Contrast: The Eucharist

Hays’s The Burdens of Disease first chapter “Western Inheritance” discusses how different religions reacted to diseases and sickness. Hays discusses four main religions: the Aclepsian, Hippocratic, Galen, and Christianity. The Cult of Aclepios had the most notable healing traditions of the early Greeks according to Hays. According to Hays those who were sick would go to Aclepios’s temple and have ritual sacrifices, ritual bathing’s, and an “incubation sleep” (pg.9). This slumber would allow them to receive messages on what to do or automatic healing from the god himself.

"You're really sick. What are you going to do? There's no Baptist or Methodist Hospital. There are some doctors available, but you're not sure you trust them. You could go down to the temple… and have the priest call on his god to heal you.

The Church of Christ, founded by Mary Baker Eddy in 1879, preached that the true practice of Christianity heals sickness; she establishes her views in the book “Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures”.

The Christian faith views death and disease as byproducts of sin and are a part of life due to sinful human nature. Jesus was a healer of people and the followers have followed in His footsteps. The early health care system was started by nuns and other followers in the church (Preston, 2000). By following the teachings of their religion they sought to address health and suffering by taking a holistic approach to healing. By taking into consideration the mental and spiritual, along side the physical, they believe a deeper level of healing can be given. Health is not just addressing the physical symptoms but, helping achieve a peaceful state of mind and having meaningful relationships with those

As a Catholic nurse living in California, the author encounters patients with different religion, but the author promptly sets aside her own beliefs, placing the patient as number one priority. The

By accepting and ingesting the Eucharist Catholics are promising to live as persons of Jesus and love everyone. This description demonstrates the irony present because the narrator does not live as a person of Jesus and does not love the blind man for who he is. Just like the bread is transformed in mass however, the main character’s heart is transformed by the end of the story.

Dr. Montgomery and I made rounds on the cardiovascular unit, and I was able to observe him interact with several patients of different faith background. He offered prayer to some, however, one declined prayer, and most requested prayer. Dr. Montgomery allowed me to pray with him and the patient. He also washed his hands between each patient.

The Eucharist or communion has been celebrated for over 2000 years in the church; however, the frequency of the practice varies greatly across churches. For example, the non-denominational church that I grew up in, celebrated communion every Sunday with consistency and the focal point of each service. (It was so routine I could quote what was going to be said.) Now, I am part of a church that celebrates communion once per month as a conclusion to the sermon. Another major difference between the two churches is who is welcome to participate in communion. For instance, my first church greatly expressed that only those who profess Christ could partake and must not receive communion in an unworthy. Evidently, the church’s view of Atonement (Penal Substitution) influenced a memorial view of communion. Also, the leader’s interpretation of 1 Corinthians 11:29 influenced this approach to communion. As our weekly reading pointed out, “Most who take the Memorial View do not have a place for grace in their theology beyond salvation” (Peterson 3). Therefore, during

Health is not limited to a physical illness that can be cured or alleviated but must encompass the entire individual. It includes spiritual, emotional, social, mental and physical aspects of the individual. All of these areas must be assessed and evaluated when caring or a patient and their families (Chitty, 2007, p. 303).

Christians have been celebrating the Lord’s Supper for almost two thousand years. In this paper I will refer to the Lord’s Supper as an ordinance of the church. “An ordinance is an outward rite prescribed by Christ to be performed by His Church.” There are quite a few varying interpretations among the different churches on how the Lord’s Supper is to be practiced. I Corinthians 11:23-34 provides Christians with the scriptural meaning and reasons for observing the Lord’s Supper, also known as communion. Many consider the Lord’s Supper of little or no value and some consider the ordinance as more of a ritual. In some modern churches, preaching the Word is emphasized the most and communion is only observed once a month or

The spiritual significance of illness and suffering is a topic Christians continue to grapple with, as Larchet points out in The Theology of Illness. Scripture offers a wealth of wisdom and cues for understanding illness, health, and healing from a Christian perspective. Larchet analyzes the various and often contradictory Christian positions on health and illness, revealing how attitudes have shifted over time and with changes in medical technology, practice, and ethics. For example, St. Barsanuphius presents a comprehensive analysis of the spiritual significance of illness and suffering. One view holds that illness signifies a lack of faith; another presents illness in terms of a person who is offered the opportunity to develop a stronger faith, or whose faith is being put to a test like the story of Job. Ultimately, the latter remains the most helpful way to approach illness and healing from a Christian perspective. The essence of Christian health care is that, "Healing itself, while resulting from natural processes, actually comes from God," (Larchet 116).

God sacrificed his son, Jesus, for the good of all people and so that they too would depart from the slavery and the submission to sins and wrongdoings, in order to enter into a pure state of forgiveness and freedom. This is the key reason why Christians, of all branches, hold a great importance to Holy Communion, which remembers Christ’s sacrifice to them, which frees them of their sins up till this day. Even though, most, if not all Christian denominations agree about the origins of such a ritual, they now have different opinions about how the service is conducted. The Roman Catholic Church believes in the idea of transubstantiation, which is the belief that the bread and wine that they consume at the Eucharist meal, has over the years, mystically transformed into Jesus’ real body and blood.

Receiving the Eucharist is one of the most important things we can do as a catholic. Holy Communion is the most important of all the sacraments. It completes the Sacraments of Initiation. The bread and wine we receive at communion is the body and blood of Jesus. It becomes the bread and body of Jesus through Transubstantiation. Transubstantiation is the conversion of the substance of the Eucharistic elements into the body and blood of Christ at consecration, only the appearances of bread and wine still remain. We participate in the sacrament of communion to commemorate all that Jesus did for us and getting nailed to a cross so we can be free from sin and have eternal life in heaven.

Two practices important to Christian worship usually take place in churches. These practices are (1) baptism and (2) the Eucharist, also called Holy Communion or the Lord's Supper. The ceremony of baptism celebrates an individual's entrance into Christianity. The Eucharist represents the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus shared with His disciples. Worshipers share bread and wine in the Eucharist as a sign of their unity with each other and with Jesus.

The Communion Christians have always regarded the Holy Communion as being one very important element towards achieving discipleship since the very beginning. However, the question in every Christian’s mind is “what are we doing?” it is, therefore, important to discuss what the holy communion means about theology. The Holy Communion has several names given to it. Among them are: the Eucharist, the Lord’s Supper, Divine Liturgy, and the Mass. Inside the New Testament, there are also varying details given there concerning what entails the Holy Communion on accounts given by Christ himself.[1] The Holy Communion does not compare to Baptism which is another sacrament that is non-repeatable. It is repeatable to some certain degrees as it can be done on a daily basis such as those performed by the Catholic Church. In other instances, it can be conducted on a much infrequent celebration such as the ones that happen in Reformed Churches. Referring to Baptism, there are differences in the practice and its significance, and sometimes the understanding of what it means to be baptized. This has gone ahead to become e a hindrance to churches having a common celebration, but at the same time, there is some spiritual benefit that accrues to the people that partake in it. In the same way, the Eucharist possess the same characteristics. Nature of the Union of Christ and Church The Holy Communion is not just a matter of people ingathering in unity. The purpose of having the communion is so