Here are 20 key verses in the Bible from the book of Genesis to Revelation that prefigure and exemplify the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the holy sacrament of the Eucharist of the Catholic Church.

What is the Eucharist?

Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ

The Eucharist is the body, blood, soul, and divinity of Jesus Christ. This is what the Catholic Church has believed for 2,000 years. We believe that Jesus died on the cross for our sins. We believe Jesus rose from the dead in fulfillment of the scriptures.

To one who has faith, no explanation is necessary. To one without faith, no explanation is possible. + St. Thomas Aquinas

Christ is Present to His Church in the Eucharist

We also believe that Christ’s Real Presence is in the sacrament of the Eucharist, as did the apostles, Church Fathers, saints, and martyrs. The bread and wine at the altar are consecrated by the bishops or priests presiding at the holy sacrifice of the Mass.

“Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us,” is present in many ways to his Church: in his word, in His Church’s prayer, “where two or three are gathered in my name,” in the poor, the sick, and the imprisoned, in the sacraments of which He is the author, in the sacrifice of the Mass, and in the person of the minister. But “He is present . . . most especially in the Eucharistic species.” Source: Catechism of the Catholic Church #1373

Old Testament Verses

#1 The Tree of Life

Key Eucharist Verse: Genesis 3:24

Then the LORD God said: See! The man has become like one of us, knowing good and evil! Now, what if he also reaches out his hand to take fruit from the tree of life, and eats of it and lives forever? The LORD God therefore banished him from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from which he had been taken. He expelled the man, stationing the cherubim and the fiery revolving sword east of the garden of Eden, to guard the way to the tree of life. Genesis 3:22-24

The Eucharist is the Fruit of the Tree of Life

“See how the cross of the Lord stands revealed as the tree of life.” Source: Liturgy of the Hours, Vol III Office of Readings p.683

The Eucharist is the fruit of the tree of life. The holy cross is the tree of life for the Catholic Church. St. Peter said in the Book of Acts that Jesus died on a tree. Jesus said we have no eternal life in Him unless we eat His flesh and drink His blood. This is why we receive holy communion at Mass every Sunday. We believe in the Word.

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. John 6:56

The Tree of Life in the Book of Genesis

In the book of Genesis, there is the tree of life in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve had access to the fruit of the tree of life until they sinned and ate of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. This was the first sin of humanity, the original sin, and it was also a mortal sin. Through mortal sin, Adam and Eve lost God’s sanctifying grace.

“No one can equal Christ in the love He showed in laying down His life for his own poor servants. Nor can anyone equal Him in sinlessness, for all men are ruled by sin, and all are victims of the fall of the first Adam.” + St. Ambrose

This explains why Adam and Eve had to leave God’s Garden of Eden with the tree of life, because they were not reconciled with God from their sin. God’s sent the holy angels, the cherubim, to guard the tree of life around the perimeter of the garden.

“The second Adam, Jesus Christ, points out that through the water of the bath of rebirth, the flickering flame—by which the cherubim guardian blocked the entry into paradise when the first Adam was expelled—would be extinguished. Where the one went out with his wife, having been conquered by his enemy, there the other might return with his spouse (namely, the church of the saints), as a conqueror over his enemy.” + St. Bede

#2 King and Priest Melchizedek’s Offering of Bread and Wine

Key Eucharist Verse: Genesis: 14:18

Melchizedek, king of Salem, brought out bread and wine. He was a priest of God Most High. He blessed Abram with these words: “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, the creator of heaven and earth; And blessed be God Most High, who delivered your foes into your hand.” Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything. Genesis 14:18-20

King-Priest Melchizedek Offers Bread and Wine

The mysterious king-priest Melchizedek brought out bread and wine as an offering. In return, Abram gave Melchizedek a tithe of his goods. Consider the offering made by Melchizedek and Abraham in Genesis and the offertory procession at Mass:

“The gifts are then brought forward. As a sign of their participation, the faithful should present the bread and wine for the celebration of the eucharist, and even other gifts to meet the needs of the Church and of the poor.” Source: Offertory Procession Rite No. 145

God, the Creator, gives us everything, including His blessing and all that is good, especially the holy Eucharist. In return, we give God thanks for all He has given us.

