Christopher Wendt: All members of the Fraternity of Our Lady of Fatima and all guests, tonight’s broadcast is for June 13. Tonight’s format will be a catechism lesson on the Holy Eucharist, something so dear and precious to all of us. It is essential to our faith. And now, without further ado, Your Excellency, could you lead us in a prayer?
His Excellency: In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen
Pater Noster qui es in caelis, sanctificetur nomen tuum. Adveniat regnum tuum. Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra. Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie, et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris. Et ne nos inducas in tentationem, sed libera nos a malo. Amen.
In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen
Christopher Wendt: Thank you, Your Excellency. Just an announcement: the next podcast will be a Q and A session. We will be sending an email out for any questions you might have for His Excellency for the July 13 broadcast. And without further ado, I will turn this over to His Excellency.
His Excellency: Today, we will speak about the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist, the first part. Since this is such a profound and rich sacrament, we will dedicate several parts to it. Of all the sacred mysteries bequeathed to us by our Lord and Savior as the most infallible instruments of divine grace, there is none comparable to the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist. For no crime is there a heavier punishment to be feared from God than for the unholy, irreligious, and sacrilegious use of that which is full of holiness, the sacrament that contains the very altar and source of holiness.
The Apostle wisely saw and has openly admonished us. For when he had declared the enormity of their guilt who did not discern the Body of the Lord, the Apostle immediately added, “Therefore, there are many infirm and weak among you, and many sleep,” meaning, have died.
Let us now look at the institution of the Eucharist. Our Lord, having loved His own, loved them to the end. As a divine and admirable pledge of this love, knowing that the hour had now come that He should pass from the world to the Father, He willed never to be absent from His own at any time. He accomplished this with inexplicable wisdom, something that surpasses all the order and conditions of nature.
For, having kept the supper of the Paschal lamb with His disciples so that the figure might yield to the reality, and the shadow to the substance, Our Lord took bread, and giving thanks to God, He blessed it, broke it, and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take and eat, this is My Body, which shall be delivered for you. Do this in commemoration of Me.” In like manner, after He had supped, He took the chalice, saying, “This chalice is the New Testament in My Blood. Do this as often as you shall drink it in commemoration of Me.”
Now, let us reflect on the significance and meaning of the word “Eucharist.” Eucharist may be rendered either as “good grace” or as “thanksgiving.” It is in Greek, Eucharistia. And rightly indeed is it called “good grace,” both because it signifies eternal life, concerning which it has been written, “The grace of God is eternal life,” and also because it contains Christ the Lord, who is through grace and who is the fountain of all graces.
No less appropriately do we interpret the word Eucharistia as “thanksgiving,” inasmuch as when we immolate the purest victim, we give daily and unbounded thanks to God for all His kindness towards us and above all, for so excellent a gift of His grace, which He grants to us in this sacrament. The same name, Eucharist, is also fully in keeping with those things which we read were done by Christ at the institution of this mystery.
For taking bread, He broke it and gave thanks. Then let us look at the other names of the sacrament. Frequently, the sacrament is simply called “sacrifice” or “holy sacrifice.” It is also called, more specifically, “communion” or “Holy Communion.” This term is borrowed from the passage of the Apostle, where we read, “The chalice of benediction, which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? And the bread which we break, is it not the partaking of the body of the Lord?”
For as St. John Damascene has explained, the sacrament unites us to Christ, renders us partakers of His flesh and His divinity, reconciles and unites us to one another in the same Christ, and forms us, as it were, into one body. Hence, it came to pass that it was also called the “sacrament of peace and love” (sacramentum caritatis).
