Roman Catholic Communion: The Flesh and Blood of Christ - Essay Example

of the Religion and Theology of the Concerned 22 July Roman Catholic Communion: The Flesh and Blood of Christ Introduction Rituals pertain to the social side of human civilization. Rituals in any religion impart a sense of community and belonging to the individuals following a specific religion. Though religion and spirituality is not one and the same thing, yet rituals in a religion may act as an usher to the spiritual foundations of a religion. The rituals impart a sense of connectedness to the individuals affiliated to a religion and help the followers of that religion maintain a link with the historical salient of that religion. Hence, when it comes to rituals, Communion tends to be an important ritual in the Roman Catholic religion. Communion in the Roman Catholic religion not only extends a sense of belonging to the Roman Catholics around the world, but also helps them stay connected with the essential beliefs and values associated with their religion. In the Roman Catholic Church, communion tends to be the source and centre of the Roman Catholic religion. Communion tends to be the high point of any Roman Catholic mass. In the Roman Catholic Church, communion happens to be an important sacrament. It is a way and means to reach Jesus. The Ritual of Communion The communion in the Roman Catholic Church begins with an opening prayer. The clergy conducting the mass makes a sign of cross and says the opening prayer. The clergy formally welcomes the believers attending the mass and offers prayers for the well being of the parish and the community. After the opening prayer, the clergy starts the reading of the scripture. It does need to be mentioned that the reading of the scripture in a Catholic communion is not random or haphazard, but rather it follows a liturgical calendar. The Catholic Church has prescribed the readings for each and every day of the year. This practice of affiliating to the same reading on a particular day at the Catholic Churches placed all across the world, lends a sense of community and camaraderie to the people following the Catholic religion. The reading of the scripture is followed by the Lord’s Prayer. Once the Lord’s Prayer is said then begins the sacrament of communion. The priest offers to the believers gathered in the Church for the mass, the bead dipped in wine, which at a symbolic level is taken to be the blood and body of Jesus, offered to the believers so that it could atone for the sins committed by them (O’Collins & Farrugia 250). It does need to be mentioned that communion tends to be the most important aspect of a Catholic mass. The Roman Catholic religion preaches that receiving communion is a must for the attainment of salvation. The other important belief associated with the Roman Catholic communion is that only a priest, who has been ordained in the apostolic succession, could manifest through Jesus Christ the imminent miracle of Transubstantiation, thereby changing the ordinary bread and wine into the blood and body of the Christ. Meaning and Significance of Communion It does need to be noticed that Communion or Eucharist commands a central place in the Roman Catholic form of worship. Baptism and Communion are the two sacraments that have been clearly mentioned in the Bible. It is held that the practice of Communion was actually started by Jesus Christ, and this ritual is clearly recorded in the Gospels. It was Jesus Christ who initiated the practice of the Last Supper where he offered bread to His disciples, telling them that it is His body, and then made them drink a little wine, saying it to be His blood. Jesus told his followers to repeat this ceremony and the Catholic Christians have been practising this ritual right from the days of early Christians. The ritual of Communion owes its spiritual moorings to the sacraments relation to the actual sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. In the New Testament one many a times come across Jesus addressing himself as a sacrifice, thereby pointing towards his imminent sacrifice on the cross. Jesus used bread and wine to serve as His body and blood. Perhaps Jesus owed this ritual to the practice amongst the Jews of his times to treat bread and wine as a sacrifice. Roman Catholic Church has indeed preserved this sacrificial notion of the Communion and firmly insists that every Catholic mass repeat this ritual that was first initiated and practised by Jesus. In other words the ritual or Eucharist is a way of preserving the memory of Jesus and the sacrifice he made on the cross to atone for the sins made by the believers. The real presence tends to be a quintessential belief of the Roman Catholic Church. The belief of real presence tends to symbolize the intimate relationship that is between Jesus and the believer taking the Communion. Though at a later time the Catholic theologians developed varied other meanings of the ritual of Communion, yet, the concept of real presence stands to be the essence of the ritual of communion to this very day. Besides, the Roman Catholic Church also believes that as Protestants do not tend to believe in the ritual of Communion and since the Protestant priests are not ordained in accordance with the provision of Apostolic Succession, hence any Protestant Communion does not tends to be valid for a Catholic believer. The essence of Communion is to help the believers meet Jesus at an intimate and personal level. It tends to strengthen the faith of the Catholic followers and helps them take solace in the belief that the Son of God has atoned for their sins and that they share a close relationship with Jesus by attending the ritual of communion on a regular basis. Christians believe that during Communion they receive the actual grace of Jesus Christ. Communion as a ritual is a viable way for remembering that Jesus died on the cross for the sake of the believers and all the believers who are willing to receive him at a ritualistic and symbolic level tend to be an integral part of the Roman Catholic Church. Communion also signifies that the all merciful God sent his one and only Son to earth to relieve the sufferings and the sins of all those who are willing to receive Jesus. Besides, the act of Communion is taken to be in the spirit of sacrifice and it teaches to the believers to be willing to offer them as sacrifice to the will of Jesus. The Last Supper declared the holy presence of Christ amongst his people. The ritual of communion not only re-enacts the last supper, but also extends a conviction to the Roman Catholic believers that the Lord is still amongst them and could readily perform miracles for the believers who are willing to accept His flesh and blood. It does need to be mentioned that there are many Catholic Christians who have mentioned that they received the grace of Jesus that healed them of their physical and spiritual ailments, while they were participating in the ritual of Communion. Besides, the ritual of Communion brings in an element of unity in the Roman Catholic Church through Jesus Christ. Conclusion To put it simply, communion happens to be the most important sacrament in the Roman Catholic religions. Communion not only re-enacts the sacrifice made by Jesus on the cross for the sake of his people, but also facilitates to the Roman Catholic Christians a way to reconnect with Jesus. Works Cited O’Collins, Gerald & Farrugia, Mario. Catholicism: The Story of Catholic Christianity. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006. Print. Read More