An Apologetical Explanation of the

Sacrament of the Eucharist

What are the benefits of receiving the Eucharist?

Jesus said the [the Jews], “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.  He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him.”  (Jn 6:53-56)

The Holy Eucharist, in which the faithful receive the Body and Blood of Christ, is the ultimate sign of our sharing in the divine life of Christ as well as of our status as one Body in Christ.

In the Gospel of St. John, Christ identified himself as the “bread which came down from heaven” (Jn 6:41).  At the Last Supper he took the bread and the cup filled with wine and said, “This is my body…. This is my blood of the covenant” (Mt 26:27-28).  Each time a bishop or priest repeats these words of consecration in the Mass, the substance of the bread and wine is changed into the Body and Blood of Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.  (Cf. CCC 1365, 1374, 1376)

Because the members of the Church are one Body in Christ, we partake of the one bread, the Body of Christ, in the Eucharist, “the fount and apex of the whole Christian life” (LG 11).  Holy Communion is thus a rich symbol of our unity in Christ and of Christ’s presence dwelling within us.  (Cf. CCC 805, 1384, 2120)

Though every Catholic is required to receive the Eucharist at least once yearly, he or she should receive it as often as possible, even daily, as long as he or she is properly disposed.  (Cf. CCC 1388-1389, 1417)

The person who receives the Eucharist is blessed with many graces.  The Eucharist…

  • Maintains and increases intimate union with Christ.  (Cf. CCC 1325, 1391)
  • Reinforces the unity of the Church as the Mystical Body of Christ.  (Cf. CCC 1396, 1398)
  • Removes venial sins and increases charity toward God and neighbor.  (Cf. CCC 1394)
  • Strengthens the recipient from grave sins.  (Cf. CCC 1395)
  • Decreases temporal punishment due to sin.  (Cf. CCC 1414)
  • Helps the recipient to avoid temptation and control concupiscence.  (Cf. CCC 1393)

In the Eastern Churches, as in the early Church, the three Sacraments of Initiation—Baptism, Confirmation, and Communion—are given even to infants in one continuous liturgical celebration.  (Cf. CCC 1233, 1285, 1322, 1533)

The Catechism addresses this question in paragraph 1416.

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