The signs of bread and wine become, in a way surpassing understanding, the Body and Blood of Christ; they continue also to signify the goodness of creation. Thus, in the Offertory we give thanks to the Creator for bread and wine, fruit of the “work of human hands,” but above all as “fruit of the earth” and “of the vine” – gifts of the Creator. The Church sees in the gesture of the king-priest Melchizedek, who “brought out bread and wine,” a prefiguring of her own offering. Source: Catechism of the Catholic Church #1333

The Gesture of Melchizedek Prefigures Christ

The Catechism teaches us that during the Offertory of the Mass, bread and wine are brought to the altar. The ordinary elements of bread and wine, created by God, have been offered to the Creator in thanksgiving by the priest. In faith, we believe the bread and wine become Christ’s body and blood during the priest’s prayer of consecration.

“Even as Melchizedek, the priest of the most high God, had prefigured Christ by offering bread and wine, so Jesus would exemplify this with his real body and blood. “ + St. Jerome

“For our sake, Jesus went before us into heaven,

and He has become like Melchizedek, a high priest for ever.”

– From the Liturgy of the Hours, Volume II p.342

#3 Blood of Christ, Save Us

Key Eucharist Verse: Exodus 12:7

Tell the whole community of Israel: On the tenth of this month every family must procure for itself a lamb, one apiece for each household…They will take some of its blood and apply it to the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. They will consume its meat that same night, eating it roasted with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Exodus 12:3, 7-8

The Blood of Christ Delivers Us from Destruction

The Eucharist isn’t just the body of Christ, it is also the Precious Blood of Jesus.

Christ is sacramentally present under each of the species. CCC 1390

Applying the blood on the two doorposts of the houses is symbolic of the precious blood of Christ on our lips during holy communion. Just as the blood stained the wood on the doorposts, so our souls are sealed with a mark of ownership by God from our baptism in the temple of our souls. Christians living devoutly in God’s grace belong to Christ, who gave Himself up for us without blemish at the altar of the cross.

“In those days, when the destroying angel saw the blood on the doors he did not dare to enter, so how much less will the devil approach now when he sees, not that figurative blood on the doors, but the true blood on the lips of believers, the doors of the temple of Christ.” + St. John Chrysostom

#4 Manna from Heaven

Key Eucharist Verse: Exodus 16:4

The LORD said to Moses: I am going to rain down bread from heaven for you. Each day the people are to go out and gather their daily portion; thus will I test them, to see whether they follow my instructions or not.  Exodus 16:4

Eucharist is the Bread of Eternal Life

Here is is a comparison of the Exodus verse with what Jesus says in St. John’s Gospel.

In the days of Moses there is the bread from heaven, also known as the bread of the angels. In the days of the Church, we are blessed to receive the Eucharist, the bread of life. Every day we have the opportunity to receive the holy Eucharist at Mass.

“Bread from heaven: as a gift from God, the manna is said to come down from the sky…. the Christian tradition has regarded the manna as a type of the Eucharist.” Source: USCCB

#5 Adoring the Face of Christ

Key Eucharist Verse: Exodus: 25:30

You shall also make a table of acacia wood, two cubits long, a cubit wide, and a cubit and a half high. Plate it with pure gold and make a molding of gold around it….On the table you shall always keep showbread set before me. Exodus 25:23-24, 30

Catholics Adore Christ in the Holy Eucharist

In our Catholic faith, we believe that the Eucharist is God. We truly believe that. The Eucharist is at the very center of our faith just as Jesus is at the very center of our lives. We believe that when we adore the Eucharist, we are adoring Christ who gazes at us.

I look at Him, and He looks at me. + St. John Vianney

The Heavenly Banquet with God on Mt. Sinai

In the Old Testament, Moses and three of his close companions, Aaron (the brother of Moses), Nadab, and Abihu, along with seventy elders, participated in a heavenly banquet with God on Mt. Sinai. It seems they miraculously saw the holy face of God.

