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SIMBOLIZAM KRUHA I VINA
THE SYMBOLISM OF THE BREAD AND THE WINE

1 Pitanje: – Krist je rekao: “Ja sam živi kruh koji je sišao s neba. Ako tko jede od ovoga kruha živjet će zauvijek.”86 Kakvo je značenje te rečenice? Question.—The Christ said: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven, that a man may eat thereof and not die.”86 What is the meaning of this utterance?
2 Odgovor. – Taj kruh označava nebesku hranu i božanske savršenosti. Tako “ako tko jede od ovoga kruha” znači da ako bilo koji čovjek dobije nebesku milost, primi božansko svjetlo ili sudjeluje u Kristovim savršenostima, dobiva vječni život. Krv također označava duh života i božanske savršenosti, gospodnji sjaj i vječitu milost. Jer svi dijelovi tijela životnu tvar dobivaju iz cirkulacije krvi. Answer.—This bread signifies the heavenly food and divine perfections. So, “If any man eateth of this bread” means if any man acquires heavenly bounty, receives the divine light, or partakes of Christ’s perfections, he thereby gains everlasting life. The blood also signifies the spirit of life and the divine perfections, the lordly splendor and eternal bounty. For all the members of the body gain vital substance from the circulation of the blood.
3 U Evanđelju sv. Ivana, poglavlje 6, stih 26, piše: “Ne tražite me jer ste vidjeli znakove, nego jer ste jeli one kruhove i nasitili se”. In the Gospel of St. John, chapter 6, verse 26, it is written: “Ye seek Me, not because ye saw the miracles, but because ye did eat of the loaves, and were filled.”
4 Očevidno je da je kruh od kojeg su učenici jeli i nasitili se bila nebeska milost, jer se u stihu 33 istog poglavlja kaže: “Jer kruh je Božji onaj koji silazi s neba i daje život svijetu”. Jasno je da se Kristovo tijelo nije spustilo s nebesa, nego je izašlo iz Marijine utrobe, a ono što se spustilo s neba Božjega bio je duh Kristov. Budući da su Židovi mislili da Krist govori o Svom tijelu, stavljali su primjedbe, jer se u stihu 42 istog poglavlja kaže: “Zar nije ovo – pitali su – Josipov sin komu poznajemo oca i majku? Kako sad može reći: ‘Ja sam sišao s neba’?” It is evident that the bread of which the disciples ate and were filled was the heavenly bounty; for in verse 33 of the same chapter it is said: “For the bread of God is He which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world.” It is clear that the body of Christ did not descend from heaven, but it came from the womb of Mary; and that which descended from the heaven of God was the spirit of Christ. As the Jews thought that Christ spoke of His body, they made objections, for it is said in the 42nd verse of the same chapter: “And they said, Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? how is it then that he saith, I came down from heaven?”
5 Promislite koliko je jasno da je Krist pod nebeskim kruhom mislio na Njegov duh, Njegove milosti, Njegova savršenstva i Njegova učenja, jer u stihu 63 kaže se: “Duh je onaj koji oživljava, a tijelo ne vrijedi ništa”. Reflect how clear it is that what Christ meant by the heavenly bread was His spirit, His bounties, His perfections and His teachings; for it is said in the 63rd verse: “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing.”
6 Stoga je jasno da je duh Kristov nebeska milost koja se spušta s neba; tko god primi obilno svjetlo od tog duha – tj. nebeska učenja – nalazi vječni život. Zato se u stihu 35 kaže: “Odgovori im Isus: ‘Ja sam kruh života. Tko dolazi k meni, sigurno neće ogladnjeti. Tko vjeruje u me, sigurno neće nikada ožednjeti”. Therefore, it is evident that the spirit of Christ is a heavenly grace which descends from heaven; whosoever receives light from that spirit in abundance—that is to say, the heavenly teachings—finds everlasting life. That is why it is said in the 35th verse: “And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to Me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on Me shall never thirst.”
