What is transubstantiation?

Transubstantiation is the Catholic teaching that at consecration the substance of the bread and wine becomes the body and blood of Christ while their outward appearances remain, formulated with the metaphysical distinction between substance and accidents.

Do all Christians believe in the real presence?

Catholics, Orthodox, Lutherans, and many Anglicans affirm a real presence (understood in different ways), Reformed churches affirm a spiritual real presence, while traditions following Zwingli regard the Supper primarily as a memorial.

Eucharist and Real Presence

The theology of the Eucharist concerns the meaning of the Lord's Supper and the central question of how Christ is present in the bread and wine.

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Definition

The doctrine of the meaning of the Lord's Supper and the mode of Christ's presence in it.

Scope

This topic surveys the institution and biblical accounts of the Lord's Supper, the patristic and medieval development of eucharistic doctrine, the major theories of Christ's presence (transubstantiation, consubstantiation or sacramental union, spiritual or pneumatic presence, and memorialism), the understanding of the Eucharist as sacrifice, and ecumenical convergence. The presentation is descriptive, comparing the positions and their philosophical underpinnings.

Core questions

What does the Eucharist signify and accomplish?
In what sense is Christ present in the bread and wine?
Is the Eucharist a sacrifice, and if so, how?
How do the major traditions differ on these questions?

Key theories

Transubstantiation: The Catholic doctrine, articulated using Aristotelian categories by Aquinas, that in consecration the whole substance of bread and wine is converted into the substance of Christ's body and blood while the appearances (accidents) remain.
Spiritual real presence: Calvin's account that the bread and wine remain unchanged but the faithful communicant truly partakes of the body and blood of the ascended Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit, a presence real yet not local or carnal.

History

Early Christians celebrated the Lord's Supper from the start; eucharistic realism is attested in the Fathers. The doctrine of transubstantiation was defined at the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) and refined by Aquinas. The Reformation produced sharp division: Luther affirmed a bodily presence 'in, with, and under' the elements, Zwingli a memorial, and Calvin a spiritual real presence, fragmenting Protestant practice. Modern ecumenism has narrowed some differences.

Debates

Mode of Christ's presence: Whether Christ is present by a change of substance (transubstantiation), bodily alongside the elements (sacramental union), spiritually through the Spirit, or only as a remembrance (memorialism).
The Eucharist as sacrifice: Whether the Eucharist re-presents or makes present the one sacrifice of Christ (Catholic and Orthodox) or whether such language compromises the finished work of the cross (much Protestant thought).

Key figures

Thomas Aquinas
Martin Luther
Huldrych Zwingli
John Calvin

Seminal works

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calvinInstitutes
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Frequently asked questions

What is transubstantiation?: Transubstantiation is the Catholic teaching that at consecration the substance of the bread and wine becomes the body and blood of Christ while their outward appearances remain, formulated with the metaphysical distinction between substance and accidents.
Do all Christians believe in the real presence?: Catholics, Orthodox, Lutherans, and many Anglicans affirm a real presence (understood in different ways), Reformed churches affirm a spiritual real presence, while traditions following Zwingli regard the Supper primarily as a memorial.