They saw God, and ate and drank. Exodus 24:11b

Behold, God’s Love for You

After the banquet, God instructed Moses to keep the Bread of the Presence on a golden table as a kind of memorial of their heavenly encounter on the mountain.

“The Bread of the Presence is nothing less than the Bread of the Face of God…the bread itself is a visible sign of the face of God.” – Dr. Brant Pitre, Source: Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist

As baptized Catholics, we believe we experience the Divine life with God at holy communion. We encounter God in the chapel of adoration. We see God and live.

Who is this king of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the king of glory. Psalms 24:10

#6 The Bread of the Angels

Key Eucharist Verse: Psalms 78:25

So He commanded the clouds above; and opened the doors of heaven. God rained manna upon them for food; grain from heaven He gave them. Man ate the bread of the angels; food He sent in abundance. Psalms 78:23-25

Supernatural Bread from Heaven

God supplied the supernatural bread from heaven, the manna, for the Israelites in the desert during their Exodus journey before they reached the promised land. Like the Eucharist we receive at Mass, the manna was a miraculous gift from God.

“Manna was not ordinary bread. It was heavenly bread given by the Lord Himself and provided anew every day. Our Responsorial Psalm today, Psalm 78, affirms this great blessing as it says, ‘Man ate the bread of angels.’ This great mystery, foretold in the Old Testament and is fulfilled by Jesus in the New…” – Bishop Olmsted homily, Diocese of Phoenix

Nourished with the Food of Angels

The Scriptures saying that the bread is “the bread of the angels” helps to affirm that manna was no ordinary bread. It was God’s daily gift for the Israelites. They received this mysterious bread every day until they reached the promised land. In a similar way, we receive the Eucharist for strength until God calls us to be with Him.

You nourished your people with food of angels and furnished them bread from heaven, ready to hand, untoiled-for, endowed with all delights and conforming to every taste. Wisdom 16:20

#7 Elijah Eats Supernatural Bread

Key Eucharist Verse: 1 Kings 19:8

Elijah went a day’s journey into the wilderness, until he came to a solitary broom tree and sat beneath it. He prayed for death: “Enough, LORD! Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors.” He lay down and fell asleep under the solitary broom tree, but suddenly a messenger touched him and said, “Get up and eat!” He looked and there at his head was a hearth cake and a jug of water. After he ate and drank, he lay down again, but the angel of the LORD came back a second time, touched him, and said, “Get up and eat or the journey will be too much for you!” He got up, ate, and drank; then strengthened by that food, he walked forty days and forty nights to the mountain of God, Horeb. 1 Kings 19:4-8

God Strengthens Elijah for His Journey

Just as God gave Moses and the Israelites manna in the desert wilderness to eat, God gives the prophet Elijah bread and drink for his own journey. This event too is a foreshadowing of the Eucharist. Elijah fled to the wilderness in fear for his life. Left alone, he became despondent and wanted to die. But God had better plans for him.

God’s angel told Elijah: “Get up and eat or the journey will be too much for you.”

The Eucharist Gives Us Strength for the Journey

Like the “bread of the angels” Elijah ate in the wilderness, the Eucharist helps to sustain us on our journey in life. God supplies the Eucharist for us every day at the Mass. We simply have to do what Elijah did and receive it. What was once deep despair for Elijah, afraid and alone in the wilderness, became a complete turn around for him on his journey, even climbing up the holy mountain of God, Horeb. God was with Elijah all along. He never abandoned him. His love for us endures forever.

And no matter where you are in life, know that God is with you too.

