Spiritual presence
A view held among orthodox Christians
The view that in the Lord's Supper believers truly feed on Christ, not bodily, but spiritually by faith through the work of the Holy Spirit.
Also called: spiritual real presence, spiritually present, Reformed view of the Supper
What it means
This is the view of the Reformed confessions, both Presbyterian and Baptist. The bread and wine remain bread and wine, and Christ's body is in heaven. Yet in the Supper the Holy Spirit unites believers to Christ, so that by faith they "really and indeed, yet not carnally and corporally, but spiritually, receive and feed upon Christ crucified, and all benefits of His death" (WCF 29.7; LBCF 1689 30.7 is almost identical).
John Calvin taught that the Spirit lifts believers' hearts to Christ, rather than bringing Christ's body down into the elements. So the Supper is more than a memorial: it is a real communion with Christ, which strengthens faith, though only those who receive it in faith are fed.
The view stands between the Lutheran and Roman Catholic teaching of a bodily presence and the popular memorial view. Many Baptist churches that hold the 1689 confession teach it; many others hold the memorial view. The site displays both as positions held in faithful churches.
In Scripture
The cup and bread are a participation in the blood and body of Christ.
Israel ate spiritual food and drank from the spiritual rock, which was Christ.
The Spirit gives life; the words Christ speaks are spirit and life.
Heaven must receive Christ until the restoration of all things, so His body is not on earth.
Christ dwells in believers' hearts through faith.
Where it comes up
Confessions: WCF 29.7; LBCF 1689 30.7
On this site: Lord's Supper
Related terms
MemorialismA view held among orthodox Christians
The view that the Lord's Supper is chiefly a memorial meal, in which believers remember Christ's death and proclaim it, without any special presence of Christ in the Supper.
Real presenceA view held among orthodox Christians
The teaching that Christ's true body and blood are bodily present in, with, and under the bread and wine of the Lord's Supper, as Lutherans confess.
TransubstantiationSerious error
The Roman Catholic teaching that at the priest's consecration the whole substance of the bread and wine is changed into the body and blood of Christ, leaving only their appearance.
Means of graceHistoric orthodoxy
The ordinary ways God has appointed to give and strengthen faith in His people, chiefly the Word, the sacraments, and prayer.