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes. </ref>
* mortal sin prohibiting one from receiving the Eucharist (1 Cor 11:27)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/1corinthians/11 1 Cor 11:27] Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord.*</ref>
* Baptism and Confession proceeding the Eucharist (1 Cor 11:28-30)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/readings/bible/1corinthians/11 1 Cor 11:28-30] A person should examine himself, and so eat the bread and drink the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself. 30That is why many among you are ill and infirm, and a considerable number are dying. </ref>
* the Eucharist being affected by Jesus' love (1 Cor 13:1-3)<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/bible/1corinthians/13 1 Cor 13:1-3] If I speak in human and angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a resounding gong or a clashing cymbal. And if I have the gift of prophecy and comprehend all mysteries and all knowledge; if I have all faith so as to move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. If I give away everything I own, and if I hand my body over so that I may boast but do not have love, I gain nothing.</ref>

==New Testament foundations==
[[File:Fractio-panis1.JPG|thumb|left|The Breaking of Bread (''fractio panis'') in the Eucharist<ref>"The meaning of the sign demands that the material for the Eucharistic celebration truly have the appearance of food. It is therefore expedient that the Uucharistic bread, even though unleavened and baked in the traditional shape, be made in such a way that the priest at Mass with a congregation is able in practice to break it into parts for distribution to at least some of the faithful. Small hosts are, however, in no way ruled out when the number of those receiving Holy Communion or other pastoral needs require it. The action of the fraction or breaking of bread, which gave its name to the Eucharist in apostolic times, will bring out more clearly the force and importance of the sign of unity of all in the one bread, and of the sign of charity by the fact that the one bread is distributed among the brothers and sisters." [http://www.acbc.catholic.org.au/documents/200707031933.pdf General Instruction of the Roman Missal] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080720091216/http://www.acbc.catholic.org.au/documents/200707031933.pdf |date=July 20, 2008 }}, 321.</ref> at a [[Neocatechumenal Way]] celebration]]

===The First Eucharist in Scripture===
The Catholic Church sees as the main basis for this belief the words of Jesus himself at his [[Last Supper]]: the [[Synoptic Gospels]] ({{Bibleverse||Matthew|26-28|NAB}}; {{Bibleverse||Mark|14:22-24|NAB}}; {{Bibleverse||Luke|22:19-20|NAB}}) and [[Paul of Tarsus|Saint Paul's]] {{Bibleverse|1|Corinthians|11:23-25|NAB}} recount that in that context Jesus said of what to all appearances were bread and wine: "This is my body … this is my blood." The Catholic understanding of these words, from the Patristic authors onward, has emphasized their roots in the covenantal history of the Old Testament.

The [[Gospel of John]] in Chapter 6, ''The Discourse on the Bread of Life'', presents [[Jesus]] as saying: "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 remains in me and I in him" ({{Bibleverse||John|6:53-56|NAB}}). According to John, Jesus did not tone down these sayings, even when many of his disciples abandoned him (John {{Bibleverse-nb||John|6:66|NAB}}), shocked at the idea.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994) 1336</ref>

[[Saint Paul]] implied an identity between the apparent bread and wine of the Eucharist and the body and blood of Christ, when he wrote: "The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? ({{Bibleverse|1|Corinthians|10:16|NAB}})." and elsewhere: "Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord" ({{Bibleverse|1|Corinthians|11:27|NAB}}).

Moreover, and uniquely, in the one prayer given to posterity by Jesus, the [[Lord's Prayer]], the word [[epiousios]]—which does not exist elsewhere in Classical Greek literature—has been linguistically [[parsed]] to mean "super-substantial" (bread), and interpreted by the Vatican as a reference to the [[Bread of Life]], the Eucharist.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p4s2a3.htm CCC §2837]</ref>

===Other New Testament accounts of the Eucharist===
Accounts of Eucharist services in the New Testament are often, though not always, denoted by the phrase "the Breaking of Bread."<ref>{{CCC|1329|long=yes}}</ref> The first example, after the Last Supper, of this phrase used in a way that recalls a Eucharist celebration occurs when, in the Gospel of Luke, the resurrected Christ walked with two disciples on their way to Emmaus (see: [[Road to Emmaus appearance]]). The disciples were unable to recognize him for who he was until "while he was at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that their eyes were opened and they recognized him. ({{Bibleverse||Luke|24:30-31|NAB}})" After this they returned to Jerusalem, where "the two recounted what had taken place on the way and how he was made known to them in the breaking of the bread. ({{Bibleverse||Luke|24:35|NAB}})" This same phrase is used to describe a core activity of the first Christian community: "They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to prayers... every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes" ({{Bibleverse||Acts|2:42-47|NAB}}).

==Old Testament prefigurings==
{{Commons category|Biblia pauperum}}
Early medieval block-printed Catholic prayer books or [[psalters]] contained many illustrations of pairings of prefigurings of the events of the New Testament in the Old Testament, a form known as biblical typology. In an age when most Christians were illiterate, these visual depictions came to be known as [[biblia pauperum]], or poor man's bibles. The Bible itself was predominantly a liturgical book used at Mass, costly to produce and illuminate by hand. The custom of praying the [[Liturgy of the Hours]] spread to those who could afford the prayer books required to follow the textual cycle that mirrored the pastoral seasons of Jewish temple worship.

[[File:LOC SHS.jpg|thumb|The Speculum humane salvationis contains illustrations of related scenes from the Old and New Testament]]

Saint [[Thomas Aquinas]] taught that the most obvious Old Testament prefiguring of the ''sign'' aspect of the Eucharist was the action of [[Melchizedek]] in {{bibleverse||Genesis|14:18}}, that all the Old Testament sacrifices, especially that of the [[Day of Atonement]], prefigured the ''content'' of the sacrament, namely Christ himself sacrificed for us, and that the [[manna]] was a special prefiguration of the ''effect'' of the sacrament as grace; but he said that the paschal lamb was the outstanding type or figure of the Eucharist under all three aspects of sign, content and effect.<ref>[http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&tbo=1&q=Aquinas+Barden+%22outstanding+type%22&btnG=Search+Books Thomas Aquinas, ''Summa Theologica'' III, q. 73, art. 6]</ref>

[[File:Pfister_Biblia_Pauperum.jpg|left|thumb|The reverence Moses showed before the burning bush on Mt. Sinai is equated with the adoration of the Shepherds and the priest celebrating the sacrifice of the Mass.]]

