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What is the Eucharist?

A recent Pew Research Center study revealed that 69% of Catholics in the United States believe that the bread and wine used in Mass “are symbols of the body and blood of Jesus Christ.


The problem is that this is not what the Catholic Church teaches about the Eucharist, and it conflicts with two thousand years of Catholic tradition, running from Scripture through the Church Fathers and right up to the present day.

The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) teaches that, beginning “at the moment of consecration” (CCC 1377), the bread and wine offered at Mass “become Christ's body and blood” (CCC 1333).


This is not a metaphor, a symbol, or a spiritual idea; it really happens. In the Eucharist, “the body and blood, together with the soul and divinity, of our Lord Jesus Christ and, therefore, the whole Christ is truly, really, and substantially contained (CCC 1374).


The Eucharist still appears to our senses as ordinary bread and wine; but it has been transubstantiated (or changed in its substance) into the body and blood of Christ.

This is why Catholics attending Mass are encouraged to “convey the respect, solemnity, and joy of this moment when Christ becomes our guest” (CCC 1387); it’s why we adore the Eucharist, “not only during Mass, but also outside of it” (CCC 1378); and it’s why the Church teaches that the Eucharist is “the source and summit of the Christian life” (CCC 1324).

Below, you will find a collection of Bishop Barron’s videos, homilies, articles, and podcasts on the Eucharist. We encourage you to explore this page and to share and discuss it with your fellow Catholics.

Join us in discovering the truth and beauty of the Real Presence!

(If you have questions about the Eucharist, please write us at: [email protected])

Bishop Barron's Resources on the Eucharist

Videos

Homilies

Articles

Podcasts

Videos

Bishop Barron on Catholics Misunderstanding the Eucharist

6 minutes

Bishop Barron on the Sacrament of the Eucharist as Real Presence

11 minutes

Bishop Barron on the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist

11 minutes

The Holy Eucharist (interview on “Pints with Aquinas”)

53 minutes

Bishop Barron comments on Eucharistic Adoration

7 minutes

Bishop Barron comments on Eucharistic Adoration

7 minutes

Additional Comments on the Real Presence in the Eucharist

5 minutes

Bishop Barron on the Mystery of Eating Jesus' Flesh

6 minutes

Homilies

Really, Truly, and Substantially Present

15 minutes

Lord, to Whom Shall We Go?

15 minutes

The Gift of the Eucharist

15 minutes

The Word of God Made Flesh

15 minutes

Panis Angelicus

15 minutes

My Flesh Is Real Food; My Blood Is Real Drink

15 minutes

ARTICLES

Why You Need Spiritual Food

Evangelizing on the Road to Emmaus

PODCASTS

Understanding the Eucharist

64 minutes

Grounded in the Eucharist

27 minutes

(PHOTO CREDIT: Cathopic.com)

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