As we all know this was the instruction of Jesus "Do this in memory of me" and beside there is also a warning on it and it says "Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord. But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup." (2Cor 11:27-28)
2006-09-28 10:11:23 · 9 answers · asked by NIGHT_WATCH 4 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
To understand it even a little you would have to have a little understanding of the Jewish Passover. The bread originated on passover night in the days of moses when they were about to leave the slavery of Egypt. Because they were in a hurry the bread did not have time to rise and so they made it unleavened. In remembrance of that every year the passover was celebrated for 1500 years. It was at the Jewish passover (the last supper) that Jesus explained that this bread (for all those years) had been a symbol of His body which was about to be broken for the sins of the people. He also commanded that this practice should be continued until He returned since although we have Christ in our hearts we still do not have here the literal body of Christ until He returns. We do it as He said in remembrance of Him.
The Apostle Paul in the Book of 1 Corinthians 11 declared this time to be a time of self examination when Christians should deal with all sin in thier lives each time they remembered the Lord. To not do so has spiritual consequences, and also physical. Paul taught that anyone who violated this could become sick or even die.
1 Cor 11:29 For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. 30 For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep. 31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged.
2006-09-28 10:20:56 · answer #1 · answered by oldguy63 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
A person does not have to be "worthy" to simply eat bread and drink wine. Obviously Jesus was speaking of something much more profound here. The only way a man could be "guilty of the body and blood of the Lord" by consuming what appears to be bread and wine is if the apparent bread and wine are not mere physical food but something much more - the body and blood of the risen Savior, just as He said it was. When He preached about this, many of his disciples left Him and followed Him no more. Obviously they understood Him to be speaking literally about eating His body and drinking His blood. If they thought He was just speaking symbolically there would have been no reason for such an extreme reaction to His words.
But if all these people were walking away from salvation over a simple misunderstanding - because they thought He was speaking literally when He actually wasn't, why did Jesus just sit there and sadly watch them leave? Why didn't He speak up and explain what He really meant, so they wouldn't have to leave? The answer is so obvious that no honest person can miss it. He didn't correct them because they understood Him exactly as He meant to be understood. And that is exactly how every follower of Christ understood Him from the time of the Apostles until a few hundred years ago. Think about it. Luther reversed the beliefs of the Apostles. Is it possible he was right and they were wrong??
2006-09-28 17:24:59 · answer #2 · answered by PaulCyp 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The 'body and blood' tradition originated in pagan psychedelic drug rituals.
Psychedelic mushrooms were referred to as the body of god, because eating them gave you a trip into heaven. There was another brewed psychedelic wormwood substance (similar to absinthe) that was referred to as the blood of god for the same reason (this substance was known as bitter water in Jewish priestly rituals).
As Christianity became mixed with asceticism, the drug traditions were dropped and replaced with bread and wine rituals instead. This ritual was then folded into the Jesus story by the Gospel writers as Jesus was historicized in the latter 1st-mid 2nd centuries.
2006-09-28 17:28:28 · answer #3 · answered by lenny 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The breaking of the bread symbolizes that Jesus's body was broken for us. Just as we drink from the cup to rember that because he shed his blood we are forgiven for our sins.
2006-09-28 17:21:19 · answer #4 · answered by Kim M 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
As a Jew why the Passover bread (Matzoh) is striped and pierced. Ask them why only the middle of the three is broken. Why is that bread hidden? Therein lies the answer. It symbolizes Christ.
2006-09-28 17:20:27 · answer #5 · answered by TubeDude 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Time for sliced bread
2006-09-28 18:02:31 · answer #6 · answered by Agne 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it just symbolizes jesus' bodily, physical death on the cross for us. the wine symbolizes the blood jesus spilled for us. that passage just means that when you have examined yourself (realized your sins, asked god for forgiveness, and accepted that jesus died to pardon your sins), then you can truly accept and know the meaning behind breaking the bread.
2006-09-28 17:14:51 · answer #7 · answered by mighty_power7 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Cannibalistic consumption of the "body" of a person to aquire traits that they supposedly had.
2006-09-28 17:14:11 · answer #8 · answered by Blackacre 7 · 0⤊ 3⤋
we eat together, we stay toghether we have love for one another
2006-09-28 17:27:06 · answer #9 · answered by Me 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