We cannot understand then how unhealthy it is for those who bear the name of Christian to cherish enmities, and how hatred, dissensions, and discord should be entirely put away as the most destructive bane of the faithful. This is especially true since, by the daily sacrifice of our religion, we profess to preserve nothing with more anxious care than peace and love in the Lord. It is also frequently called the “viaticum” by sacred writers, both because it is spiritual food by which we are sustained in our pilgrimage through this life, and also because it paves our way to eternal glory and happiness. The most ancient fathers, following the authority of the Apostle, have sometimes also called the Holy Eucharist by the name of “supper,” because it was instituted by Christ the Lord at the salutary mystery of the Last Supper.
The Eucharist is a sacrament properly so called, the meaning of the name having been explained. The Eucharist, the sacrament, must be shown to be a true sacrament and one of those seven sacraments which the Holy Church has always revered and venerated. For when the consecration of the chalice is effected, it is called a mystery of faith. The priest in the old rite says the mysterium fidei. During the consecration of the chalice, there are signs that are external and subject to the senses.
How the Eucharist differs from all the other sacraments can be asked, for all the other sacraments are completed by the use of material, that is, while they are being administered. Thus, baptism attains the nature of a sacrament when the individual is actually being washed in the water. On the other hand, the consecration of the material itself serves in perfecting the Eucharist. In the other sacraments, there is no change of the matter and element into another nature; the water of baptism or the oil of confirmation, when those sacraments are being administered, do not lose their former nature of water and oil. But in the Eucharist, that which was bread and wine before consecration, after consecration, is truly the substance of the body and blood of the Lord.
The Eucharist is but one sacrament, but also there are two elements, bread and wine, of which the entire sacrament of the Eucharist is constituted. We confess that this are not many sacraments, but only one. It is not one because it is indivisible, but because it signifies a single thing for us. Food and drink, which are two different things, are employed only for one purpose, namely, that the body of the believer may be nourished.
So, it was also natural that there should be an analogy to them in the two different species of this sacrament, which should signify the spiritual food by which souls are supported and refreshed. Therefore, we have been assured by our Lord the Savior, “My flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.”
The Eucharist signifies three things. The first is the passion of Christ our Lord. As He said, “Do this in commemoration of Me.” And the Apostle says, “As often as you shall eat this bread and drink the chalice, you shall show the death of the Lord until He comes.”
It is also a sign of divine and heavenly grace, which is imparted at present by the sacrament to nurture and preserve the soul. Just as in baptism, we are brought into newness of life, and by confirmation, we are strengthened to resist Satan and openly profess the name of Christ, so by the sacrament of the Eucharist, we are nourished and supported.
It is certainly a foreshadowing of future eternal joy and glory, which, according to God’s promises, we shall receive in our heavenly country.
These three things, then, which are clearly distinguished by their reference to past, present, and future times, are so well represented by the Eucharistic mysteries that the whole sacrament, though consisting of different species, signifies the three as if it referred to one thing only. Let us look at the constituent parts of the Eucharist, starting with the matter.
The first element of the Eucharist is bread. The matter of the sacrament is twofold. The first element is wheat bread, of which we shall now speak. The second we shall treat is the wine. As the Evangelists Matthew, Mark, and Luke testify, Christ the Lord took bread into His hands, blessed it, and broke it, saying, “This is My Body.” And according to John, the same Savior called Himself bread, saying, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven.”
The sacramental bread must be made from wheat. There are, however, various sorts of bread, either because they consist of different materials, such as wheat, barley, or other products of the earth, or because they possess different qualities, some being leavened, others altogether unleavened. It is to be observed that with regard to their former qualities, the words of the Savior show that the bread should be wheat bread, according to common usage. When we simply say “bread,” we are understood to mean wheat bread.
This is also declared by the figure in the Old Testament, because the Lord commanded that the loaves of proposition, which signified the Sacrament of the Eucharist, should be made of fine wheat flour. The sacramental bread should be unleavened. But as wheat bread alone is to be considered the proper matter of the sacrament, this doctrine has been handed down by the apostles, through apostolic tradition, and confirmed by the authority of the Catholic Church.
