I remember very specifically that learning this official belief being one of the things that made me start questioning my religion. Like I can very clearly see that no transformation is happening so, it started making me question everything else they were telling me.
Catholic religion teachers teach catechism incorrectly all the time, literally every one I’ve had has contradicted another. I have my understanding of transubstantiation from conversations with priests and franciscan friars. The whole concept requires that no physical change occurs. The essence or concept of the bread and wine are infused magically with Jesus divinity and his new covenant, it’s a whole thing, but anyone genuinely thinking cannibalism is fundamentally misunderstanding an admittedly contradictory concept.
You were taught incorrectly then, I grew up catholic as well (also now atheist) and it was made very clear to me that it is not symbolic, it is an actual transformation. This is directly from the US conference of catholic bishops website: Is the Eucharist a symbol? The transformed bread and wine are truly the Body and Blood of Christ and are not merely symbols.
I remember very specifically that learning this official belief being one of the things that made me start questioning my religion. Like I can very clearly see that no transformation is happening so, it started making me question everything else they were telling me.
Catholic religion teachers teach catechism incorrectly all the time, literally every one I’ve had has contradicted another. I have my understanding of transubstantiation from conversations with priests and franciscan friars. The whole concept requires that no physical change occurs. The essence or concept of the bread and wine are infused magically with Jesus divinity and his new covenant, it’s a whole thing, but anyone genuinely thinking cannibalism is fundamentally misunderstanding an admittedly contradictory concept.
https://bustedhalo.com/ministry-resources/why-is-transubstantiation-not-considered-canibalism/
https://www.catholic.com/qa/can-transubstantiation-be-reasonably-taken-literally