An Early Church Theology Of The Lord's Supper

Christian writers of the first two centuries affirmed, without attempting a theological explanation for the fact, that the risen Christ is present in the eucharistic action that transforms those who receive it.

Christ's Presence What can be said confidently about the theology of the Lord's Supper in the earliest centuries is that the writings available to modern researchers attest to the conviction that the risen Christ is present in the eucharistic action and assembly. What cannot be said with confidence is how in the earliest eras this presence was explained philosophically, if indeed it was. What must be avoided (though frequently it happens) is the attempt to read back into those times later explanations and controversies, particularly the medieval and Reformation debates about Christ's presence in the Eucharist. Certainly the understanding of the early centuries was related to the Lukan affirmation that the risen Lord "?was known to them in the breaking of bread?" (Luke 24:35, kjv), and to the concept of anamnesis behind the eucharistic formulations of Luke and Paul. The Didache (c. 100–150) affirms, "?To us you have granted spiritual food and drink for eternal life through your child Jesus?" (10:3); speaks of "?the life and knowledge which you have made known to us?" (9:3); and speaks of "?the knowledge and faith and immortality which you have made known to us.?" However, these statements, together with the cry maranatha "?our Lord, come;?" (10:6) can be interpreted broadly, rather than as specific references to eucharistic presence. Hence, the first clear post–New Testament source on the Eucharist is Justin Martyr's Dialogue with Trypho (c. 150) (see chapters 65–67). In the Dialogue, Justin asserts the Eucharist to be the one true sacrifice acceptable to God; but Christ's presence in the Eucharist is not clearly implied. In the First Apology 66:2, however, Justin affirms:

For we do not receive these things as common bread or common drink; but just as our Savior Jesus Christ, being incarnate through the Word of God, took flesh and blood for our salvation, so too we have been taught that the food over which thanks have been given by the prayer of the Word who is from him, from which our flesh and blood are fed by transformation, is both the flesh and blood of that incarnate Jesus.

Thus the work of Christ in the historical Incarnation and in the Eucharist are inextricably linked without elaboration as to how this can occur. It is clear, however, that Justin sees this as a teaching handed down—not as his own invention. The Transformation of the Recipient Further, the linkage between Christ in the Incarnation and Christ in the Eucharist is to be understood. Whatever happens or does not happen in the transformation of the bread and wine, Christ's presence in the Eucharist is a source of transformation (metabolen) of the worshipers. Whether this is ethical transformation (as may be inferred from Justin's later reference to sharing with all in need) or ontological transformation—or both—is also not specified. It is likely that for Justin, the work of the logos, the Word, is crucial in any eucharistic transformation; certainly this is true in Irenaeus (c. 180). For Irenaeus states that "?the mingled cup and the manufactured bread receives the Word of God, and the Eucharist of the blood and body of Christ is made, from which things the substance of our flesh is increased and supported .…?" (Against Heresies, 5.2.3). Irenaeus also asserts that earthly bread "?when it receives the invocation (epiklesis) of God is no longer common bread, but the Eucharist, consisting of two realities, earthly and heavenly?"; and from this our bodies receive incorruption, "?having the hope of resurrection to eternity?" (4.18). Similarly for Ignatius of Antioch (c. 115), the Eucharist is the "?medicine of immortality?" (To the Ephesians, 20). However in none of these instances is there a hint of an explanation as to how the physical bread becomes more than bodily food. A plethora of references throughout the writers of the period confirms the early church's affirmation that, through the bread and cup of the Eucharist, the faithful have a particular means of apprehending the presence of their Lord. Justin's reference to an accompanying transformation of people is less evident in other literature of the early church, and may represent his distinctive and enduring contribution to eucharistic teaching.