Do not fear: I am with you; do not be anxious: I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. Isaiah 41:10

#8 The Banquet of Wisdom

Key Eucharist Verse: Proverbs 9:5

Wisdom has built her house, she has set up her seven columns; She has prepared her meat, mixed her wine, yes, she has spread her table. She has sent out her maidservants; she calls from the heights out over the city: “Let whoever is naive turn in here; to any who lack sense I say, Come, eat of my food, and drink of the wine I have mixed! Forsake foolishness that you may live;  Proverb 9:1-6

The Holy Sacraments Flow from Christ

When Christ was crucified, He gave us the holy sacrament of His body and blood. When His side was pierced, blood and water flowed out. This sacramental water and blood that flowed from Christ’s side continues to flow in the chalices of the bishops and priests who celebrate the holy sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world.

The proverb prefigures the Eucharist. God is wisdom. The Eucharist is God.

It is the humble people who hear Christ’s call to consume His body and blood in the Eucharist. These are the people who say yes to Christ from their hearts.

It was not you who chose me, but I who chose you.  John 15:16a

When we receive the Eucharist, we commune with an all knowing God. We reject the ways of the world for wisdom in Christ. Christ shares His Divinity with our humanity.

“By the mystery of this water and wine, may we come to share in the Divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.” – From the Liturgy of the Eucharist

#9 Banquet of Eternal Life

Key Eucharist Verse: Isaiah 25:6

On this mountain the LORD of hosts will provide for all peoples a feast of rich food and choice wines, juicy, rich food and pure, choice wines. On this mountain he will destroy the veil that veils all peoples, The web that is woven over all nations. He will destroy death forever. The Lord GOD will wipe away the tears from all faces; The reproach of his people he will remove from the whole earth; for the LORD has spoken. Isaiah 25:6-8

The Joyful Wedding Feast of the Lamb of God

The mountain is symbolic of the Church. The rich food is symbolic of the body of Christ, which He bids us to eat and have eternal life with Him. The pure, choice wine is symbolic of the blood of Christ, the Incarnate Word of God. Christ wills us to drink it.

God’s Will is Fulfilled in Christ

Christ fulfilled God’s will, destroying death forever, when He died on the cross and rose from the dead in the glory of His resurrection. He lives forever in heaven, seated at the right hand of the Father, and He wills for us to partake in His heavenly banquet.

Life in Christ has its foundation in the Eucharistic banquet: “As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. John 6:57” From CCC 1391

#10 Tithing Helps Protect the Eucharist

Key Eucharist Verse: Malachi 3:10

Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Put me to the test, says the LORD of hosts, and see if I do not open the floodgates of heaven for you, and pour down upon you blessing without measure! Malachi 3:10

Blessings from Above

When you tithe, you give a tenth of your income or increase to the LORD. You give Him the first fruits, the best you have, and in return God gives you His abundant blessings.

Heaven; copious showers. Blessing; fertility. Source: George Leo Haydock

Blessings for the Church

When you tithe, you help support the priests and the Church. Without the priests and parishes, we have no food, the Eucharist. Without the Eucharist, we have no life in us.

Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you do not have life within you. John 6:53

The Prophecy of Malachi

Just as Abraham’s descendants are as numerous as the stars of the sky, let us follow his example when he gave a tenth of his goods to the priest Melchizdek who offered bread and wine. Catholics who faithfully tithe help to fulfill Malachi’s prophecy.

From the rising of the sun to its setting, my name is great among the nations; Incense offerings are made to my name everywhere, and a pure offering; For my name is great among the nations, says the LORD of hosts. Malachi 1:11

New Testament Verses

#11 One Loaf of Bread in the Boat: Jesus

Key Eucharist Verse: Mark 8:14

Jesus got into the boat again, and went off to the other shore. The disciples had forgotten to bring bread, and they had only one loaf with them in the boat. Mark 8:13b-14

One Loaf of Bread in the Boat

This verse about the apostles forgetting to bring bread, “but they had one loaf with them in the boat,” may sound like an insignificant detail. It is amazing to learn St. Mark is actually pointing to Jesus being the “one loaf” with them in the boat.

“What is the real ‘one loaf’ (literally, ‘one bread’) with them in the boat? It is Jesus! Mark clarifies in verse 16 that they have ‘no bread’ – no earthly bread , that is. Source: Dr. Mary Healy, Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture – The Gospel of Mark

Jesus Was Born in the House of Bread

Jesus was born in Bethlehem, which means house of bread. On the evening before His death on the cross, Jesus told His disciples when he broke bread at the Last Supper the bread was His body, which would be given up for us for the forgiveness of sins.