Concerning the first of the Old Testament prefigurations that Aquinas mentioned, Melchizedek's action in bringing out bread and wine for Abraham has been seen, from the time of [[Clement of Alexandria]] (c.150 - c. 215), as a foreshadowing of the bread and wine used in the sacrament of the Eucharist,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=2tnEgSfuq_MC&pg=PA89 Horton, Fred L., ''The Melchizedek Tradition''] (Cambridge University Press 2005 {{ISBN|978-0-521-01871-5}}), p. 89</ref>{{sfn|Crockett|1989|p=75}} and so "the Church sees in the gesture of the king-priest Melchizedek, who 'brought out bread and wine', a prefiguring of her own offering" (in the Eucharist).<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P3Z.HTM CCC §1333]</ref>

The second prefiguration mentioned by Aquinas is that of the Old Testament sacrifices, especially that on the Day of Atonement. Other theologians too see these as foreshadowing the Eucharist.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=TFML2HYN8j0C&pg=PA105 Nash, Tom. ''Worthy Is the Lamb''] (Ignatius Press 2004 {{ISBN|978-0-89870-994-0}}), 105</ref> They point out that Jesus "himself said, as he committed to the Apostles the Divine Eucharist during the Last Supper, 'This is my blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins'."<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=clcAYIDSQnAC&pg=PA74 Tyneh, Carl S., ''Orthodox Christianity''] (Nova Science 2002 {{ISBN|978-1-59033-466-9}}), p. 74, quoting {{bibleverse||Matthew|26:28}}</ref>

The [[manna]] that fed the Israelites in the wilderness is also seen as a symbol of the Eucharist.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=PqvAzJVBrDMC&pg=PA18 Arinze, Francis, ''Celebrating the Holy Eucharist''] (Ignatius Press 2006 {{ISBN|978-1-58617-158-2}}), p. 18</ref> The connection between that sign and the Eucharist is seen as having been made both in {{bibleverse||John|6}} and also in the version of the [[Lord's Prayer]] in the [[Gospel of Luke]]: where the version in the [[Gospel of Matthew]] speaks of ''[[epiousios]]'' bread, the Lucan version speaks of "bread for each day", interpreted as a reminiscence of {{bibleverse||Exodus|16:19-21}}, which recounts that the manna was gathered in amounts sufficient only for a single day.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=j1BjjBe4dL4C&pg=PA192 LaVerdiere, Eugene. ''The Eucharist in the New Testament and the Early Church''] (Liturgical Press 1996 {{ISBN|978-0-8146-6152-9}}), p. 192</ref> Saint [[Ambrose]] saw the Eucharist prefigured both by the manna that provided food and by the water from the rock that gave drink to the Israelites.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=5ncOiWK48YsC&pg=PA39 O'Connor, James Thomas. ''The Hidden Manna''] (Ignatius Press 2005 {{ISBN|978-1-58617-076-9}}), pp. 37-38</ref>{{sfn|Crockett|1989|p=76}}

The ritual of Passover night described in Exodus contains two main physical elements: a sacrificial lamb "male and without blemish" and unleavened bread ({{Bibleverse||Exodus|12:1-10|NAB}}). In addition to this ritual for Passover night itself, Exodus prescribed a "perpetual institution" associated with the Passover that is celebrated by feasts of unleavened bread ({{Bibleverse||Exodus|12:14-20|NAB}}). The New Testament book of 1 Corinthians represents the Passover in terms of Christ: "... For our paschal lamb, Christ, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. ({{Bibleverse|1|Corinthians|5:7-8|NAB}}" Christ is the new lamb, and the Eucharist is the new bread of the Passover.<ref>Hahn, Scott. The Lamb's Supper. New York: Doubleday, 1999. p 14-27.</ref><ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 1994) 1334</ref>

Among the many proscription of the Old Testament Law that affirm the covenant, one stands out, being called "most sacred among the various oblations to the Lord " : a sacrifice of bread anointed with oil. "Regularly on each Sabbath day this bread shall be set out afresh before the Lord, offered on the part of the Israelites by an everlasting agreement. ({{Bibleverse||Leviticus|24:5-9|NAB}})" Since the time of [[Origen]], some theologians have seen this "showbread" as a prefiguring of the Eucharist described in [[wikisource:Bible (American Standard)/Luke#22:19|Luke 22:19]].<ref>Salza, John. The Biblical Basis for the Eucharist. Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division: Huntinton Indiana. 2008. bottom of page 104 to middle of p 106.</ref><ref>Origen of Alexandria, On Leviticus 13. Quoted in Aquilian, Mike. The Mass of the Early Christians. Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division: Huntington Indiana. 2007.</ref><ref>Aquilian, Mike. The Mass of the Early Christians. Our Sunday Visitor Publishing Division: Huntington Indiana. 2007. p25-27</ref>

== Eucharist in the Mass ==
{{for|the structure of the Mass in the [[Roman Rite]] of the Church|Mass (Catholic Church)}}
{{for|the structure of the Mass in the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]]|Divine Liturgy}}
{{for|the reforms of the Roman-Rite Mass after the [[Second Vatican Council]]|Mass of Paul VI}}
{{for|the structure of the Mass before the Second Vatican Council|Tridentine Mass}}

