Eucharistic Theology

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

This module will examine the claim across churches that the Church is most itself when it gathers to celebrate the Eucharist. The module will trace the origins of the Eucharist in the New Testament, and how this was understood in selected early church writings. The eighth century debates on presence will be looked at, as well as the medieval synthesis on Eucharist, the thinking of Trent, and a survey of contemporary issues and directions in Eucharistic theology. It will discuss the disputes over the Eucharist that arose during the Reformation, as well as the attempts among theologians of various churches to articulate a new synthesis in contemporary ecumenical dialogue. To this end the bilateral discussion on Eucharist (ARCIC), and the relevant section of the Lima Statement of convergence from the 1982 World Council of Churches will be explored.