By Fr. Arturo Cabra                                                                                                                                      October 18, 2026

The prayers of the Mass reflect its twofold nature as both a meal and a sacrifice. These two elements are inseparable (cf. Catechism, 1382). Our Lord Himself intended the Eucharist to possess this dual nature. 

When the Lord instituted the Eucharist, He did not just state, “This is my body,” and “this is my blood”; He also added, “which is given up for you,” and “which will be pour out for you.” The food of the Eucharistic meal is nothing less than the body and blood of the divine victim who was sacrificed for the world’s salvation. 

The Lord did not die of old age or natural causes; His body was broken down like an immolated lamb, and His blood poured out as a symbol of His suffering. With the words instituting the Eucharist, the Lord expressed the sacrificial meaning of the Last Supper. He made sacramentally present His sacrifice, which would soon be offered on the Cross for the salvation of all (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 12).

The term sacrifice expresses a religious rite in which an object is offered to a divinity to establish, maintain, or restore a right relationship between a human being and the sacred order. The practice of sacrifice is a human activity found across all cultures and throughout history. History also bears witness to the human sacrifices practiced by some ancient cultures. It is interesting to note that human sacrifice was not practiced in ancient Israel. 

Nevertheless, a human sacrifice is precisely what the God of Abraham asked of him. Abraham was the patriarch with whom the people of Israel originated some 3,800 years ago, and the attempted sacrifice of young Isaac by his father on the hills of Moriah remains one of the most dramatic and puzzling stories in the Old Testament. The deeper truth of the narrative is that God never intended for Abraham to kill his son; God was simply testing the depth of Abraham's faith. Like many events in the Old Testament, the binding of Isaac was a foreshadowing of what the heavenly Father would one day do to His beloved Son, our Lord Jesus, on Mount Calvary. 

The sacrifice of a human person was needed for the salvation of the world. That is how God designed the redemption of mankind after the sin of Adam. Because God had warned Adam that he would face death if he ate from the forbidden tree, God ultimately chose to send His beloved Son to die in our place. The sacrifice of the Son of God was the only human sacrifice needed in history. 

Through the words of institution, the Lord spoke of His blood: “This is the chalice of my blood, the blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.” To fully comprehend this sacrifice—marked by the breaking of Christ’s body and the outpouring of His blood—we must look back to Exodus and the sacrifice of the former covenant. 

By visiting Moses and the Israelites in the desert where God’s covenant was ratified by sacrifice and a shared meal (Exodus 24), we unlock the true meaning of the Lord’s actions at the Last Supper and on Calvary. 

Ultimately, the sacrificial framework of the old covenant illuminates the profound reality of Christ's sacrifice on the cross and its sacramental memorial in every celebration of the Eucharist. 

To be continued. 

By Father Arturo Cabra                                                                                                                 September 27, 2026

A History of Receiving Holy Communion in the Church

In fulfillment of the Lord’s command to "Take and eat... Take and drink," the Church distributed Holy Communion under the species of both bread and wine from its earliest days. Receiving Holy Communion under both species remained the norm for more than a millennium.

By the end of the eleventh century, the practice of distributing Holy Communion under the form of bread alone began to grow. Subsequently, the Council of Constance in 1415 decreed that Holy Communion would be distributed to the faithful under the form of bread alone. Later, the Council of Trent in 1545 did not find it opportune, for various reasons, to restore the practice of reception under both species.

However, the Council of Trent established the Catholic teaching on the form of Holy Communion: “that Christ, whole and entire, and the true Sacrament, is received even under only one species, and consequently that as far as the effects are concerned, those who receive under only one species are not deprived of any of the grace that is necessary for salvation” (General Instruction of the Roman Missal [GIRM], No. 282). 

In 1963, the Second Vatican Council deemed it salutary to restore the practice when appropriate: “Communion under both kinds may be granted when the bishops think fit, not only to clerics and religious, but also to the laity” (Sacrosanctum Concilium, No. 55). 

“The extension of the faculty for the distribution of Holy Communion under both kinds does not represent a change in the Church's immemorial beliefs concerning the Holy Eucharist. Rather, today the Church finds it salutary to restore a practice, when appropriate, that for various reasons was not opportune when the Council of Trent was convened in 1545. But with the passing of time, and under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, the reform of the Second Vatican Council has resulted in the restoration of a practice by which the faithful are again able to experience ‘a fuller sign of the Eucharistic banquet’" (United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Norms for the Distribution and Reception of Holy Communion Under Both Kinds in the Dioceses of the United States of America, 2002, No. 21). 

