Eucharistic Theology

Abstract Critical and systematic thought about the Eucharist appeared in western theology in the 9th century when the monk Paschasius Radbertus wrote the first systematic treatment of the Eucharist, “On the Body and Blood of the Lord.” Christian writers had discussed the Eucharist before, but only as part of their explanations of Christian belief to non‐Christians and to the recently baptized. Paschasius wrote to explain how the risen Christ could be present in the bread and wine of communion. His fellow monk, Ratramnus, soon followed with another treatise with the same title. Two centuries later, the questions raised by the theologian Berengar of Tours about the mode of presence of the risen Christ in the Eucharist occasioned a series of treatises on this subject, and, with the attack on the Cathars on the value of communion, the topic remained one of intense interest throughout the Middle Ages. During the Reformation, the Reformers split with the Roman Catholics as well as among themselves over their understanding of that presence. These disagreements produced a flurry of theological activity that continues to the present day. Despite the preponderance of theological writing concerning the mode of presence of the risen Christ in the Eucharist, other equally important issues were addressed by the medieval, Reformation, and modern theologians. The most important of these issues remains how the celebration of the Lord's Supper aids the life of faith. Roman Catholics would stress that reception of communion empowers them (gives them the grace) to live a life of faith and love. Reform theologians are more likely to stress that the Eucharist is a pledge of the salvation already given in baptism. Most recently, Eucharistic theology tends to address how the different Christian understandings of the sacrament might be reconciled or at least mutually respected.