Secundulus
31st July 2007, 06:46 PM
Below, to initiate discussion on the Eucharist, is the conclusion of a paper I just finished for one of my classes. Its purpose was connect the symbolism of the early Church Eucharist with the Jewish Temple traditions. What does the Eucharist mean to you?
The early Christian understanding of the Eucharistic liturgy may clearly find its antecedents in the Old Testament and in specific Temple ceremonies. In the same manner that the Jews performed the thank offering in the temple, the earliest Christians celebrated the Eucharist in a spirit of thanksgiving to God. They offered a sacrifice of their firstfruits to God in thanksgiving and called on him to remember Christ’s covenant made at Calvary.
As the Jews ate their thank offering sacrifice, the Christians also ate theirs. However, the Christian liturgy assigned an entirely new meaning to the sacrificial elements. Nevertheless, while it was a new meaning in connection with a thank offering its origin was extremely old, reaching back to the foundation of the Temple tradition with Moses. During the liturgy, the bread and wine were transformed from being a simple thank offering by the people to a symbol of Christ himself. Mirroring its Jewish roots, the bread reflected the shewbread and symbolized the presence of God with his covenant people. The wine reflected the sacrifice of Moses at Sinai and became symbolic of God’s covenant through Christ.
Understood in this manner, the Eucharistic liturgy takes on a rich meaning to the participant. It is not simply a ritual meal where one remembers Christ's life and death. Neither is it a representation of Christ’s sacrifice that one passively watches. Rather, it is a sacrifice of thanksgiving in the present where everyone actively participates. However, its full meaning goes beyond this. While the people present their offering of thanksgiving to God, he gives back to them as food, concrete symbols to indicate that he is present with them and forever remembers the Covenant that Christ made with his Church.
The early Christian understanding of the Eucharistic liturgy may clearly find its antecedents in the Old Testament and in specific Temple ceremonies. In the same manner that the Jews performed the thank offering in the temple, the earliest Christians celebrated the Eucharist in a spirit of thanksgiving to God. They offered a sacrifice of their firstfruits to God in thanksgiving and called on him to remember Christ’s covenant made at Calvary.
As the Jews ate their thank offering sacrifice, the Christians also ate theirs. However, the Christian liturgy assigned an entirely new meaning to the sacrificial elements. Nevertheless, while it was a new meaning in connection with a thank offering its origin was extremely old, reaching back to the foundation of the Temple tradition with Moses. During the liturgy, the bread and wine were transformed from being a simple thank offering by the people to a symbol of Christ himself. Mirroring its Jewish roots, the bread reflected the shewbread and symbolized the presence of God with his covenant people. The wine reflected the sacrifice of Moses at Sinai and became symbolic of God’s covenant through Christ.
Understood in this manner, the Eucharistic liturgy takes on a rich meaning to the participant. It is not simply a ritual meal where one remembers Christ's life and death. Neither is it a representation of Christ’s sacrifice that one passively watches. Rather, it is a sacrifice of thanksgiving in the present where everyone actively participates. However, its full meaning goes beyond this. While the people present their offering of thanksgiving to God, he gives back to them as food, concrete symbols to indicate that he is present with them and forever remembers the Covenant that Christ made with his Church.