“When Communion under both kinds is first introduced by the Diocesan Bishop and also whenever the opportunity for instruction is present, the faithful should be properly catechized on the following matters in the light of the teaching and directives of the General Instruction:

1. the ecclesial nature of the Eucharist as the common possession of the whole Church;
2. the Eucharist as the memorial of Christ's sacrifice, his death and resurrection, and as the sacred banquet;
3. the real presence of Christ in the eucharistic elements, whole and entire—in each element of consecrated bread and wine (the doctrine of concomitance);
4. the kinds of reverence due at all times to the sacrament, whether within the eucharistic Liturgy or outside the celebration; and
5. the role that ordinary and, if necessary, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist are assigned in the eucharistic assembly” (Norms No. 25). 

By Fr. Arturo Cabra                                                                                                                                  September 6, 2026

A few weeks ago, in our catechesis on receiving the Body and Blood of the Lord, we learned the Doctrine of Concomitance. Concomitance refers to things that exist or occur together. In the Eucharist, whatever is truly united to the substance undergoing sacramental change is also made present. Therefore, when the words of consecration change the bread into Christ’s Body, His Blood, Soul, and Divinity are present as well. Similarly, when the wine is changed into Christ’s Blood, His Body, Soul, and Divinity are present alongside it. 

In light of the Doctrine of Concomitance, an objector in St. Thomas Aquinas's time questioned the need for both species: “If, therefore, nothing is contained under one species except what is contained under the other, and if Christ is fully present under both, it would seem that one of them is superfluous in this sacrament.” 

To this objection, he replied: “Although the whole Christ is present under each species, it is not without purpose. First, this serves to represent Christ's Passion, in which his blood was separated from his body; hence, the form for consecrating the blood mentions its shedding. Second, it is in keeping with the use of this sacrament that Christ's body is presented separately to the faithful as food and his blood as drink. Third, it is in keeping with its effect that the body is offered for the salvation of the body, and the blood for the salvation of the soul” (Summa Theologica 3.76.2).  

St. Thomas Aquinas also addressed this objection regarding the reception of the Eucharist: “This sacrament is celebrated in memory of our Lord's Passion, and it is received for the health of the soul. But the Passion is expressed in the blood rather than in the body; moreover, the blood is offered for the health of the soul. Consequently, one ought to refrain from receiving the body rather than the blood. Therefore, those who approach this sacrament ought not to take Christ's body without his blood.”  

To this objection, he replied: “Our Lord's Passion is represented in the very consecration of this sacrament, in which the body ought not to be consecrated without the blood. But the body can be received by the people without the blood, nor is this detrimental to the sacrament. For the priest both offers and consumes the blood on behalf of all, and Christ is fully contained under either species” (Summa Theologica 3.80.12). 

St. Thomas Aquinas outlined two key considerations regarding the reception of the Eucharist: “Two points should be observed regarding the use of this sacrament: one on the part of the sacrament, and the other on the part of the recipients. On the part of the sacrament, it is proper for both the body and the blood to be received, since the perfection of the sacrament lies in both; consequently, as it is the priest's duty both to consecrate and complete the sacrament, he ought on no account to receive Christ's body without the blood.

By Fr. Arturo Cabra                                                                                                                                 August 2, 2026

The Council of Trent stated: “Under the consecrated species of bread and wine Christ himself, living and glorious, is present in a true, real, and substantial manner: his Body and his Blood, with his soul and his divinity.” In this holy sacrament that the Lord left to the Church, we find His precious Body, His precious Blood, His human Soul as the true man He is, and His Divine Nature as the true God He is.

While we all know and believe this doctrine, my intention now is to explain how all four parts of the Real Presence are present in their entirety within each element of the consecrated bread and wine. Yes, Christ’s Blood, Soul, and Divinity are truly present in the consecrated host. Likewise, Christ’s Body, Soul, and Divinity are truly present in the consecrated wine. Consequently, there is nothing derogatory to the perfection of the sacrament when the faithful receive the Body without the Blood. 

To understand this, we should allow St. Thomas Aquinas to guide us. He explained that Christ is present in the Eucharist in a twofold manner: first, by the power of the sacrament, and second, by natural concomitance. The "power of the sacrament" means that through the words of consecration, the pre-existing substance of the bread and wine is changed into the Body and Blood of Christ.