7 Uočite da “dolazak k Njemu” on izražava kao jedenje, a “vjerovanje u njega” kao pijenje. Zato je jasno i ustanovljno da su nebeska hrana božanske milosti, duhovni sjaj, nebeska učenja, univerzalno značenje Krista. Jesti znači približiti Mu se, a piti – vjerovati u Njega. Jer Krist je imao elementalno tijelo i nebesko obličje. Elementalno tijelo bilo je raspeto, ali nebesko obličje živi i vječno je i uzrok je vječnoga života; prvo je ljudska priroda, a drugo je božanska. Neki naučavaju da je euharistija Kristova stvarnost i da se Božanstvo i Duh Sveti spuštaju i postoje u njoj. Kad se jednom primi euharistiju, nakon nekoliko trenutaka hostija se jednostavno razlaže i potpuno preobražava. Kako se onda može javiti takva misao? Bože sačuvaj! Zasigurno je to puka izmišljotina. Notice that “coming to Him” He expresses as eating, and “belief in Him” as drinking. Then it is evident and established that the celestial food is the divine bounties, the spiritual splendors, the heavenly teachings, the universal meaning of Christ. To eat is to draw near to Him, and to drink is to believe in Him. For Christ had an elemental body and a celestial form. The elemental body was crucified, but the heavenly form is living and eternal, and the cause of everlasting life; the first was the human nature, and the second is the divine nature. It is thought by some that the Eucharist is the reality of Christ, and that the Divinity and the Holy Spirit descend into and exist in it. Now when once the Eucharist is taken, after a few moments it is simply disintegrated and entirely transformed. Therefore, how can such a thought be conceived? God forbid! certainly it is an absolute fantasy.
8 Da zaključimo: kroz objavu Kristovu, božanska učenja, koja su vječna milost, proširila su se posvuda, zasjalo je svjetlo vodstva i duh života prenesen je na čovjeka. Tko god je našao vodstvo – oživio je, a tko god je ostao izgubljen – ščepala ga je trajna smrt. Taj kruh koji je sišao s neba bilo je božansko tijelo Kristovo, Njegovi duhovni elementi, koje su učenici jeli i kroz koje su zadobili vječni život. To conclude: through the manifestation of Christ, the divine teachings, which are an eternal bounty, were spread abroad, the light of guidance shone forth, and the spirit of life was conferred on man. Whoever found guidance became living; whoever remained lost was seized by enduring death. This bread which came down from heaven was the divine body of Christ, His spiritual elements, which the disciples ate, and through which they gained eternal life.
9 Učenici su mnoga jela uzeli iz Kristovih ruku; po čemu se onda posljednja večera razlikuje od ostalih? Jasno je da nebeski kruh nije označavao ovaj materijalni kruh, već prije božansku hranu duhovnoga tijela Kristova, božanskih milosti i nebeskih savršenosti u kojima su sudjelovali Njegovi učenici i kojima su se nasitili. The disciples had taken many meals from the hand of Christ; why was the last supper distinguished from the others? It is evident that the heavenly bread did not signify this material bread, but rather the divine nourishment of the spiritual body of Christ, the divine graces and heavenly perfections of which His disciples partook, and with which they became filled.
10 Također, razmislite o tome da je Krist, kad je blagoslovio kruh i dao ga Svojim učenicima govoreći: “Ovo je Moje tijelo”87, te im dao milost, bio s njima kao osoba, u nazočnosti i obličju. Nije se pretvorio u kruh i vino; da se pretvorio u kruh i vino On ne bi mogao ostati sa Svojim učenicima u tijelu, kao osoba i u nazočnosti. In the same way, reflect that when Christ blessed the bread and gave it to His disciples, saying, “This is My body,”87 and gave grace to them, He was with them in person, in presence, and form. He was not transformed into bread and wine; if He had been turned into bread and wine, He could not have remained with the disciples in body, in person and in presence.
11 Onda je jasno da su kruh i vino bili simboli koji su značili: “Dao sam vam Moje milosti, i savršenosti i kad ste primili ovu milost, zadobili ste život vječni i imate svoj udio i porciju nebeske hrane”. Then it is clear that the bread and wine were symbols which signified: I have given you My bounties and perfections, and when you have received this bounty, you have gained eternal life and have partaken of your share and your portion of the heavenly nourishment.