review

THIS IS MY BODY

by Christopher Kaczor

This Is My Body: An Evangelical Discovers the Real Presence by Mark P. Shea,
Christendom Press, 1993

In This Is My Body, Mark Shea offers an apology that tackles one of the most divisive issues of the Reformation. This slender volume seeks to establish the truth of Christ's presence in the Eucharist against common objections offered by "Bible Christians."

"These objections" writes Shea, "are: 1. That God forbids human sacrifice, rendering impossible the Catholic understanding of the bread and wine as the literal Body and Blood of Jesus. 2. That the doctrine adds to the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ on Golgotha by sacrificing Christ again in the 'Sacrifice of the Mass.' 3. That Christ could not have commanded his disciples to drink his Blood, since such a command would be a violation of God's Word under both the Old and New Covenants. 4. That the doctrine makes the Eucharist a form of idolatry and salvation by works. 5. That its true meaning is merely symbolic, enabling us to look back to the Cross as the Passover looked forward to it - a kind of audio-visual aid" (pp. 16-17).

In the course of setting out the objections, Shea offers a convincing and realistic account of the difficulties he once faced as an Evangelical with the Real Presence. Like St. Thomas Aquinas's Summa theologiae, Shea's tract offers the best possible objections against Catholic teaching before answering them. His style is clear and compelling in its consistent, if sometimes compulsive, alliteration. Shea's clarity of expression indicates that he has read and reread C. S. Lewis.

As Shea notes, "The criterion for an Evangelical is the simple question, 'Is it biblical?' The Evangelical's incredulity about the Real Presence arises from a conviction that, surely it is not. It must be medieval hocus-pocus foisted on the Church by fools who had forgotten their Bibles, pinheads on whom no angel ever danced" (pp. 14-15). Hence, both the objections to the teaching and the answers to those objections come almost exclusively from Scripture. (I will not detail his answers to these objections as one does not give away the end of a detective novel in a review.)

Surprisingly, if This Is My Body has a flaw, it would be that it is not scriptural enough. Shea's tract would be even better if he had explored in greater depth the connections of the New Testament Eucharist with the Old Testament Passover.

These connections can help shore up lingering doubts about the Scriptural basis for the Catholic Mass. These major themes were neglected in favor of select disputed verses. In addition, a sprinkling of Shea's personal experiences, conversations, and turning points would have made the work more emotionally compelling, by allowing the reader to better sense the authentic struggle of an Evangelical wrestling with this issue. All told, however, This is My Body is a good read and helpful in explaining the Scriptural basis of Catholic belief to those of the Faith and to those still separated brethren.

Christopher Kaczor is assistant professor of philosophy at Loyola University-New Orleans.