Mexico weekly ledger. (Mexico, Mo.) 1855-1956, 1886-03-18
A CATHOLIC HEARD FROM ON THE
seREAL PRESENCE"

@. IA. What does our holy faith a
each us concerning the real pres il
,nce? O
A. 1t teaches us, a. that after +
,he conservation our Lord Jesus
Christ, true God and true man, is J
.ruly really and substantially con- 9
aimed under the outward appear |
ances of the bread and wine; and q. y
that under each kind is contained
Jesus Christ, whole and entire, his |
body and blood, his soul and divin-
ity. See the Council of Trent, Sess.
xii. ch. 1 and 3.
@. Is. How can it be proved that
Christ is truly and really present in
the Holy Eucharist?
A. The first proof is taken from
what is related in the sixth chapter
of st. Johns gospel, where we are
told that after the great miracle of
feeding five thousand men with FIVE
loaves and two fishes, our Saviour
went over to the other side of the
lake, and that the next morning the
multitude missing him went over after
him; and, when they found him, he
took occasion, from the impression
which that miracle had made upon
their minds, to bring on the the dis
course about the heavenly food which
he was to give to the world IN the
Holy Eucharist, and said ''labour not
for the meat that perlsheth, but for
that which endureth unto everlasting
life, which the Son of Man will give
you," verse 27. Here he declares
that the meat he was to give was
such as would bring eternal life.
Their curiosity being by these words,
raised to know more about this heav-
enly food, they asked sign by which
they might believe him, and wished
to know if the food he spoke of was
better than the mama which God
gave their fathers from heaven in the
desert. Then Jesus said to them,
amen, amen, 1 say to you, Moses
gave you not bread from heaven, but
my Father giveth you the true bread
from heaven; for the bread of God
is that which cometh down from
heaven, and giveth life to the world" "
verse 80. In which words he shews
the supereminent excellency of his
bread above the mamma, saying 1t is
the true bread from heaven" and
such as produces the most wonderful
effects, so as to ''give life to the
world" The Jews hearing of such
} wonderful bread said to him, Lord
give US always this bread,' verse 81.
Upon which he replied, 81 am the
bread of life;' and then he goes on
to declare, that those who come to
| him, and believe in him, should be
! ! fed with this bread and obtain ever.
lasting life. The Jews hearing this
instead of believing his words, '.mur
, INJURED at him, because he had said,
am the living bread which came dowr
from heaven" verse Al. Yet Jesus
instead of explaining away the liter a
e meaning of what he had said, and il
. which they had understood him
t showed no surprise at their unbelief
y but added that to believe in him wa
t a gift of God, for "no man can com
e TO me-" says he, ''except my Father
S who hath sent me, draw him. vers
A. And then he goes on to repea
what he had said before, and shew
what his bread is in the PLANES
10 terms: 81 am the bread of life" say
he; "your fathers did eat mama i
- the desert and are dead. This is th
bread which cometh down frol
heaven, that, If any man eat of it, b
s may not die. l am the living brea
which came down from heaven
any man eat of this bread, he sha
live forever, and the bread that wi
OF give, is my flesh, for the life of Il
ot world" verse 4S. Here he repea
again the excellency of his heaven
- % bread, declares that he himself
that living bread, and concludes
y assuring US that the bread which
es proposes to give is his flesh, that We
- flesh which he gave ''for the life
la, the world" This assertion, in
Al PLAIN and obvious sense, so clear
ia, establishes his real presence in t
+s heavenly bread be speaks of that
seems impossible to find words to e
"a press i: more strongly. In fact, I
Jews naturally understood him
90 this sense. that he meant to give the
b
his real flesh to eat; hut as th
H. could not understand how this shou
> be done aud would not, in the sil
C. plicity of faith, believe it upon
word, "they strove among themselv'
'n' saying, how can this man give US +.
flesh to eat?" verse So. Now, fire
20 this text and what follows
100 have the most convincing proof
90: the real presence, and that the liter
xi- plain and obvious sense of Chris
words, in which the Jews understo
ia him, was the very sense and meant
which he intended for them, for it
isd evident from what the Jews here 6
THAT they understood him in the lit
In. al sense, as promising 10 give tin
at his real flesh to eat and it was FRI
es: his own words that they were induc
rec to understand him so. If, thereto
90 the literal sense, importing the r
The presence. had not been his meanir