Memorialism Explained

Memorialism is the belief held by some Christian denominations that the elements of bread and wine (or juice) in the Eucharist (more often referred to as "the Lord's Supper" by memorialists) are purely symbolic representations of the body and blood of Jesus Christ, the feast being established only or primarily as a commemorative ceremony. The term comes from the Gospel of Luke 22:19: "Do this in remembrance of me", and the attendant interpretation that the Lord's Supper's chief purpose is to help the participant remember Jesus and his sacrifice on the Cross.

This viewpoint is commonly held by General Baptists,[1] [2] Anabaptists,[3] the Plymouth Brethren,[3] many Restorationist[3] denominations (such as Jehovah's Witnesses),[4] [5] [6] and some Non-denominational Churches,[7] as well as those identifying with liberal Christianity.

It is rejected by other branches of Christianity, including the Roman Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Church, the Church of the East, the Methodist Churches, the Lutheran Churches, the Independent Catholic Churches, and the Reformed Churches (inclusive of the Continental Reformed, Anglican, Presbyterian, and Congregationalist traditions),[8] [9] [10] all of which variously affirm the doctrine of the real presence.[11] [12]

History

Early Christianity

While many Church Fathers imply a real presence of Christ in Holy Communion, Clement of Alexandria and Tertullian used the word "symbol" to define the Eucharist: "the Holy Scripture named wine a mystical symbol of the holy blood (Clement of Alexandria)", and interpret John 6:53-56 to be about allegories about faith.[13] However, it is disputed if Clement held a symbolic view of the Eucharist,[14] and some have argued that Tertullian held to a view of spiritual presence in the Eucharist.[15] [16] [17]

Medieval

Many of the Waldensians rejected a real presence in the Lord's Supper, seeing it as a symbol.[18] The same view was held by Peter Kániš who held to memorialism, against whom Bishop Nicholas wrote a treatise defending the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist against him.[19] [20] [21]

Pico della Mirandola argued that Christ is not literally present in the Eucharist but instead it is symbolic of the blood and body of Christ. [22]

Huldrych Zwingli

See main article: Theology of Huldrych Zwingli. The theology of Huldrych Zwingli, a Protestant Reformer of Switzerland, is commonly associated with memorialism.[23] Zwingli, who was a former Roman Catholic priest, affirmed that Christ is truly (though not naturally) present to the believer in the sacrament or amid a Christian congregation that remembers with strong intensity the events of the Last Supper through the power of God.[24] However, the sacrament - for Zwingli - is not used instrumentally to communicate with Christ, as John Calvin taught.

Zwingli argued that the Eucharist is more about the presence of Christ in the minds of people instead of his presence in the elements.[25] This indicates that, although its liturgies remain an important aspect of being a Christian, its potential benefits are not found in any metaphysical interpretation related to the bread and wine used in the ritual.

In addition, unlike Lutheran theology that upholds a sacramental union, Zwingli maintained that the Scripture and the creeds support the idea that Christ sits at the right hand of God the Father in heaven.[26]

