What does it mean to say that Christ is really present in the eucharist? Catholic teaching since
Trent has presented this belief in terms of the transubstantiation of bread and wine, but how far
is it still meaningful for us? Can we not find more meaning in terms like transignification and transfinalisation?
Professor Schillebeeckx argues that since the eucharist is first and formost a personal communication of Christ to his church we must indeed talk of a change in the meaning and purpose of the bread and wine.But transubstantiation does say something more than this, inasmuch as the change in question here is one initiated by the word of Christ himself, and is therefore much more than a merely human action.