=== Sacrifice ===

According to the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church "The Eucharist is the very sacrifice of the Body and Blood of the Lord Jesus which he instituted to perpetuate the sacrifice of the cross throughout the ages until his return in glory. Thus he entrusted to his Church this memorial of his death and Resurrection. It is a sign of unity, a bond of charity, a paschal banquet, in which Christ is consumed, the mind is filled with grace, and a pledge of future glory is given to us."<ref>{{cite web |title=Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church |url=http://www.vatican.va/archive/compendium_ccc/documents/archive_2005_compendium-ccc_en.html#The%20sacraments%20of%20Christian%20initiation |website=www.vatican.va |accessdate=28 December 2018}}</ref>

The consecration of the bread (known afterwards as the [[sacramental bread|Host]]) and wine represents the memorial of Christ's Passover, the making present and the sacramental offering of his unique sacrifice, in the liturgy of the Church which is his Body... the ''memorial'' is not merely the recollection of past events but ... they become in a certain way present and real. When the Church celebrates the Eucharist, she commemorates Christ's Passover, and it is made present the sacrifice Christ offered once for all on the cross remains ever present. The Eucharist is thus a sacrifice because it re-presents (makes present) the sacrifice of the cross, because it is its memorial and because it applies its fruit. The sacrifice of Christ and the sacrifice of the Eucharist are one single sacrifice: "The victim is one and the same: the same now offers through the ministry of priests, who then offered himself on the cross; only the manner of offering is different." "And since in this divine sacrifice which is celebrated in the Mass, the same Christ who offered himself once in a bloody manner on the altar of the cross is contained and is offered in an unbloody manner. . . this sacrifice is truly propitiatory." <ref>{{cite web |title=Catechism of the Catholic Church - The sacrament of the Eucharist # 1362-1367|url=http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p2s2c1a3.htm |website=www.vatican.va |accessdate=28 December 2018}}</ref>

=== Transubstantiation ===
[[File:Mass at Lourdes.jpg|thumb|Mass at the Grotto at [[Lourdes]]. The chalice is displayed to the people immediately after the consecration of the wine.]]

{{main article|Transubstantiation}}
According to the [[Catholic Church]], when the bread and wine are [[consecration|consecrated]] by the priest at Mass, they cease to be bread and wine, and become instead the Most Precious [[Body of Christ|Body]] and [[Blood of Christ|Blood]] of Christ by the power of the [[Holy Spirit]] and by the words of Christ. The empirical appearances and attributes are not changed, but the underlying reality is.

However, since according to Catholic [[dogma]] Christ has risen, the Church teaches that his body and blood are no longer truly separated, even if the appearances of the bread and the wine are. Where one is, the other must be. This is called the [[Concomitance (doctrine)|doctrine of concomitance]]. Therefore, although the priest (or minister) says, "The body of Christ", when administering the host, and, "The blood of Christ", when presenting the chalice, the communicant who receives either one receives Christ, whole and entire— "Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity".

Transubstantiation (from [[Latin language|Latin]] ''transsubstantiatio'') is the ''change of the [[Substance theory|substance]]'' of bread and wine into that of the body and blood of [[Jesus|Christ]], the change that, according to the belief of the Catholic Church, occurs during the consecration by the power of the Holy Spirit and by the words of Christ. It concerns ''what'' is changed (the substance of the bread and wine), not ''how'' the change is brought about.

"Substance" here means what something is in itself. (For more on the philosophical concept, see [[Substance theory]].) A hat's shape is not the hat itself, nor is its colour the hat, nor is its size, nor its softness to the touch, nor anything else about it perceptible to the senses. The hat itself (the "substance") ''has'' the shape, the colour, the size, the softness and the other appearances, but is distinct from them. Whereas the appearances, which are referred to by the philosophical term ''[[accident (philosophy)|accidents]]'' are perceptible to the senses, the substance is not.

When at his [[Last Supper]] Jesus said: "This is my body", what he held in his hands had all the appearances of bread. However, the Catholic Church teaches that the underlying reality was changed in accordance with what Jesus said, that the "substance" of the bread was converted to that of his body. In other words, it ''actually was'' his body, while all the appearances open to the senses or to scientific investigation were still those of bread, exactly as before. The Church believes that the same change of the substance of the bread and of the wine occurs at every Catholic [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] throughout the world.

[[File:The Virgin Adoring the Host MET DP136074.jpg|thumb|left|''Virgin Mary by the Host'' by [[Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres]]]]

The Catholic Church accordingly believes that through transubstantiation Christ is really, truly and substantially present under the appearances of bread and wine, and that the transformation remains as long as the appearances remain. For this reason the consecrated elements are preserved, generally in a [[church tabernacle]], for giving Holy Communion to the sick and dying, and also for the secondary, but still highly lauded, purpose of [[Eucharistic adoration|adoring Christ present in the Eucharist]].

In the judgment of the Catholic Church, the concept of transubstantiation, with its accompanying unambiguous distinction between "substance" or underlying reality, and "[[Accident (philosophy)|accidents]]" or humanly perceptible appearances, safeguards against what it sees as the mutually opposed errors of, on the one hand, a merely figurative understanding of the [[Real Presence]] of Christ in the Eucharist (the change of the substance is real), and, on the other hand, an interpretation that would amount to [[cannibalism|cannibalistic]] (a charge which pagans leveled at early Catholic Christians who did not understand the rites of the Catholic Church in that it was considered an "unbloody sacrifice") eating of the flesh and corporal drinking of the blood of Christ (the accidents that remain are real, not an illusion) and that in the Eucharist "the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained." "This presence is called 'real' - by which is not intended to exclude the other types of presence as if they could not be 'real' too, but because it is presence in the fullest sense: that is to say, it is a substantial presence by which Christ, God and man, makes himself wholly and entirely present."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P41.HTM CCC 1374] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150101045530/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P41.HTM |date=January 1, 2015 }}</ref>