“On the Lord’s day, when you have been gathered together, break bread and celebrate the Eucharist.” – From an ancient document entitled “The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles”

#12 Jesus is the Bread of Life

Key Eucharist Verse: John 6:48

Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. ”  John 6:47-48

The Bread of Life: Jesus Is What He Says He Is

St. John’s Gospel is unique in that only in St. John’s Gospel does Jesus proclaim that He is the Bread of Life. In the Catholic faith, we believe this in our bones. We believe Jesus meant what He said, and Jesus Himself did not back down from His own Word. Jesus went so far as to ask His own disciples if they wanted to abandon Him.

Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” John 6:67

The Eucharist Nourishes Our Faith in Christ

In the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke, Jesus institutes the Eucharist among the Twelve at the Last Supper. But only in John’s Gospel, Chapter 6, does Jesus give the Church an enduring teaching about Him being the Bread of Life from heaven.

“…Building upon the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves, Jesus revealed that He is the Bread of Life who has come down from Heaven to nourish us in faith, hope, and love, whereby we share more profoundly in the life of Christ. Holiness and effective witness of the Gospel requires an ardent love of and frequent reception of the Eucharist.” Source: The Didache Bible

#13 Jesus Institutes the Eucharist

Key Eucharist Verse: Matthew 26:26

While they were eating, Jesus took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and giving it to His disciples said, “Take and eat; this is my body.” Then He took a cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which will be shed on behalf of many for the forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26:26-28 

Jesus Institutes the Eucharist Through His Word

As Catholics, we believe that Jesus was speaking literally. According to St. Ambrose, before Jesus said that the bread and wine were His body and blood, they were just bread and wine, but after He said the bread and wine were His body and blood, they became Christ’s body and blood. Christ instituted the Eucharist with His Word.

“At the Last Supper, on the night He was betrayed, our Savior instituted the Eucharistic sacrifice of His Body and Blood.” CCC 1323

The Mystery of Faith: The Holy Eucharist

The mystery of the Eucharist has always been a matter of faith for the Church. Just as we believe the sacrament of baptism leaves an indelible mark on our soul, we also believe that bread and wine can be transformed into the body and blood of Christ.

“Do not regard the Eucharistic elements as ordinary bread and wine: they are in fact the body and blood of the Lord, as He Himself has declared. Whatever your senses may tell you, be strong in faith.” – From St. Cyril’s Jerusalem Catecheses

#14 Blood and Water Flowed from Christ

Key Eucharist Verse: John 19:34

One soldier thrust his lance into His side, and immediately blood and water flowed out. An eyewitness has testified, and his testimony is true; he knows that he is speaking the truth, so that you also may come to believe. For this happened so that the scripture passage might be fulfilled: “Not a bone of it will be broken.” And again another passage says: “They will look upon Him whom they have pierced.” John 19:34-37

The Origin of the Church Is From Christ’s Side

The Church teaches that just as Eve was taken by God from Adam’s side, so the Church was formed from Christ’s side on the Cross. And from Christ’s side flowed blood and water. The flowing blood signified that Jesus really did die, but it also alludes to the sacrament of the Eucharist. The water alludes to the sacrament of baptism.

The blood and water that flowed from the pierced side of the crucified Jesus are types of Baptism and the Eucharist, the sacraments of new life. Source: CCC 1225

Receiving Christ Worthily in the Eucharist

We should strive to receive holy communion without sin in our hearts, and frequent the sacrament of confession before receiving Christ in the holy Eucharist.