It may also be easily inferred from the actions of Christ the Lord that this bread should be unleavened. It was consecrated and instituted by Him on the first day of unleavened bread, during which it was not lawful for the Jews to have anything leavened in their house. Should the authority of John the Evangelist, who says that all this was done before the feast of the Passover, be objected to, the argument has an easy solution. For by “the day before the Passover,” John understands the same day that the other Evangelists designate as the first day of unleavened bread. He wished particularly to mark the natural day, which begins at sunrise, whereas they wanted to point out that our Lord celebrated the Passover on Thursday evening, just as the Days of Unleavened Bread were beginning. Hence, John Chrysostom also understands the first day of unleavened bread to be the evening when unleavened bread was to be eaten.
The peculiar suitableness of the consecration of unleavened bread to express the integrity and purity of mind which the faithful should bring to the sacrament we learn from these words of St. Paul, the Apostle, who wrote, “Purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, as you are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover, is sacrificed. Therefore, let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”
The unleavened bread is not essential. However, this quality of the bread is not to be deemed so essential that without it the sacrament cannot exist, for both kinds are called by the one name and have the true and proper nature of bread. No one, however, is at liberty, by his own private authority or other presumption, to transgress the laudable right of the Roman Church to use unleavened bread. Such a departure is less excusable in priests of the Latin Church, which is expressly obliged, according to canon law, to use this type of bread to consecrate the sacred mysteries. But many Oriental Churches use leavened bread, and this is also approved by our Holy Mother Church.
The second element of the Eucharist is wine, pressed from the fruit of the vine, with which a little water is mingled. Christ Himself said, “I will not drink from henceforth of this fruit of the vine until that day.” Water should be mixed with wine, as the Church has always done, because Christ the Lord did so, as is proven by the authority of councils and the testimony of the Fathers of the Church. For example, St. Cyprian, from the third century.
Next, because this mixture is renewed, the recollection of the blood and water that issued from His side on the cross. Water, as we read in the Apocalypse, also signifies the people, and hence water mixed with wine signifies the union of the faithful with Christ, their Head. These rites derive, as it were, from Apostolic tradition. The Catholic Church, along with all the other Oriental rites, has always observed them. Although there are strong reasons for mingling water with wine, its omission does not render the sacrament invalid.
Care must be taken to mingle only a small quantity of water, according to the practice of the Universal Church. The wine should be used in much greater quantity than the water.
Let us now consider the particular fitness of bread and wine as the matter of this sacrament. First, they signify to us that Christ is the true life of man, for our Lord Himself says: “My flesh is meat indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.”
As the body of Christ the Lord provides nourishment and eternal life to those who receive the sacrament with purity and holiness, it is fitting that the matter of the sacrament is composed chiefly of those elements by which our present life is sustained. This helps the faithful to understand more easily that the mind and soul are nourished by the communion of the precious Body and Blood of Christ.
These very elements also serve to suggest the truth of the Real Presence of the Body and Blood of the Lord in the sacrament. Observing, as we do, that bread and wine are daily changed by the power of nature into human flesh and blood, we are the more easily led by this analogy to believe that the substance of the bread and wine is changed by the heavenly benediction at the consecration into the real Flesh and real Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
This admirable change of the elements also serves to illustrate what takes place in the soul. Although no change in the bread and wine appears outwardly, their substance is truly changed into the Flesh and Blood of Christ. In like manner, although nothing outwardly appears changed in us, yet we are inwardly renewed unto life when we receive in the Sacrament of the Eucharist the true life.
Moreover, the body of the Church, which is one, consists of many members. Nothing illustrates this union more strikingly than the elements of bread and wine. Bread is made from many grains, and wine is pressed from many clusters of grapes. Thus, they signify that we, though many, are most closely bound together through this divine mystery of the Eucharist and are made, as it were, one body in Christ.
Let us now look at the form of the sacrament. We are taught by the holy Evangelists, Matthew and Luke, as well as by the Apostle Paul, that the form consists of these words: “This is my body.” For it is written: “Whilst they were at supper, Jesus took bread and blessed it and broke it and gave it to His disciples and said, ‘Take and eat. This is my body.
