The Institution Narrative

At the Last Supper, Jesus took bread, pronounced a blessing, broke it, and gave it to His disciples saying, “This is my body.” He then took the cup, gave thanks, and passed it to them saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood” (I Cor 11.25), “This is my blood of the covenant” (Mk 14.24).

One of the very first Protestant reformers, Ulrich Zwingli, insisted that the Eucharistic words are to be understood in a metaphorical, not in a literal sense. He held that when Jesus gives us bread to eat, saying, “This is my body,” and when He gives us wine to drink, saying “This is my blood,” the bread and wine remain the same physical realities they were, but they now become signs or symbols of Christ’s body given up for us and of His blood shed for us on the cross. In this interpretation, we do not receive the body of Christ in any physical sense, but we do receive Him spiritually. Many Protestants accept this understanding.

Proponents of this view point out that Jesus often used metaphor to describe Himself and His disciples. For example, in speaking of Himself He said: “I am the Light of the World” (Jn 8.12); “I am the resurrection and the life” (Jn 11.25); “I am the vine, you are the branches” (Jn 15.15.5); “I am the bread of life” (Jn 6.48). Speaking of His disciples He said: “You are the salt of the earth…You are the light of the world,” (Mt 5.13f); “You are Rock” (Mt 16.18). All of these employ metaphor, suggesting that the Eucharistic words should also be understood in a figurative sense.

In Christ,

Rev. Jeffery A. Fasching