The Holy Eucharist

The Orthodox Church confesses that in the Divine Liturgy, the bread and wine truly become the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is not a symbolic or memorialist understanding, nor is it adequately captured by the Western scholastic term “transubstantiation.” The Orthodox emphasize the role of the Epiclesis — the invocation of the Holy Spirit — as the prayer through which the change occurs, and they commune all baptized and chrismated members of the Church, including infants.

Tradition: Pan-Orthodox

The Real Presence

The Orthodox Confession

The Orthodox Church teaches that after the consecration in the Divine Liturgy, the bread (artos) and wine (oinos) are no longer merely bread and wine but are truly, really, and substantially the Body and Blood of Christ. This is not a figure of speech, not a spiritual presence alongside the material elements, and not a subjective experience of the communicant. The elements are objectively changed — they become what Christ said they are: “This is My Body… This is My Blood” (Matthew 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; Luke 22:19-20; 1 Corinthians 11:23-25).

St. John of Damascus states: “The body is truly united to the divinity, the body which is from the holy Virgin; not that the body which was assumed comes down from heaven, but that the bread itself and the wine are changed into the Body and Blood of God” (John of Damascus, Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, IV.13).

St. Cyril of Jerusalem instructs the newly baptized: “Consider therefore the Bread and the Wine not as bare elements, for they are, according to the Lord’s declaration, the Body and Blood of Christ; for even though sense suggests this to you, yet let faith establish you. Judge not the matter from the taste, but from faith be fully assured without misgiving, that the Body and Blood of Christ have been vouchsafed to you” (Cyril of Jerusalem, Mystagogical Catechesis 4.6 [= Catechetical Lecture 22.6]; trans. NPNF II/7).

Terminology: Metabole, Not Transubstantiation

The Orthodox Church prefers the term metabole (Greek: metabole, “change” or “transformation”) to describe what happens to the bread and wine. Several points are important:

The term “transubstantiation” (transsubstantiatio in Latin; metousiosis in Greek) is a Western scholastic term developed in the context of Aristotelian philosophy (substance and accidents). It was defined dogmatically at the Fourth Lateran Council (1215) and the Council of Trent (1551).
The Greek term metousiosis was adopted by some Orthodox theologians, particularly in the 17th century under Western influence:
- The Orthodox Confession of Peter Mogila (1640) uses the term.
- The Confession of Dositheus (1672) uses it as well.
- These confessions were composed in the context of anti-Protestant polemic and borrowed extensively from Latin theological vocabulary.
Modern Orthodox theological critique: Theologians of the 20th-century patristic revival have argued that metousiosis / transubstantiation is at best an imprecise borrowing and at worst a distortion of Orthodox eucharistic theology:
- It introduces Aristotelian categories (substance/accidents) that are foreign to the patristic and liturgical tradition.
- It attempts to explain the how of the change with philosophical precision, whereas the Orthodox tradition prefers to confess the reality of the change while reverencing its mystery.
- The liturgical texts themselves use the language of “change” (metabole), “transform” (metaballon), and “make” (poieson) without Aristotelian apparatus.
What the Orthodox affirm: The bread and wine are genuinely, truly, and really changed into the Body and Blood of Christ. This is not symbolic, not merely spiritual, and not dependent on the faith of the recipient. The change is real and objective. What the Orthodox decline to do is to specify the metaphysical mechanism of this change with the precision of Western scholasticism.

(Schmemann, The Eucharist: Sacrament of the Kingdom, ch. 10; Meyendorff, Byzantine Theology, ch. 15)

The Epiclesis

The Invocation of the Holy Spirit

In the Orthodox Divine Liturgy (both the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom and the Liturgy of St. Basil the Great), the central prayer of consecration is the Epiclesis (Greek: epiklesis, “invocation”) — the prayer in which the priest invokes the Holy Spirit upon the gifts of bread and wine, asking God to send His Holy Spirit to “make” (poieson) this bread the Body of Christ and this wine the Blood of Christ.

In the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, the Epiclesis reads (in part):

“Again we offer unto Thee this reasonable and unbloody worship, and we ask Thee, and pray Thee, and supplicate Thee: send down Thy Holy Spirit upon us and upon these Gifts here offered. And make this bread the precious Body of Thy Christ. Amen. And that which is in this cup the precious Blood of Thy Christ. Amen. Changing them by Thy Holy Spirit. Amen. Amen. Amen.”

Epiclesis vs. Words of Institution

This is a significant point of disagreement with Western theology:

Western (Roman Catholic) position: The moment of consecration is the priest’s recitation of the Words of Institution — “This is My Body… This is My Blood” — spoken by the priest in persona Christi (in the person of Christ). The Epiclesis (where it exists in the Roman rite) is secondary.
Orthodox position: The Words of Institution are essential as the narrative foundation and command of Christ, but the actual change occurs through the Epiclesis — the invocation of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who effects the change, just as the Holy Spirit effected the Incarnation in the womb of the Virgin Mary. The priest does not consecrate by his own power or by the power of a formula; he prays, and God acts through the Spirit.

Orthodox theology resists isolating a single “moment” of consecration with the precision that Western theology demands. The entire Anaphora (Eucharistic Prayer) — from the Sursum Corda (“Lift up your hearts”) through the narrative of institution, the anamnesis (memorial), and the Epiclesis — constitutes the prayer of consecration. But if pressed to identify the climactic moment, the Orthodox point to the Epiclesis, not the Words of Institution.

(Schmemann, The Eucharist, chs. 9-10; Cabasilas, A Commentary on the Divine Liturgy, ch. 29-30)

Communion of the Faithful

Communion of Infants

In the Orthodox Church, infants receive Holy Communion from the day of their Baptism and Chrismation. Since Baptism, Chrismation, and first Communion are administered together, the newly baptized infant immediately receives the Body and Blood of Christ.