Having observed this form of consecration, Christ the Lord then said, “Do this in remembrance of me.” What the Lord enjoined was not only what He had done but also what He had spoken. This is especially true since His words were uttered not merely to signify but also to accomplish the sacrament.
The form is that which signifies what is accomplished in this sacrament. The preceding words declare what takes place in the Eucharist, namely, the conversion of the bread into the true body of our Lord. It follows, therefore, that these very words constitute the form of the sacrament. In this sense, the verse from the Evangelist “He blessed” seems equivalent to saying, “Taking bread, He blessed it, saying, ‘This is my body'”.
Not all the words used are essential. Although in the Gospel the words “Take and eat” precede “This is my body,” they evidently express the use of the sacrament, not the consecration or transubstantiation of the matter. Therefore, while the words “Take and eat” are not necessary for consecration, they are to be pronounced by the priest, as is also the conjunction “for” in the consecration of both the body and blood.
Regarding the consecration of the wine, the form consists of the following words:
“This is the chalice of my blood, of the new and eternal covenant, the mystery of faith, which shall be shed for you and for many, for the remission of sins.”
Most of these words are taken from Scripture, while some have been preserved in the Church from apostolic tradition. The words “This is the chalice” are found in Luke and in the Apostle Paul. The words that follow “of my blood,” or “my blood of the new testament, which shall be shed for you and for many for the remission of sins” are drawn partly from Luke and partly from Matthew. And the words “mystery of faith” have been taught to us by Holy Tradition, the interpreter and keeper of the Catholic faith.
Let us now look at the explanation of the form used in the consecration of the wine. The phrase “This is the chalice of my blood” is to be understood to mean: “This is my blood, which is contained in this chalice.” The mention of the chalice in the consecration of the blood is fitting and appropriate, inasmuch as the blood is the drink of the faithful. This would not be sufficiently signified if it were not contained in some drinking vessel.
Next, follow the words “of the New Covenant” or “of the New Testament.” These have been added so that we may understand the blood of Christ the Lord not to be given under figure, as was done in the Old Law, of which we read in the Epistle to the Hebrews: “Without blood, a testament is not dedicated,” but to be given to men in truth and reality, as becomes the New Testament, the New Covenant.
Hence, the Apostle says: “Christ therefore is the mediator of the New Covenant, that by means of His death, they who are called may receive the promise of eternal inheritance.” The word “eternal” refers to that eternal inheritance, the right to which we acquire by the love of Christ the Lord, the eternal testator.
The words “mystery of faith” (mysterium fidei), which follow, do not exclude the reality but signify that what lies hidden, concealed, and far removed from the perception of the eye, is to be believed with firm faith. In this passage, however, these words bear a meaning different from the one they have when applied to baptism.
Here, the “mystery of faith” consists in perceiving by faith the blood of Christ veiled under the species of wine. But in baptism, the expression “mystery of faith” is justly applied because it embraces the entire profession of the Christian faith.
Another reason we call the blood of the Lord in the consecration of the chalice “the mystery of faith” is that human reason faces particular difficulty and embarrassment when faith proposes for our belief that Christ the Lord, the true Son of God, at once both God and man, suffered death for us. This death is signified by the sacrament of His blood in the chalice.
Here, therefore, rather than at the consecration of His body, is the Passion of Our Lord most appropriately commemorated, by the words “which shall be shed for the remission of sins.” The blood, being separately consecrated from the bread, serves to place before the eyes of all, in a more vivid manner, the suffering and Passion of Our Lord, His death, and the nature of His sufferings.
The additional words “for you and for many” are taken from Saint Matthew and some from Saint Luke, but they are joined together by the Catholic Church under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
These words serve to declare the fruit and benefit of Christ’s Passion. If we consider its value, we must confess that the Redeemer shed His blood for the salvation of all. But if we consider the fruit which mankind has actually received from it, we shall easily find that it pertains not to all, but to many of the human race.