Anabaptism

Anabaptists (inclusive of Mennonites, Amish, Hutterites, Bruderhof, Schwarzenau Brethren, River Brethren and Apostolic Christians) affirm memorialism and locate the presence of Jesus not in the eucharistic elements themselves, but teach that the "mystery of communion with the living Christ in his Supper comes into being by the power of the Spirit, dwelling in and working through the collected members of Christ’s Body".[27] As such, in celebrations of Holy Communion, "Anabaptist congregations looked to the living Christ in their hearts and in their midst, who transformed members and elements together into a mysterious communion, creating his Body in many members, ground like grains and crushed like grapes, into one bread and one drink."[27]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Basic Beliefs: Baptism & the Lord's Supper. 2018. Southern Baptist Convention. 5 January 2019. The Lord's Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby members [...] memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His Second Coming.. 12 March 2013. https://web.archive.org/web/20130312082918/http://www.sbc.net/aboutus/basicbeliefs.asp. dead.
  2. Web site: What We Believe: Baptism & the Lord's Supper. 2018. National Baptist Convention. 5 January 2019. We believe the Scriptures teach that Christian baptism is the immersion in water of a believer, into the name of the Father, and Son, and Holy Ghost; to show forth in a solemn and beautiful emblem, our faith in the crucified, buried, and risen Savior, with its effect, in our death to sin and resurrection to a new life; that it is prerequisite [...] to the Lord's Supper, in which the members of the church, by the sacred use of bread and wine, are to commemorate together the dying love of Christ; preceded always by solemn self-examination.. 7 August 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190807080614/http://www.nationalbaptist.com/about-us/what-we-believe.html. dead.
  3. Book: Balmer. Randall Herbert. Winner. Lauren F.. Protestantism in America. limited. 2002. Columbia University Press. New York. 9780231111300. 26.
  4. Book: . What Does The Bible Really Teach? . 2005 . 2014 . The Lord's Evening Meal: An Observance That Honors God . https://www.jw.org/en/library/books/bible-teach/the-lords-evening-meal/ . . 206–208 . 18 July 2020.
  5. Web site: The Lord's Supper: Why Do Jehovah's Witnesses Observe the Lord's Supper Differently From the Way Other Religions Do? . 2018 . . Watchtower Online Library . 18 July 2020.
  6. The Eucharist: The Facts Behind the Ritual . 1 April 2008 . . . 26–29 . Watchtower Online Library . 18 July 2020.
  7. Web site: University of Virginia Library . Religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu . 2006-09-07 . 2010-07-29 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20071030173358/http://religiousmovements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/restor1.html . 2007-10-30.
  8. Book: McKim . Donald K. . Major Themes in the Reformed Tradition . 1998 . Wipf and Stock Publishers . 978-1-57910-104-6 . en . The Westminster Confession emphatically declares that Christ is truly present in the elements and is truly received by those partaking, "yet not carnally and corporally, but spiritually" (chap. 31, par. 7). The insistence is that while Christ's presence is not physical in nature it is no less a real and vital presence, as if it were a physical presence. ... Those of us in the Reformed tradition are under strong obligation to honour the notion of the real presence of Christ in the Lord's Supper..
  9. Book: Garvie . Alfred Ernest . The Holy Catholic Church from the Congregational Point of View, namely, the One Church in the Many Churches . 1920 . Faith Press . London . en . He is really present at the Lord's Supper without any such limitation to the element unless we are prepared to maintain that the material is more real than the spiritual. It is the whole Christ who presents Himself to faith, so that the believer has communion with Him..
  10. Book: Rogers . Jack . Presbyterian Creeds: A Guide to the Book of Confessions . 1985 . Westminster John Knox Press . 978-0-664-25496-4 . 115 . en . As whole persons we encounter the real, spiritual presence of Christ..
  11. Book: Neal, Gregory S.. Sacramental Theology and the Christian Life. 19 December 2014. WestBow Press. 9781490860077. 111. For Anglicans and Methodists the reality of the presence of Jesus as received through the sacramental elements is not in question. Real presence is simply accepted as being true, its mysterious nature being affirmed and even lauded in official statements like This Holy Mystery: A United Methodist Understanding of Holy Communion..
  12. Book: Losch, Richard R.. A Guide to World Religions and Christian Traditions. 1 May 2002. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. 9780802805218. 90. In the Roman Catholic Church the official explanation of how Christ is present is called transubstantiation. This is simply an explanation of how, not a statement that, he is present. Anglicans and Orthodox do not attempt to define how, but simply accept the mystery of his presence..
  13. Book: Willis, Wendell. Eucharist and Ecclesiology: Essays in Honor of Dr. Everett Ferguson. 2017-01-06. Wipf and Stock Publishers. 978-1-4982-8292-5. en.
  14. Web site: Did Clement Believe in the Real Presence?. 2021-12-13. Catholic Answers.
  15. Book: Bibliotheca Sacra and Theological Review . 1844 . Allen, Morrill, and Wardwell . en.
  16. Book: The British Magazine and Monthly Register of Religious and Ecclesiastical Information, Parochial History, and Documents Respecting the State of the Poor, Progress of Education, Etc . 1833 . J. Petheram . en.
  17. Book: Kaye, John . Works of John Kaye, Bishop of Lincoln: Miscellaneous works with memoir of the author . 1888 . Rivingtons . en.
  18. Web site: Waldenses Description, History, & Beliefs Britannica . 2023-01-22 . www.britannica.com . en.
  19. Book: Atwood, Craig D. . The Theology of the Czech Brethren from Hus to Comenius . 2009 . Penn State Press . 978-0-271-03532-1 . en.
  20. Book: Enns . Fernando . Mennonites in Dialogue: Official Reports from International and National Ecumenical Encounters, 1975–2012 . Seiling . Jonathan . 2015-07-06 . Wipf and Stock Publishers . 978-1-4982-0364-7 . en.
  21. Book: Spinka, Matthew . John Hus: A Biography . 2017-03-14 . Princeton University Press . 978-1-4008-8683-8 . en.
  22. Web site: Philip Schaff: History of the Christian Church, Volume VI: The Middle Ages. A.D. 1294-1517 - Christian Classics Ethereal Library . 2021-12-23 . www.ccel.org.
  23. Book: Riggs, John . 2015 . The Lord's Supper in the Reformed Tradition . Louisville, KY . Westminster John Knox . 978-0-664-26019-4.
  24. Book: Liturgy for Living. Price. Charles. Weil. Louis. 2000. Morehouse Publishing. 0819218626. Harrisburg, PA. 152.
  25. Book: Arcadi, James M.. An Incarnational Model of the Eucharist. 2018. Cambridge University Press. 9781108425896. Cambridge. 22.
  26. Book: Stookey, Laurence Hull. Eucharist: Christ's Feast with the Church. Abingdon Press. 2010. 978-0687120178. Nashville, TN. 54.
  27. Web site: Snyder . Arnold . Was the Bread Only Bread, and the Wine Only Wine? Sacramental Theology in Five Anabaptist Hymns . . 28 April 2022 . English . 2006.

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