Some{{Who|date=February 2018}} put forward the idea that transubstantiation is a concept intelligible only in terms of Aristotelian philosophy. But the earliest known use of the term "transubstantiation" to describe the change from bread and wine to body and blood of Christ was by [[Hildebert|Hildebert de Lavardin]], Archbishop of Tours (died 1133) in about 1079, long before the Latin West, under the influence especially of Saint [[Thomas Aquinas]] (c. 1227-1274), accepted [[Aristotelianism]]. (The University of Paris was founded only between 1150 and 1170.) The term "substance" (''substantia'') as the ''reality'' of something was in use from the earliest centuries of Latin Christianity, as when they spoke of the Son as being of the same "substance" (''consubstantialis'') as the Father.<ref>"Substance" continued to be used to mean the reality of something, and there are writings from the ninth century (by [[Radbertus]], [[Ratramnus]] and [[Rabanus Maurus]]) that use the word to refer to the reality of the Eucharist. "Around the year 860 A.D. (400 yrs before Aquinas), we have the writings of renowned teacher, St. Paschasius Radbertus. A foundling, who became schoolmaster and abbot of Corbie in Picardy, France, he was a voluminous writer, and the author of the first speculative treatise on Transubstantiation (although this Latin word was not invented until the first half of the 13th Century). However, Radbertus did use the word 'substance' in his famous book, ''On the Body and Blood of the Lord''. He taught, echoing the Church fathers, that after the words of Consecration, through the conversion of the substance, there is present on the altar the Eucharistic Body of Christ which is identical with His historical Body. This 9th-century theologian, who was not an Aristotelian (like Aquinas), nor much influenced by philosophy of any kind, used the word 'substance' to mean the reality that makes a thing what it is: so, after Consecration, it is no longer true to say, 'This is bread', but rather, as Jesus said, 'This is my Body'." (Kalberer, ''Lives of the Saints'').</ref> The corresponding Greek term is "οὐσία" the Son is said to be "ὁμοούσιος" with the Father and the change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ is called "μετουσίωσις". The doctrine of transubstantiation is thus independent of Aristotelian philosophical concepts, and these were not and are not [[dogma]]ta of the Church.

=== Minister of the sacrament ===
[[File:Tatiana Communion2.jpg|thumb|right|[[priesthood|Roman Catholic priest]] in Sicily distributing the Eucharist to a child at her first Holy Communion]]

The only minister of the Eucharist (someone who can consecrate the Eucharist) is a validly ordained [[priesthood (Catholic Church)|priest]]<ref>canon 900, CIC 1983</ref> ([[Bishop (Catholic Church)|bishop]] or [[presbyter]]). He acts [[in persona Christi|in the person of Christ]], representing Christ, who is the Head of the Church, and also acts before God in the name of the Church.<ref>Canon 899, CIC 1983</ref> Several priests may [[Concelebration (Catholic Church)|concelebrate]] the same offering of the Eucharist.<ref>Canon 902, CIC 1983</ref>

Others, who are not priests, may act as [[extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion]], distributing the sacrament to others, but not as ministers of the Eucharist, ordinary or extraordinary. "By reason of their sacred Ordination, the ordinary ministers of Holy Communion are the Bishop, the Priest and the Deacon, to whom it belongs therefore to administer Holy Communion to the lay members of Christ's faithful during the celebration of Mass. In addition to the ordinary ministers there is the formally instituted [[acolyte]], who by virtue of his institution is an extraordinary minister of Holy Communion even outside the celebration of Mass. If, moreover, reasons of real necessity prompt it, another lay member of Christ's faithful may also be delegated by the diocesan Bishop, in accordance with the norm of law, for one occasion or for a specified time. Finally, in special cases of an unforeseen nature, permission can be given for a single occasion by the Priest who presides at the celebration of the Eucharist."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html ''Redemptionis Sacramentum'', 154-155] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080203210044/http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html |date=February 3, 2008 }}; cf. also [http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/laity/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html Instruction ''Ecclesiae de mysterio'', article 8]</ref>

"Extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion" are not to be called "Eucharistic ministers", even extraordinary ones,<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html ''Redemptionis Sacramentum'', 156] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080203210044/http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html |date=February 3, 2008 }}</ref> since that would imply that they, too, somehow transubstantiate the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ.

"Extraordinary ministers may distribute Holy Communion at eucharistic celebrations only when there are no ordained ministers present or when those ordained ministers present at a liturgical celebration are truly unable to distribute Holy Communion. They may also exercise this function at eucharistic celebrations where there are particularly large numbers of the faithful and which would be excessively prolonged because of an insufficient number of ordained ministers to distribute Holy Communion."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/laity/documents/rc_con_interdic_doc_15081997_en.html Instruction ''Ecclesiae de mysterio'', article 8]</ref> "Only when there is a necessity may extraordinary ministers assist the Priest celebrant in accordance with the norm of law."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html ''Redemptionis Sacramentum'', 88] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080203210044/http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html |date=February 3, 2008 }}</ref>

During the administration of the Eucharist, the celebrant and the believers are used to perform a liturgical chant, with a possibile instrumental arccompaniement. Among its oldest and most solemn eucharistic liturgical forms, the Roman Catholic Church annoverates the following [[Latin]] hymns: [[Adoro te devote]], [[Ave verum corpus]], [[Lauda Sion Salvatorem]], [[Pange lingua]], [[O sacrum convivium]], [[O salutaris Hostia]], [[Panis Angelicus]].

===Receiving the Eucharist===
"A person who is conscious of grave sin ([[mortal sin]]) is not to celebrate Mass or receive the body of the Lord without previous sacramental confession unless there is a grave reason and there is no opportunity to confess; in this case the person is to remember the obligation to make an act of perfect contrition which includes the resolution of confessing as soon as possible." <ref>Code of Canon Law, canon [http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM 916] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628182123/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM |date=June 28, 2011 }}</ref> Catholics must receive the Eucharist at least once a year - if possible, during Eastertide -<ref>[http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p2s2c1a3.htm#1389 Catechism of the Catholic Church 1389] The Church obliges the faithful to...receive the Eucharist at least once a year, if possible during the Easter season.</ref> but for grave reason (such as illness or child rearing) or dispensation are excused from attending Mass.<ref>[http://www.scborromeo.org/ccc/p3s2c1a3.htm#2181 Catechism of the Catholic Church 2181] The Sunday Eucharist is the foundation and confirmation of all Christian practice. For this reason the faithful are obliged to participate in the Eucharist on days of obligation, unless excused for a serious reason (for example, illness, the care of infants) or dispensed by their own pastor.</ref> In some countries a custom has recently arisen whereby someone who for some reason, such as not being a Catholic or not being in the state of grace, or not old enough to receive communion, cannot receive Communion may with arms crossed approach the priest who is distributing the Eucharist and receive from him a blessing instead.