This practice rests on:

Christ’s words: “Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:14).
“Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53) — this applies to all the baptized, without age restriction.
The ancient practice of the undivided Church, which communed infants — St. Cyprian’s account of an infant girl brought to the chalice presupposes it as ordinary practice (Cyprian, De Lapsis 25; trans. ANF 5) — as do the Apostolic Constitutions.

The Western practice of delaying Communion until the “age of reason” (typically around seven) is a medieval innovation not shared by the Orthodox tradition.

Preparation for Communion

For adult communicants, Orthodox practice requires preparation:

Fasting: Eucharistic fasting (no food or drink from midnight, or in modern practice from some hours before Liturgy) is universally required. Additionally, many Orthodox observe a stricter fast in the days preceding Communion (the length and strictness varying by jurisdiction and spiritual father’s guidance).
Confession: The relationship between Confession and Communion varies:
- Russian Orthodox practice (traditional): Confession before every Communion has been the norm, especially since the Synodal period (18th-19th centuries). This practice is rooted in a period when infrequent communion (once to four times per year) was common, and each communion required special preparation.
- Greek Orthodox practice: Confession is required regularly but not necessarily before every Communion. More frequent communion (weekly or even more often) is encouraged, especially following the influence of the Kollyvades movement and figures like St. Nikodemos the Hagiorite and St. Macarius of Corinth.
- Contemporary trend: In both Russian and Greek practice, there is a movement toward more frequent communion, which has necessitated a re-examination of the relationship between confession and communion frequency.
Prayer Rule: Various preparatory prayers and canons are prescribed before Communion, including the Canon of Preparation for Holy Communion, prayers to the Theotokos, and prayers to the Guardian Angel. The specific rule varies by local practice and the guidance of one’s spiritual father.

Frequency of Communion

The history of eucharistic communion frequency is complex:

Early Church: All present at the Liturgy communed — to attend without communing was considered irregular. Canon 9 of the Apostles states: “All the faithful who come in and hear the Scriptures, but do not stay for the prayer and the Holy Communion, are to be excommunicated, as causing disorder in the Church” (Apostolic Canon 9).
Medieval and early modern decline: Communion frequency declined sharply, especially in the Russian Church during the Synodal period. Many laity communed only once a year (typically at Pascha), or at most four times a year during the fasting seasons.
Modern revival: The 20th century saw a movement toward more frequent communion in all Orthodox jurisdictions, influenced by the liturgical theology of Schmemann and the spiritual movements on Mount Athos. Nevertheless, the practice remains varied.

(Schmemann, The Eucharist: Sacrament of the Kingdom; Cabasilas, The Life in Christ, Book IV)

St. Nicholas Cabasilas: The Life in Christ

St. Nicholas Cabasilas (c. 1319/1323-c. 1391), a Byzantine lay theologian, wrote The Life in Christ (Peri tes en Christo zoes), one of the most profound Orthodox meditations on the Eucharist and the sacramental life. Cabasilas teaches that the Eucharist is the center and culmination of all the Mysteries — it is the Mystery that unites the believer with Christ most intimately and directly. Through the Eucharist, the communicant receives Christ Himself — Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity — and is thereby transformed and deified.

Cabasilas writes of the Eucharist: “It is not, then, to the rank of slaves, but of sons, that we are called. For this reason we share His Flesh and Blood, as it says, ‘the children share in flesh and blood’ (Heb. 2:14)… so must we partake of His Flesh and Blood that we might become His sons” (Cabasilas, The Life in Christ, Book IV; trans. de Catanzaro).

He also authored A Commentary on the Divine Liturgy (Erminia tes theias leitourgias), which provides a detailed theological commentary on the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.

Liturgical Practice

The Prosphora and Proskomedia

The bread used in the Orthodox Eucharist is leavened bread (artos), not unleavened bread (azymes). The use of leavened bread is a point of distinction from Western practice and has theological significance: leaven signifies life (the risen Christ), while unleavened bread was associated with the Old Covenant. The bread is called prosphora (“offering”) and is baked by the faithful according to a specific recipe and pattern (stamped with a seal bearing the letters IC XC NI KA — “Jesus Christ conquers”).

The Proskomedia (Preparation / Prothesis) is the preparatory rite in which the priest cuts portions from the prosphora, commemorating the living and the dead, the Theotokos, and the saints.

Distribution of Communion

Communion is distributed to the laity in both kinds (Body and Blood together), administered with a spoon (lzhitsa) from the chalice. The practice of withholding the chalice from the laity, as developed in the medieval West, has never been part of Orthodox tradition.

References

Schmemann, Alexander. The Eucharist: Sacrament of the Kingdom. Crestwood: SVS Press, 1988.
Cabasilas, Nicholas. The Life in Christ. Translated by Carmino J. de Catanzaro. Crestwood: SVS Press, 1974.
Cabasilas, Nicholas. A Commentary on the Divine Liturgy. Translated by J. M. Hussey and P. A. McNulty. London: SPCK, 1960.
John of Damascus. Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith, Book IV, ch. 13 (trans. NPNF II/9).
Cyril of Jerusalem. Mystagogical Catecheses 4-5 (= Catechetical Lectures 22-23; trans. NPNF II/7).
Cyprian of Carthage. De Lapsis (On the Lapsed) 25 (trans. ANF 5).
Schmemann, Alexander. For the Life of the World. Crestwood: SVS Press, 1973.
Meyendorff, John. Byzantine Theology. New York: Fordham University Press, 1974.
Pomazansky, Michael. Orthodox Dogmatic Theology. Platina: St. Herman of Alaska Brotherhood, 1994.
Apostolic Canon 9.