"Concomitance," on the other hand, refers to things that occur or exist together in connection with one another. A physical example of this is thunder and lightning, which occur in direct concomitance during a storm. In the Eucharist, anything truly united to the substance that undergoes sacramental change is likewise made present. Therefore, once the words of consecration change the bread into Christ’s Body, His Blood, Soul, and Divinity are also present alongside the Body. Christ’s Soul and Divinity are not present by the power of the sacrament itself, but rather through real concomitance. 

Let us see how these four elements of Christ (Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity) interacted between the moment of His death on the cross and the moment of His triumphant Resurrection. 

First, His Divinity never left His Body, since once God became flesh, He never set aside His assumed body. Second, His Soul was truly separated from His Body. If the Eucharist had been celebrated during those three days the Lord was dead, the Soul of Christ would not have been present in the sacrament. However, since “Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more,” as St. Paul writes in Romans 6:9, His Soul is always really united with His Body. As stated above, Christ’s Soul is now present in the sacrament through real concomitance. 

Third, His Blood was truly separated from His Body at the time of His Passion and Death. When the Lord instituted the Eucharist at the Last Supper, He said: “This is the chalice of my Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins.” The Lord promised that His Blood would be completely poured out as a sign of His Passion. If the Eucharist had been celebrated during those three days the Lord was dead, Christ’s Body would have been present under the appearance of bread without the Blood, and the Blood would have been present under the appearance of wine without the Body. 

After the Resurrection, the Risen Lord is truly present in the sacrament. His Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity are truly present in each of the consecrated elements, either by virtue of the power of the sacrament or through real concomitance. The first Eucharist after the Resurrection was celebrated by the Lord Himself at Emmaus on Easter Sunday evening. St. Luke tells us, “And it happened that, while he was with them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them” (Luke 24:30).                                                                         

To be continued 

By Fr. Arturo Cabra                                                                                                                                     June 21, 2026

On the evening of the Day of the Resurrection, two of the Lord’s disciples left Jerusalem and walked toward Emmaus. As they walked and debated the Resurrection, the Lord came along and walked with them. As night approached, the Lord stayed with them, sharing a meal and breaking bread. When the Lord gave thanks and broke the bread, they finally recognized Him. From this point forward, the Eucharist became both the presence of the Lord and spiritual food for the community of believers. 

Each time two or more of the Lord’s disciples gather to celebrate the Eucharist, we do it with the intent of being in the Lord’s presence and eating the supernatural food that sustains our souls on our journey through life. Therefore, “the Eucharist is the most precious possession which the Church can have in her journey through history,” and “this explains that lively concern which she has always shown for the Eucharistic mystery” (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, 9).

During the time of the Protestant Reformation, the Council of Trent condemned the Protestant heresies and offered clarity on the matter of the Eucharist. The Second Vatican Council, which is the most recent Church Council, did not produce a document focused on the theology of the Eucharist. It produced one document on divine worship and integrated the theme of the Eucharist into the major document on the Church. However, nearly every pope from the last century produced documents on the Eucharist, among which John Paul II’s Encyclical Letter from 2003 Ecclesia de Eucharistia must be highlighted.

As the titles of all the documents of the Church are contained in the first words of the first paragraph, Ecclesia de Eucharistia begins: “The Church draws her life from the Eucharist. This truth does not simply express a daily experience of faith but recapitulates the heart of the mystery of the Church.” Quite simply, the Church cannot exist without the Eucharist. 

The precious gift of the Eucharist was given to the Church by the Lord at the last Supper. When the Lord blessed and broke the bread and then blessed and shared the cup of wine, He was celebrating the first Eucharist for His disciples. But to make it available to all His disciples at any place and time thereafter, the Lord gave them that great command: “Do this in memory of me.” 

With these words, the Lord consecrated His disciples as the priests of the New Covenant. As ministers of the Eucharist, they would ensure His enduring presence among the faithful and provide the spiritual food they need. The Church faithfully obeys the Lord’s command. The Church celebrates the Eucharist from the rising of the sun to its setting, essentially non-stop.  

As a community of believers, the Eucharist is always the presence of the Lord in our midst and our vital spiritual food. We come to Mass each Sunday with the desire to be in the Lord’s presence as when we eagerly wait to meet a person very dear to us. We come to Mass each Sunday with the desire to eat the spiritual food we need for the sustenance of our souls. 

Today we are reminded of the most precious possession the Church holds in this world: the Eucharist, the Real Presence of the Lord. Today we give thanks to the Lord for leaving us such a great gift. And today we humbly ask the Lord to grant us the grace to cherish this most precious possession.