A rule for Catholics who are members of the [[Latin Church]] is: "A person who is to receive the Most Holy Eucharist is to abstain for at least one hour before holy communion from any food and drink, except for only water and medicine."<ref>Code of Canon Law, canon [http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM 919 §1] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110628182123/http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM |date=June 28, 2011 }}</ref> Eastern Catholics are obliged to follow the rules of their own [[particular Church]]es, which generally require a longer period of fasting.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_19901018_codex-can-eccl-orient-2_lt.html#TITULUS_XVI Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 713 §2] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121130144307/http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_19901018_codex-can-eccl-orient-2_lt.html#TITULUS_XVI |date=November 30, 2012 }}</ref>

Catholics must make an outward sign of reverence before receiving. "When receiving Holy Communion, the communicant bows his or her head before the Sacrament as a gesture of reverence and receives the Body of the Lord from the minister. The consecrated host may be received either on the tongue or in the hand, at the discretion of each communicant. When Holy Communion is received under both kinds, the sign of reverence is also made before receiving the Precious Blood."<ref>{{cite book |title=General Instruction of the Roman Missal, No. 160}}</ref>

Catholics may receive Communion during Mass or outside Mass, but "a person who has already received the Most Holy Eucharist can receive it a second time on the same day only within the eucharistic celebration in which the person participates", except as ''[[Viaticum]]'' (Code of Canon Law, canon 917).<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM Code of Canon Law, canon 917]</ref>

[[File:Eucharist001.jpg|thumb|left|In the Western Church, the administration of the Most Holy Eucharist to children requires that they have sufficient knowledge and careful preparation so that they understand the mystery of Christ according to their capacity and are able to receive the body of Christ with faith and devotion.]]

In the Western Church, "the administration of the Most Holy Eucharist to children requires that they have sufficient knowledge and careful preparation so that they understand the mystery of Christ according to their capacity and are able to receive the body of Christ with faith and devotion. The Most Holy Eucharist, however, can be administered to children in danger of death if they can distinguish the body of Christ from ordinary food and receive communion reverently" (Code of Canon Law, canon 913).<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P39.HTM Code of Canon Law, canon 913]</ref> In Catholic schools in the United States and Canada, children typically receive [[First Communion]] in second grade. In the [[Eastern Catholic Churches]], the Eucharist is administered to infants immediately after Baptism and Confirmation ([[Chrismation]]).

Holy Communion may be received under one kind (the Sacred Host or the Precious Blood alone), or under both kinds (both the Sacred Host and the Precious Blood). "Holy Communion has a fuller form as a sign when it is distributed under both kinds. For in this form the sign of the eucharistic banquet is more clearly evident and clear expression is given to the divine will by which the new and eternal Covenant is ratified in the Blood of the Lord, as also the relationship between the Eucharistic banquet and the eschatological banquet in the Father's Kingdom... (However,) Christ, whole and entire, and the true Sacrament, is received even under only one species, and consequently that as far as the effects are concerned, those who receive under only one species are not deprived of any of the grace that is necessary for salvation" (General Instruction of the Roman Missal).<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/roman-missal/general-instruction-of-the-roman-missal/ General Instruction of the Roman Missal], 281–282.</ref>

"The Diocesan Bishop is given the faculty to permit Communion under both kinds whenever it may seem appropriate to the priest to whom, as its own shepherd, a community has been entrusted, provided that the faithful have been well instructed and there is no danger of profanation of the Sacrament or of the rite's becoming difficult because of the large number of participants or some other reason" (General Instruction of the Roman Missal).<ref>[http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/roman-missal/general-instruction-of-the-roman-missal/ General Instruction of the Roman Missal], 283.</ref>

The [[General Instruction of the Roman Missal]] mentions a "Communion-plate for the Communion of the faithful", distinct from the [[paten]],<ref>In Latin it is called ''patina'', while the paten is called ''patena''.</ref> and speaks of its use in relation to the administration of Communion by [[intinction]], in which receiving Communion directly in the mouth is obligatory.<ref>''[[General Instruction of the Roman Missal]]'', 118 and 287: [http://www.eucharistiefeier.de/docs/igmr2002.htm Latin text]; [http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/the-mass/general-instruction-of-the-roman-missal/girm-chapter-4.cfm English translation for the United States].</ref> The Instruction ''[[Redemptionis sacramentum]]'' states: "The Communion-plate for the Communion of the faithful should be retained, so as to avoid the danger of the sacred host or some fragment of it falling."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20040423_redemptionis-sacramentum_en.html ''Redemptionis sacramentum'', 93]</ref>

Non-Catholics may only receive the Eucharist in special situations:

"§1. Catholic ministers administer the sacraments licitly to Catholic members of the Christian faithful alone, who likewise receive them licitly from Catholic ministers alone, without prejudice to the prescripts of §§2, 3, and 4 of this canon, and ⇒ can. 861, §2.

§2. Whenever necessity requires it or true spiritual advantage suggests it, and provided that danger of error or of indifferentism is avoided, the Christian faithful for whom it is physically or morally impossible to approach a Catholic minister are permitted to receive the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing of the sick from non-Catholic ministers in whose Churches these sacraments are valid.

§3. Catholic ministers administer the sacraments of penance, Eucharist, and anointing of the sick licitly to members of Eastern Churches which do not have full communion with the Catholic Church if they seek such on their own accord and are properly disposed. This is also valid for members of other Churches which in the judgment of the Apostolic See are in the same condition in regard to the sacraments as these Eastern Churches.

