Catholics believe in transubstantiation - that the bread and wine are physically changed into the body and blood of Christ. In most Protestant churches, communion is seen as a memorial of Christ's death. The bread and wine do not change at all because they are symbols.
Most Protestants believe communion bread is merely symbolic, or perhaps bread and Jesus' body (which I understand is the position of the Lutherans), but not actually only Jesus' body (which is our belief).
Today, "the Eucharist" is the name still used by Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholics, Anglicans, Presbyterians, and Lutherans. Other Protestant denominations rarely use this term, preferring either "Communion", "the Lord's Supper", "Remembrance", or "the Breaking of Bread".
Most Protestant churches practise open communion, although many require that the communicant be a baptized Christian. Open communion subject to baptism is an official policy of the Church of England and churches in the Anglican Communion.
The Catholic Church has a variety of rules and guidelines about who can receive Communion. For example, only baptized Catholics are eligible to receive Communion.
A non-practicing Catholic who receives holy Communion commits the sin of sacrilege — the abuse of a sacrament — and causes scandal among the faithful. St. Paul reminded the Corinthians: "Every time, then, you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until He comes.
Papal or 'canon' law dictates that non-Roman Catholic Christians, for example Anglicans, cannot take part in the eucharist (sharing of the bread and wine) at a Catholic service and similarly it directs that Roman Catholics should not take holy communion in other Christian churches.
For Protestant Christians, Luther made clear that the Bible is the "Sola Skriptura," God's only book, in which He provided His revelations to the people and which allows them to enter in communion with Him. Catholics, on the other hand, do not base their beliefs on the Bible alone.
John Calvin
Calvin stated that Mary cannot be the advocate of the faithful, since she needs God's grace as much as any other human being. If the Catholic Church praises her as Queen of Heaven, it is blasphemous and contradicts her own intention, because she is praised and not God.
Generally speaking, Martin Luther and other Protestant reformers in the 16th century espoused the belief that salvation is attained only through faith in Jesus and his atoning sacrifice on the cross (sola fide), while Catholicism taught that salvation comes through a combination of faith plus good works (e.g., living a ...
The various meanings given to this meal make it more a moment of visible tension between churches rather than the moment of coming together they all claim they want it to be. Put crudely, this means that if you are a Protestant you are not invited to eat at a Catholic service.
Many evangelical churches celebrate communion periodically – monthly or quarterly. There's no clear command in Scripture as to how often we're to receive the Lord's Supper and for this reason, many churches have decided not to offer it weekly because they don't want it to become routine or lose its special status.
Fish, Fridays & Lent
It simply meant abstaining from eating the flesh of warm-blooded animals—since the thinking goes, Jesus was a warm-blooded animal. Fish, though, which are cold blooded were considered okay to eat on fasting days.
While liturgical churches such as Catholics and Episcopalians make Holy Eucharist the centerpiece of weekly worship services, a new survey shows that evangelical churches on average celebrate communion once a month.
Many Methodists, like other Protestants, regularly practice confession of their sin to God Himself, holding that "When we do confess, our fellowship with the Father is restored. He extends His parental forgiveness. He cleanses us of all unrighteousness, thus removing the consequences of the previously unconfessed sin.
Weddings in which both parties are Catholic Christians are ordinarily held in a Catholic church, while weddings in which one party is a Catholic Christian and the other party is a non-Catholic Christian can be held in a Catholic church or a non-Catholic Christian church, but in the latter case permission of one's ...
The Hail Mary is the central part of the Angelus, a devotion generally recited thrice daily by many Catholics, as well as broad & high church Anglicans, and Lutherans who usually omit the second half.
Almost everyone has heard of the Catholic rosary, which is a vital element of Catholic worship. What many don't realize is that Protestants also have prayer beads in the form of the Anglican rosary.
It is part of the teaching of the Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches. Protestantism has generally accepted the Virgin Birth but not the notion of perpetual virginity, often citing a literal understanding of the brothers and sisters of Jesus mentioned in Mark 6:2 and Matthew 13:55.
In the spirit of Vatican II, the Catholic Church has embraced a more open approach to Christian unity to both Protestants and Eastern Orthodoxy.
Ireland has two main religious groups. The majority of Irish are Roman Catholic, and a smaller number are Protestant (mostly Anglicans and Presbyterians). However, there is a majority of Protestants in the northern province of Ulster. More Catholics than Protestants emigrated to New Zealand.
The Differences
Catholics and Protestants have the same 27-book New Testament. Thus, the differences between their Bibles concerns the boundaries of the Old Testament canon. In short, Catholics have 46 books, while Protestants have 39.
Anglicans are part of a “communion” of churches and don't have a central authority. Generally speaking, the Archbishop of Canterbury is considered the “first among equals” and the English monarch still retains a symbolic role. Catholics firmly hold-up the authority of the pope, who is the successor of St. Peter.
Roman Catholic and Orthodox Christians pray 'to' Mary (i.e. 'invocate'). Anglican tend to pray 'with' her (i.e. 'comprecate'). With her, we pray that we may bring birth to God's word in the world.
Can a Catholic remarry after divorce? American Catholics are subject to the parameters of their jurisdiction. Civil marriage after divorce is obviously a possibility. However, without first obtaining an annulment, a divorced Catholic cannot have a sacramental remarriage in a Catholic Church.