A Sign of the Eucharist

A Sign of the Eucharist Commentary by Mark Scarlata Cite Share Show Bible Passage The early Church Fathers often searched the Hebrew Bible for archetypal images or stories that seemed to point to Christ. One of the first fathers to describe Melchizedek’s bread and wine as a foreshadowing of the Eucharist was St Cyprian of Carthage (200–58 CE). He understood Jesus as ‘a priest according to the order of Melchizedek’ (Hebrews 5:10) and saw the elements as a type for the bread and wine instituted at the Last Supper. The celebration of the Eucharist in the medieval Roman Catholic church required the use of consecrated vessels for the bread and wine. Liturgical items such as the chalice and paten were considered sacred and became works of art that often incorporated layers of symbolic meaning. We see this in the extraordinary paten which was used to hold the host, or the bread consecrated by the priest during the eucharistic liturgy. In the upper leaf of the paten’s quatrefoil design, Christ is depicted with the host in one hand and a chalice in the other. At left we see Abel, who was often understood as a type for Christ, offering the lamb of sacrifice. At right we find Melchizedek, the Canaanite priest-king dressed in bishop’s clothing holding a chalice. In the lower leaf is St Trudpert (c.607 CE), a Celtic missionary to Germany, who holds a martyr’s palm. St Trudpert’s image indicates the origin of the paten from the Benedictine monastery he established in Münstertal, in Germany’s Black Forest. The ornate gold and floral patterns, along with the embedded jewels, highlight the value of the liturgical plate as it held the bread that became the flesh of Christ. The eucharistic set also includes a silver chalice gilded with gold leaf that is decorated on the outside with various scenes from the life of Christ. These are set within elaborate swirling patterns and metalwork with extraordinary detail. Also included in the set is a straw-like instrument called a fistula. Up until the late thirteenth century, the Eucharist was often distributed by this means as a way to protect the wine in the chalice from being spilled (Viar 2020). The design of the chalice and paten remind the Christian worshipper of Abraham’s meeting with Melchizedek. The bread and wine once offered by the priest-king of Salem to Abraham (then still Abram) are now offered by Christ the heavenly high priest to his worshippers, as his saving body and blood.