§4. If the danger of death is present or if, in the judgment of the diocesan bishop or conference of bishops, some other grave necessity urges it, Catholic ministers administer these same sacraments licitly also to other Christians not having full communion with the Catholic Church, who cannot approach a minister of their own community and who seek such on their own accord, provided that they manifest Catholic faith in respect to these sacraments and are properly disposed. (Some dioceses have allowed pastors to make this determination as regards those in hospitals, nursing homes, and correctional centers.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.drvc.org/the-chancery/special-circumstances-for-the-admission-of-other-christians-to-communion-at-catholic-celebrations-of-the-eucharist-in-the-diocese-of-rockville-centre.html|title=Special Circumstances for the Admission of Other Christians to Communion at Catholic Celebrations of the Eucharist in the Diocese of Rockville Centre|last=bayoulandcs|website=www.drvc.org|language=en-gb|access-date=2017-02-28}}</ref>)

§5. For the cases mentioned in §§2, 3, and 4, the diocesan bishop or conference of bishops is not to issue general norms except after consultation at least with the local competent authority of the interested non-Catholic Church or community." (Code of Canon Law, Canon 844)<ref>Code of Canon Law, Canon [http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG1104/__P2T.HTM 844]</ref>

===Matter for the Sacrament===
The bread used for the Eucharist must be wheaten only, and recently made, and the wine must be natural, made from grapes, and not corrupt. The bread is unleavened in the Latin, Armenian and Ethiopic Rites, but is leavened in most Eastern Catholic churches. A small quantity of water is added to the wine.<ref>[http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG0017/_P39.HTM Code of Canon Law, canon 924 and 926]; cf. [http://www.intratext.com/IXT/ENG1199/_PJN.HTM Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches, canon 707], and [[General Instruction of the Roman Missal]], 319-324.</ref>

The [[Congregation for Divine Worship]] provided guidance on the character of bread and wine to be used by Roman Catholics in a letter to bishops dated 15 June 2017. It included instructions concerning gluten-free or low-gluten bread and non-alcoholic substitutes for wine.<ref>{{cite news | accessdate = 9 July 2017 | date = 9 July 2017 | url = http://www.lastampa.it/2017/07/09/vaticaninsider/eng/the-vatican/the-vatican-no-more-liturgical-abuses-during-mass-quality-bread-and-wine-only-lcDRPGJhwzYPqany5r8kmI/pagina.html | work = La Stampa | title = The Vatican: No more liturgical abuses during Mass; quality bread and wine only | first = Domenico | last = Agasso Jr.}}</ref><ref>{{cite document| accessdate = 9 July 2017 | date= 15 June 2017 | publisher = Vatican Radio | url = http://en.radiovaticana.va/news/2017/07/08/letter_to_bishops_on_the_bread_and_wine_for_the_eucharist/1323886 | title= Circular Letter to Bishops on the bread and wine for the Eucharist }}</ref>

===Historical development===
{{see also|Historical roots of Catholic Eucharistic theology}}
Whether the [[agape feast]], a full meal held by Christians in the first centuries, was in all cases associated with a celebration of the Eucharist is uncertain.<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01200b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia: Agape]</ref> In any case, abuses connected with the celebration of the full meal, abuses denounced by the apostles Paul<ref>{{Bibleverse|1|Corinthians|11:17-34}}</ref> and Jude,<ref>{{Bibleverse||Jude|1:12}}</ref> led to a distinct celebration of the Eucharist. The form of this celebration in the middle of the second century is described by [[Justin Martyr]] as very similar to today's Eucharistic rites known in the West as the [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] and in much of the East as the [[Divine Liturgy]]. The regular celebration was held each week on the day called Sunday,<ref name=Justin67>[http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm Justin, First Apology, 67]</ref> which Christians were also calling the Lord's Day.<ref>{{Bibleverse||Revelation|1:10}}</ref> They included readings from Scripture, a homily, prayer by all, a prayer by "the president of the brethren" over bread and wine mixed with water, to which all respond with "Amen", and then a distribution to those present of that over which thanks have been given, while "deacons" take portions to those who are absent.<ref name=Justin67/><ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm Justin, First Apology, 65]</ref> There was also a collection to help widows and orphans and those in need because of reasons such as sickness.<ref name=Justin67/> Justin wrote that the Christians did not receive the bread and the wine mixed with water over which the thanksgiving was pronounced and which they called Εὐχαριστία (the Eucharist - literally, Thanksgiving),<ref name=Justin66>[http://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0126.htm Justin, First Apology, 66]</ref> as common bread and common drink, having been taught that "the food which is blessed by the prayer of His word, and from which our blood and flesh by transmutation are nourished, is the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh."<ref name=Justin66/>

[[File:BentoXVI-51-11052007 (frag).jpg|thumb|left|[[Pope Benedict XVI]] celebrates the Eucharist at the [[canonization]] of [[Frei Galvão]] in [[São Paulo]], [[Brazil]] on 11 May 2007.]]

As Justin indicated, the word ''Eucharist'' is from the Greek word εὐχαριστία (''eucharistia''), which means ''thanksgiving''. Catholics typically restrict the term 'communion' to the reception of the Body and Blood of Christ by the communicants during the celebration of the Mass and to the [[communion of saints]].

Earlier still, in about 106, Saint [[Ignatius of Antioch]] criticized those who "abstain from the Eucharist and the public prayer, because they will not admit that the Eucharist is the self-same Body of our Savior Jesus Christ, which [flesh] suffered for our sins, and which the Father in His goodness raised up again" (''[[Epistle to the Smyrnaeans]]'' 6, 7). Similarly, [[St. Ambrose]] of Milan countered objections to the doctrine, writing "You may perhaps say: 'My bread is ordinary.' But that bread is bread before the words of the Sacraments; where the consecration has entered in, the bread becomes the Flesh of Christ" (''The Sacraments'', 333/339-397 A.D. v.2,1339,1340).