“As you approach the awful cup, approach it as if you were going to drink from thy Savior’s sacred side.” + St. John Chrysostom

#15 Jesus Celebrates the Eucharist

Key Eucharist Verse: Luke 24:30

As they approached the village to which they were going, He gave the impression that He was going on farther. But the two disciples urged Him, “Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost over.” So He went in to stay with them. And it happened that, while He was with them at table, He took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them. With that their eyes were opened and they recognized Him, but He vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us while He spoke to us on the way and opened the scriptures to us?”   Luke 24:28-32

On the Way to Emmaus With Jesus

Jesus blessing and breaking the bread at Emmaus with the two disciples signifies consecration of the Eucharist. This is what the Church Fathers believed. Jesus Himself celebrates the first Vigil Mass! Although it says, Jesus vanished from their sight, He also appeared to them spiritually for the first time in the holy Eucharist.

“Jesus is trying to get the disciples to direct their eyes, their vision, to the way He’s going to be with them from now on, which is in the Eucharist itself, in the breaking of the bread.” – Dr. Brant Pitre

The Disciples’ Eyes Were Opened When They Received Holy Communion from Christ

Two disciples were blessed to receive the Eucharist from Jesus at table that evening in Emmaus. We know one of the disciples with Jesus was Cleopas. Although Luke’s Gospel does not say who the other disciple was, we do know their eyes were opened to contemplate the Divine mysteries of God and heaven. Consider Eden and Emmaus:

Emmaus: Their eyes were opened. “See here the power and effect of the Eucharist. It opens the eyes of the mind to the knowledge of Jesus, and enables it to comprehend heavenly and divine mysteries.” Source: Douay-Rheims Bible

#16 Fellowship in the Eucharist

Key Eucharist Verse: Acts 2:42

Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit…Those who accepted his message were baptized, and about three thousand persons were added that day.  They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles.  Acts 2:38, 41-43

The Different Names of the Holy Eucharist

The sacrament of the Eucharist has such prominence in the Church that it goes by different names such as the holy sacrifice, holy communion, the breaking of the bread, and the Lord’s Supper. The breaking of the bread signifies the Eucharist.

“Recognize in this bread what hung on the cross, and in this chalice what flowed from His side.” + St. Augustine

Breaking the Bread is an Apostolic Teaching

As Catholics, we do many of the same things today that the very first family of Christians did: we gather together as one mind and body in Christ. We have fellowship together. We follow the apostolic teachings of the Church. And in the breaking of the bread at the celebration of the Mass, we are blessed to receive the holy Eucharist.

“Assemble on the Lord’s Day, and break bread and offer the Eucharist.” – From the Didache, “The Lord’s Instruction to the Gentiles Through the Twelve Apostles.”

#17 The Breaking of Bread at Sea

Key Eucharist Verse: Acts 27:35 

Paul kept urging all to take some food. He said, “Today is the fourteenth day that you have been waiting, going hungry and eating nothing. I urge you, therefore, to take some food; it will help you survive. Not a hair of the head of anyone of you will be lost.” When he said this, he took bread, gave thanks to God in front of them all, broke it, and began to eat. They were all encouraged, and took some food themselves. Acts 27:33-36

Stay with the Ship: Commune with the Church

In a previous verse, Paul tells the centurion that unless the sailors stay with the ship, they cannot be saved. Conversely, Jesus tells the apostles in the Gospel of Mark,

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. Mark 16:16a

With Jesus and St. Paul’s words in mind, consider the words of St. Boniface:

“In her voyage across the ocean of this world, the Church is like a great ship being pounded by the waves of life’s different stresses. Our duty is not to abandon ship but to keep her on her course.” + St. Boniface

Eucharistic Actions Performed by St. Paul

St. Paul was on a mission for God. There is a sense of his apostolic authority in that it was Paul who gave thanks to God and broke the bread before the people just as Jesus did before His apostles at the Last Supper. However, it remains uncertain whether this was the blessing of a meal or the actual breaking of bread in the Eucharist, especially since some of the crew members were probably not baptized or believers in Christ.

