Article XXIX
OF
THE WICKED WHICH DO NOT EAT THE BODY OF CHRIST IN THE USE OF THE LORD’S
SUPPER
The
wicked, and such as be void of a lively faith, although they do carnally
and visibly press with their teeth (as St. Augustine saith) the Sacrament
of the Body and Blood of Christ, yet in no wise are they partakers of
Christ; but rather, to their condemnation do eat and drink the sign
or Sacrament of so great a thing.
The
teaching of this Article follows from paragraph three of the previous
one. If the Body and Blood of Christ, symbolized
by the bread and wine, are spiritually discerned and received by faith,
then ‘the wicked, and such as be void of a lively faith’
cannot be partakers of Christ. Only
where His presence is regarded physically by being identified with the
Elements, as in Transubstantiation, is the reception of Him independent
of the communicant’s spiritual state.
‘The Wicked’ is a strong term; its Latin equivalent,
impii, does not refer to earnest, though morally faulty, persons;
it means rather those who are indifferent and irreligious, and without
a consciousness of God have become flagrant evil‑doers.
The
Catechism describes the right approach to the Lord’s Supper; those
who come are required ‘to examine themselves, whether they repent
them truly of their former sins, steadfastly purposing to lead a new
life . . .’ In the same spirit St. Paul admonishes the Corinthians to make their
attendance at the Lord’s Table an occasion for sober reflection.[1]
Belief in the Son is the great formula in St. John
for gaining eternal life; but this includes the eating of His Flesh
and the drinking of His Blood.[2] If the feeding on Him spoken of by our Lord
in St. John 6 has a specia
St.
Paul’s statement that the unworthy communicant is guilty of the
body and blood of the Lord[3] may be
interpreted in two ways, according to the view taken of Christ’s
presence