The earliest known use, in about 1079, of the term "transubstantiation" to describe the change from bread and wine to body and blood of Christ was by [[Hildebert de Savardin]], [[Archbishop of Tours]] (died 1133). He did this in response to [[Berengar of Tours]] declaring that the Eucharist was only symbolic. This was long before the [[Latin West]], under the influence especially of Saint [[Thomas Aquinas]] (c. 1227-1274), accepted [[Aristotelianism]]. (The University of Paris was founded only between 1150 and 1170.)

In 1215, the [[Fourth Lateran Council]] used the word ''transubstantiated'' in its profession of faith, when speaking of the change that takes place in the Eucharist.

In 1551 the [[Council of Trent]] officially defined that "by the consecration of the bread and of the wine, a conversion is made of the whole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord, and of the whole substance of the wine into the substance of His blood; which conversion is, by the holy Catholic Church, suitably and properly called Transubstantiation." ([http://history.hanover.edu/texts/trent/ct13.html Session XIII, chapter IV]; cf. canon II).

The attempt by some twentieth-century Catholic theologians to present the Eucharistic change as an alteration of significance ([[transignification]] rather than transubstantiation) was rejected by [[Pope Paul VI]] in his 1965 encyclical letter [http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/paul_vi/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-vi_enc_03091965_mysterium_en.html ''Mysterium fidei''] In his 1968 [http://www.ewtn.com/library/papaldoc/p6credo.htm ''Credo of the People of God''], he reiterated that any theological explanation of the doctrine must hold to the twofold claim that, after the consecration, 1) Christ's body and blood are really present; and 2) bread and wine are really absent; and this presence and absence is ''real'' and not merely something in the mind of the believer.

In his encyclical ''[[Ecclesia de Eucharistia]]'' of 17 April 2003, [[Pope John Paul II]] taught that all authority of bishops and priests is primarily a function of their vocation to celebrate the Eucharist. Their governing authority flows from their priestly function, not the other way around.

===Communion of reparation===
{{Acts of Reparation}}
Receiving Holy Communion as part of [[First Friday Devotions]] is a [[Catholic devotion]] to offer [[Acts of reparation|reparations for sins]] through the [[Sacred Heart of Jesus]]. In the visions of Christ reported by [[St. Margaret Mary Alacoque]] in the 17th century, several promises were made to those people that practice the First Fridays Devotions, one of which included final perseverance.<ref>Peter Stravinskas, 1998, ''OSV's Catholic Encyclopedia'', OSV Press {{ISBN|0-87973-669-0}} page 428</ref>
The devotion consists of several practices that are performed on the first Fridays of nine consecutive months. On these days, a person is to attend [[Holy Mass]] and receive communion.<ref>''Roman Catholic worship: Trent to today'' by James F. White 2003 {{ISBN|0-8146-6194-7}} page 35</ref> In many Catholic communities the practice of the [[Holy Hour]] of meditation during the [[Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament]] during the First Fridays is encouraged.<ref>''Meditations on the Sacred Heart'' by Joseph McDonnell 2008 {{ISBN|1-4086-8658-9}} page 118</ref>

===Nuptial Mass and other Ritual Masses===
[[File:Ejdzej and Iric wedding communion-01.jpg|thumb|left|Holy Communion at a Nuptial Mass]]

A [[Nuptial Mass]]<ref>{{CathEncy|wstitle=Nuptial Mass}}</ref> is simply a Mass within which the sacrament of Marriage is celebrated. Other sacraments too are celebrated within Mass. This is necessarily so for the sacrament of Orders, and is normal, though not obligatory, for the [[Sacrament of Confirmation]], as well as that of Marriage. Unless the date chosen is that of a major liturgical feast, the prayers are taken from the section of the [[Roman Missal]] headed "Ritual Masses". This section has special texts for the celebration, within Mass, of Baptism, Confirmation, Anointing of the Sick, Orders, and Marriage, leaving [[Sacrament of Penance (Catholic Church)|Confession]] (Penance or Reconciliation) as the only sacrament not celebrated within a celebration of the Eucharist. There are also texts for celebrating, within Mass, Religious Profession, the Dedication of a Church and several other rites.

If, of a couple being married in the Catholic Church, one is not a Catholic, the rite of Marriage outside Mass is to be followed. However, if the non-Catholic has been baptized in the name of all three persons of the [[Trinity]] (and not only in the name of, say, Jesus, as is the baptismal practice in some branches of Christianity), then, in exceptional cases and provided the bishop of the diocese gives permission, it may be considered suitable to celebrate the Marriage within Mass, except that, according to the general law, Communion is not given to the non-Catholic (''Rite of Marriage'', 8).

==Adoration and Benediction outside of the Liturgy==
{{see also|Eucharistic adoration|Holy Hour|Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament}}
{{Eucharistic adoration}}
[[File:Eucharistic Adoration.jpg|thumb|left|Host displayed in a [[monstrance]], flanked by candles being adored by a kneeling [[altar server]]]]

Exposition of the Eucharist is the display of the [[Consecration|consecrated]] host on an [[altar]] in a [[Monstrance]]. The rites involving exposition of the Blessed Sacrament are the [[Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament]] and [[Eucharistic adoration]].