Therefore, when our Lord said “for you,” He meant either those who were present or those chosen from among the Jewish people, such as were, with the exception of Judas, the disciples to whom He was speaking. And when He added “and for many,” He intended to mean the rest of the elect from among the Jews and the Gentiles.
Now, in concluding this first part, we may reflect on the three great mysteries of the Eucharist. The Catholic Church firmly believes and professes that in the sacrament, the words of consecration accomplish three wondrous and admirable effects.
The first effect is that the true Body of Christ our Lord, the same body that was born of the Virgin Mary and is now seated at the right hand of the Father in heaven, is truly contained in this sacrament.
The second effect, although it may seem contrary to the senses, is that none of the substance of the elements of bread and wine remains in the sacrament. This is called Transubstantiation.
The third effect, which may be deduced from the two preceding effects and is also clearly expressed by the words of consecration, is that the accidents which appear to the eyes or other senses exist in a wonderful and ineffable manner without their natural subject. All the visible qualities or properties of bread and wine remain, but they do not exist in any substance. They exist without a subject because the substance of the bread and wine has been completely changed into the Body and Blood of our Lord. The substance of bread and wine no longer exists at all. Therefore, the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist is truly the sacrament of faith and the sacrament of divine love.
Christopher Wendt: Thank you, Your Excellency. I do have one question for you. You gave a great explanation that I’ve never heard before about the consecration of the species of wine. What are the words the form used for the Transubstantiation of the wine into the Blood of Jesus? Could you please recap the essential words?
His Excellency: It is “This is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and everlasting covenant.” These are the essential words. All that follows “the mystery of faith, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins” is not strictly essential, according to the common opinion of theologians.
Christopher Wendt: Thank you, Your Excellency. I think we’ll call it a day for now. We’re going to have more lessons on the Holy Eucharist, as it is such a vast mystery and such a great gift that Our Lord has given to us. Could you please close this catechism lesson with your prayers?
His Excellency: In the Name of the Father and the Son in the Holy Spirit. Amen
O Immaculate Heart of Mary, holy Mother of God and our tender Mother, look upon the distress in which the whole of mankind is living, due to the spread of materialism, godlessness, and the persecution of the Catholic Faith.
In our own day, the Mystical Body of Christ is bleeding from so many wounds, caused within the Church by the unpunished spread of heresies, the justification of sins against the Sixth Commandment, and the seeking of the kingdom of earth rather than the Kingdom of Heaven.
There are horrendous sacrileges against the Most Holy Eucharist, especially through the practice of Communion in the hand, and the Protestant shaping of the celebration of the Holy Mass.
Amidst these trials appeared the light of the consecration of Russia to thy Immaculate Heart by the Pope, in union with the world’s bishops.
In Fatima, thou didst request the Communion of Reparation on the First Saturdays of the month. Implore Thy Divine Son to grant a special grace to the Pope, that he may approve and promote the practice of the First Saturday Communion of Reparation.
May Almighty God hasten the time when Russia will be converted to Catholic unity, mankind will be granted a time of peace, and the Church will be renewed in the purity of the Catholic Faith, the sacredness of divine worship, and the holiness of Christian life.
O Mediatrix of all graces, O Queen of the Most Holy Rosary, and our sweet Mother, turn thine eyes of mercy towards us, and graciously hear this, our trusting prayer. Amen.
Dominus vobiscum.
Christopher Wendt: Et cum spiritu tuo.
His Excellency: Et benedictio Dei Omnipotentis: Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti, descendat super vos et maneat semper. Amen.
Praise be our Lord Jesus Christ!
Christopher Wendt: Now and forever!
Thank you, Your Excellency. This concludes our catechism lesson for tonight. Next time, we will have a broadcast featuring your questions, so you can start sending them in for the broadcast on July 13th. Until next time.
