Eucharist and the Lord's Supper
Protestant accounts of the Lord's Supper differ. Lutheran confessions affirm Christ's body and blood as truly present. Anglican Article XXVIII says Christ's body is given, taken, and eaten only in a heavenly and spiritual manner, received by faith; the Westminster Confession says worthy receivers feed on Christ spiritually while the bread and wine remain bread and wine. The Southern Baptist confession calls the Supper a symbolic act of obedience that memorializes Christ's death. Neither a symbolic-only nor a single real-presence description fits this range.
Tradition note
Read a particular church's confession for its account of Christ's presence and the Supper's use.
Scripture
- Luke 22:19–20 — At the supper, Jesus identifies bread and cup with his body and the new covenant and tells his followers to remember him.
- 1 Corinthians 10:16–17 — Paul calls the cup and bread a participation in Christ and links the one loaf to the community's unity.
- 1 Corinthians 11:23–29 — Paul recounts the supper and warns the Corinthians against eating and drinking without discerning the body.
Primary sources
Augsburg Confession Article X states:
The Lutheran Augsburg Confession affirms the true presence of Christ's Body and Blood.
the Body and Blood of Christ are truly present
Passage context and translation
The Lutheran confession of real presence; Reformed, Anglican, and Baptist accounts differ.
Before the excerpt
Of the Supper of the Lord they teach that
After the excerpt
and are distributed to those who eat the Supper of the Lord