Adoration of the Eucharist is a sign of devotion to and worship of Christ, who is believed to be truly present. The [[host (Holy Communion)|host]] is generally reserved in the [[Church tabernacle|tabernacle]] after Mass and displayed in a [[monstrance]] during adoration. As a [[Catholic devotion]], Eucharistic adoration and meditation are more than merely looking at the host, but a continuation of what was celebrated in the Eucharist.<ref>''The seven sacraments'' by Anselm Grün, John Cumming 2003 {{ISBN|0-8264-6704-0}} pages 82-83</ref> From a theological perspective, the adoration is a form of [[latria]], based on the tenet of the presence of Christ in the Blessed Host.<ref name= Hardon4 >''The History of Eucharistic Adoration'' by John A Hardon 2003 {{ISBN|0-9648448-9-3}} pages 4-10</ref><ref>''Encyclopedia of World Religions'' by Johannes P. Schadé 2006 {{ISBN|1-60136-000-2}}, see entry under ''Eucharistic adoration''</ref>

[[Christian meditation]] performed in the presence of the Eucharist outside Mass is called ''Eucharistic meditation''. It has been practiced by saints such as [[Peter Julian Eymard]], [[Jean Vianney]] and [[Thérèse of Lisieux]].<ref>''The Real Presence: eucharistic meditations'' by Saint Pierre Julien Eymard, Sentinel Press, 1938 ASIN B00087ST7Q</ref><ref>''The eucharistic meditations of the Curé d'Ars'' by Saint Jean Baptiste Marie Vianney Carmelite Publications (1961) ASIN B0007IVDMY</ref><ref>''Eucharistic Meditations: Extracts from the Writings and Instructions of Saint John Vianney'' by H. Convert, Jean Baptiste Marie, Saint Vianney, and Mary Benvenuta 1998 {{ISBN|0-940147-03-3}}</ref><ref>''Therese and Lisieux'' by Pierre Descouvemont, Helmuth Nils Loose, 1996 {{ISBN|0-8028-3836-7}} page 245</ref><ref>''Collected poems of St Thérèse of Lisieux'' by Saint Thérèse (de Lisieux), Alan Bancroft 2001 {{ISBN|0-85244-547-4}} page 75</ref> Authors such as the [[Venerable]] [[Concepcion Cabrera de Armida]] and Blessed [[Maria Candida of the Eucharist]] have produced large volumes of text based on their Eucharistic meditations.<ref>Concepción Cabrera de Armida. ''I Am: Eucharistic Meditations on the Gospel'' {{ISBN|0-8189-0890-4}}</ref><ref>''Our Sunday Visitor's Catholic Almanac'' by Matthew Bunson 2008 {{ISBN|1-59276-441-X}} page 255</ref><ref>[http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20040321_candida_en.html Vatican Website]</ref>

When the exposure and adoration of the Eucharist is constant (twenty-four hours a day), it is called ''Perpetual adoration''. in a [[monastery]] or [[convent]], it is done by the resident [[monk]]s or [[nun]]s and in a [[parish]], by volunteer parishioners since the 20th century.<ref name=Groeschel2 /> On June 2, 1991 ([[feast of Corpus Christi]]), the [[Pontifical Council for the Laity]] issued specific guidelines that permit perpetual adoration in parishes.<ref name=Groeschel2 /> In order to establish a "perpetual adoration chapel" in a parish, the local priest must obtain permission from his Bishop by submitting a request along with the required information for the local "perpetual adoration association", its officers, etc.<ref name=Groeschel2 >''In the presence of our Lord'' by Benedict J. Groeschel, James Monti 1997 {{ISBN|0-87973-920-7}} pages 167-171</ref>

Since the [[Middle Ages]] the practice of Eucharistic adoration outside Mass has been encouraged by the popes.<ref>''Ann Ball, 2003 Encyclopedia of Catholic Devotions and Practices'' {{ISBN|0-87973-910-X}} page 11</ref> In ''[[Ecclesia de Eucharistia]]'' Pope [[John Paul II]] stated that "The worship of the Eucharist outside the Mass is of inestimable value for the life of the Church.... It is the responsibility of Pastors to encourage, also by their personal witness, the practice of Eucharistic adoration, and exposition of the Blessed Sacrament.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/edocs/ENG0821/__P4.HTM Vatican website Ecclesia de Eucharistia]</ref> In the opening prayer of the Perpetual chapel in [[St. Peter Basilica]] Pope [[John Paul II]] prayed for a perpetual adoration chapel in every parish in the world.<ref name=perpetuals >[http://www.vatican.va/news_services/press/sinodo/documents/bollettino_21_xi-ordinaria-2005/02_inglese/b10_02.html Vatican website]</ref> Pope [[Benedict XVI]] instituted perpetual adoration for the [[laity]] in each of the five districts of the Diocese of Rome.<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/speeches/2006/march/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20060302_roman-clergy_en.html Vatican website]</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Catholicism}}
* [[Bread of Life Discourse]]
* [[Eucharistic credo]]
* [[Paschal mystery]]
* [[Sacraments of Initiation]]
* [[Directory for Masses with Children]]
* [[Perichoresis|Communion as perichoresis]]

{{clear right}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Works cited==
{{refbegin}}
*{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=98Aefvi_MTAC&pg=PA75|last=Crockett|first= William R.|title=Eucharist: Symbol of Transformation|publisher=Liturgical Press|year=1989|isbn=978-0-8146-6098-0|ref=harv}}
{{refend}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin}}
* Laferrière, P. M. ''New & Eternal Testament [''i.e''. the Holy Eucharist]''. Trans. by Roger Capel, with a Foreword by C. C. Martindale. London: Harvill Press, 1961. ''N.B''.: The French text, of the rev. ed. of this work, had been published in 1958.
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Monstrances}}
{{wikisource|Summa Theologiae/Third Part/Question 73|Thomas Aquinas, "On the Sacrament of the Eucharist" (Summa Theologiae)}}
*[http://www.savior.org/ http://www.savior.org/] - Live Video Stream of the Eucharist
*{{cite book |author=Fr. Nikolaus Gihr|title=The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass: Dogmatically, Liturgically, and Ascetically Explained|year=1902|url=https://archive.org/details/holysacrificeofm00gihriala|accessdate=2011-04-20|publisher=Freiburg im Breisgau|location=St. Louis|oclc=262469879}}
* [http://www.ewtn.com/library/COUNCILS/TRENT13.HTM The Council of Trent on the Eucharist]

{{Real presence}}
{{Seven Sacraments}}
{{Catholic Mass|collapsed}}
{{History of Catholic theology}}
{{History of the Catholic Church|collapsed}}
{{Catholicism||collapsed}}

[[Category:Sacraments of the Catholic Church]]
[[Category:Eucharist (Catholic Church)|*]]

Revision as of 17:10, 12 February 2019

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