Stone & Incense Search
Start hereCurious, or no faithEvangelical, Pentecostal or ProtestantFrom another faithSomeone I love is CatholicBecoming CatholicI was Catholic once Today in the ChurchLibraryHard questionsVoices of the revivalTake the next stepAboutSources & methodSupport the site

Questions / Jesus

Did the first Christians believe the Eucharist is really Christ?

Answered on video by Ascension Presents

Video: Did Early Christians Believe in the Eucharist?, Ascension Presents, published Jun 14, 2022. Checked 10 October 2026. Loads from YouTube (privacy-enhanced mode) only when you press play. Watch on YouTube

In short: Yes. Ignatius and Justin, writing right after the apostles, call it the flesh of Jesus, plainly. No metaphor talk. Ignatius, Smyrnaeans

The answer, in writing

Church teaching

Around AD 110, St. Ignatius of Antioch warned against people who “confess not the Eucharist to be the flesh of our Saviour Jesus Christ.” Ignatius, Smyrnaeans

Around AD 155, St. Justin Martyr wrote that the food blessed by prayer is “the flesh and blood of that Jesus who was made flesh.” Justin, First Apology 66

Our words

These men wrote within living memory of the apostles. They didn’t talk about a symbol. They talked like Catholics still talk.

Next step: The full case

Honestly? The best answers come from people, not websites. Take the next step: find a parish near you

Related questions

How do we know he rose from the dead? Bishop Robert Barron · 1 minCan’t I just follow Jesus on my own? Fr. Mike Schmitz · 9 minIs the Eucharist really Jesus? Catholic Answers · 3 minWho wrote the Gospels? Catholic Answers · 7 min

Sources on this page

How we know · 2 historical sources

Stone & Incense restates Church teaching in plain words and cites every teaching claim. Our own wording is not an official Church text. Found a mistake? Report an errorCorrections.