Real Presence Quotes

“Surely we can only come to understand each other's beliefs by means of direct encounter and open, honest discussion. In the meantime, many free churches invite all believers in Jesus Christ to the Table for the sake of true spiritual unity that transcends intellectual differences of interpretation. Withholding sacramental sharing on the basis of disagreement about the nature of the Lord's Supper seems odd to us. What two people think exactly alike about the act? We are not offended by Catholics' closed Communion, but we find it odd and exclusive. It places intellectual understanding above fellowship among disciples of Jesus Christ.”
― Roger E. Olson

“Having the Mass in one's native language is no guarantee that a person will understand the mystery of the Mass. On the contrary, if the vesture of the ceremony is too familiar, the participants too easily thinks he has mastered what it's all about. The familiar becomes the routine, the routine becomes ignored. Our own language is a comfort zone that insulates us form the shock of the Gospel, the scandal of the Cross, the lure of the unknown. I would rather have a huge dose of foreignness, of music that is not current, words that are strange, language that is archaic, hieratic gestures that are grandly incongruous to a democratic society. A person thrown into this situation knows at least that he is dealing with something utterly different and possibly far deeper than his day-to-day occupations.”
― Peter Kwasniewski, Resurgent in the Midst of Crisis: Sacred Liturgy, the Traditional Latin Mass, and Renewal in the Church

“For if we see that the sun, in sending forth its rays upon the earth, to generate, cherish, and invigorate its offspring, in a manner transfuses its substance into it, why should the radiance of the Spirit be less in conveying to us the communion of his flesh and blood? Wherefore the Scripture, when it speaks of our participation with Christ, refers its whole efficacy to the Spirit. Instead of many, one passage will suffice. Paul, in the Epistle to the Romans (Rom. 8:9-11), shows that the only way in which Christ dwells in us is by his Spirit. By this, however, he does not take away that communion of flesh and blood of which we now speak, but shows that it is owing to the Spirit alone that we possess Christ wholly, and have him abiding in us.”
― John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion

“This instance has been given in order that we may know and believe that in Holy Mass Christ is not present to the imagination alone or in a purely spiritual manner, but really and truly, and in bodily form - the self-same Infant Christ to whom the Mother of God gave birth at Bethlehem, and whom the Three Kings came to adore. Here, as there, His countenance is concealed by "swaddling clothes", that is, by the external shape of the Consecrated Host which we see with our eyes. But the Tender Child who lies hidden beneath those outward forms can only be perceived by the interior sight of faith, the faith that believes undoubtedly that Our Lord is in truth concealed beneath this lowly form. the reasons why He thus conceals Himself from our view are many - the principle one is this, to give opportunity for the exercise of faith in so momentous a matter and to enable us to acquire merit every time we hear Mass.”
― Martin Von Cochem, The Incredible Catholic Mass: An Explanation of the Catholic Mass

“In the Blessed Sacrament, Jesus Christ is really, truly, and substantially present, with His Body and Blood, with His Soul and Divinity. He is personally present, not by a mere sign or image, not in a spiritual manner only.”
― Lukas Etlin, Devotion to the Sacred Heart

“By our adoration, we can love Jesus today, like the humble shepherds of Bethlehem, like the magi who brought their gifts, or like Mary of Bethany who poured very pure nard over the head of the Christ.”
― Florian Racine, Could You Not Watch with Me One Hour?: How to Cultivate a Deeper Relationship with the Lord through Eucharistic Adoration

“Thus those who remain before the Lord fulfill a great service; they present to Christ all those who do not know him or who are far from him; in their name they keep vigil before him.”
― Florian Racine, Could You Not Watch with Me One Hour?: How to Cultivate a Deeper Relationship with the Lord through Eucharistic Adoration

“Faith is the pure act of the spirit, freed from the senses. For here (before the Blessed Sacrament), the senses are of no use; they have no part to play. It is the only mystery of Jesus Christ where the senses must be absolutely still.”
― Florian Racine, Could You Not Watch with Me One Hour?: How to Cultivate a Deeper Relationship with the Lord through Eucharistic Adoration

“Kneeling before the Eyucharist is truly a profession of freedom. In the end, it is the most worthwhile and radical remedy against the idolatries of yesterday and of today.”
― Florian Racine, Could You Not Watch with Me One Hour?: How to Cultivate a Deeper Relationship with the Lord through Eucharistic Adoration

“To want to meet God in us in a "heart-to-heart" without passing through the "face to face" of adoration requires a purification of the inner self and a solid formation without which prayer risks leading us back to ourselves and not to God present in us.”
― Florian Racine, Could You Not Watch with Me One Hour?: How to Cultivate a Deeper Relationship with the Lord through Eucharistic Adoration

“Praying is not asking God to bless our own intentions, however good they may be. Praying is asking God for a new way of looking at the world, at others, and at oneself, as well as the grace to live in conformity to the divine will.”
― Florian Racine, Could You Not Watch with Me One Hour?: How to Cultivate a Deeper Relationship with the Lord through Eucharistic Adoration

“We distance ourselves too much from the Holy Eucharist, we do not preach often enough about this mystery of love par excellence; so souls suffer, they become entirely sensual and material in their piety, inordinately attaching themselves to creatures, because they do not know how to find their consolation and strength in our Lord.”
― St. Peter Julian Eymard