He took bread…: the words recall the traditional language of the celebration of the Eucharist (see Lk 22:19). Source: USCCB

Paul’s breaking of bread may have signified the Eucharist for 3 reasons:

1. It was probably the only meal Paul ate in a number or days, so he wanted to receive the Eucharist to be nourished by Christ for strength with his mission.
2. They were in peril and under extraordinary circumstances at the time.
3. Paul “took, gave thanks to God, broke it” is what Jesus did at the Last Supper.

#18 Holy Communion at Mass

Key Eucharist Verse: 1 Corinthians 10:16

The cup of blessing that we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? Because the loaf of bread is one, we, though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. 1 Corinthians 10:16-17

The Eucharist Helps Unite the Church in Christ

When we go to Mass, bread and wine are offered to the priest who consecrates them to God at the altar. When we receive the holy eucharist worthily, we are one with Christ and one with the Church. The body and blood of Christ unites us with the Catholic faithful throughout the world, those who suffer in life just like we do.

Fellow believers throughout the world undergo the same sufferings. The God of all grace who called you to his eternal glory through Christ Jesus will Himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 1 Peter 5:9b-10a

The Catholic Church is One in Christ

Should we blessed to receive salvation and enter into heaven with Christ the Lord, we will all believe in the same thing with Christ, as God intended. The Church was formed from Christ’s side at the cross to be one Church, one love, one faith in Christ.

“The Eucharist is the Body of Christ, which is the true Dwelling Place and Temple of God….we who participate in the Eucharist are also incorporated into God’s Temple.” – Dr. John Bergsma

#19 Receive the Eucharist Worthily

Key Eucharist Verse: 1 Corinthians 11:27

For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord unworthily will have to answer for the body and blood of the Lord. A person should examine himself, and so eat the bread and drink the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself. 1 Corinthians 11:26-29

Christ is Veiled in the Eucharist

This may be one of the most convincing verses about the Eucharist in the Bible. St. Paul advises us not to receive the Eucharist unworthily because the Eucharist is Christ. Christ is veiled in the Eucharist just as He was veiled to the two disciples at Emmaus, to Mary Magdalene at the empty tomb, and when the disciples went out fishing.

When it was already dawn, Jesus was standing on the shore; but the disciples did not realize that it was Jesus. John 21:4

“The disbelief of Thomas has done more for our faith than the faith of the other disciples. As he touches Christ and is won over to belief, every doubt is cast aside and our faith is strengthened.” + St. Gregory

Our Faith in Christ Removes the Veil

#20 The Tree of Life is Eternal

Key Eucharist Verse: Revelation 22:14

I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Blessed are they who wash their robes so as to have the right to the tree of life and enter the city through its gates. Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the unchaste, the murderers, the idol-worshipers, and all who love and practice deceit. “I, Jesus, sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. Revelation 22:13-16a

Baptism Cleanses Our Souls from Sin

When catechumens are baptized in Christ, there is a solemn rite performed by the priest at the Easter Vigil Mass. The water is blessed and made holy. The robes of the catechumens’ souls are washed clean from sin. It is in the sacrament of baptism that we are made a new creation in Christ and receive God’s sanctifying grace. The Church professes that our baptism gives us a right to the fruit of the tree of life, the Eucharist.

The Fruits of Holy Communion

“What material food produces in our bodily life, Holy Communion wonderfully achieves in our spiritual life. Communion with the flesh of the risen Christ, a flesh “given life and giving life through the Holy Spirit,” preserves, increases, and renews the life of grace received at Baptism.” Source: CCC 1392

Christ Draws Everyone to Himself

The Church believes the cross of Christ is the tree of life. We believe the body and blood of Christ in the Eucharist is the fruit of the tree of life. Jesus says in the Gospel that when He is lifted up on the cross, He will draw all people to Himself.

And when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself. John 12:32

Accept or Reject Christ’s Love

We have to make a decision to accept or reject Christ’s love. Should we accept Jesus in the Eucharist and have faith in God to follow His commandments, we can battle on and hope to be found worthy to have eternal life with Jesus forever in heaven.

To the victor I will give the right to eat from the tree of life that is in the garden of God. Revelation 2:7

From all eternity God has loved us. + St. Alphonsus Liguori