Expert: Thomas Hussein - 8/26/2006

Question
How can Protestant churches say they believe the Bible literally most of the time (Jesus walking on water, multiplication of loaves, healing people) and then when Jesus says in no uncertain terms "This is my body" it isn't considered literal any more?  The Catholics say it is His Body and they have been saying that
exact same thing for 2,000 years.

Answer
--SINCE THIS IS AN OPEN question, Please remember that the accounts of the miracles you mentioned had many live witnesses to support the act, places referred to & times of day that were referenced etc.

--THE LITERAL eating of Christ is a very loose interpretation.  For instance when he invited his disciples to partake of the bread & wine:
--DID THEY PROTEST(which they had at times with Christ) the literal eating of his flesh & drinking of his blood---SINCE it went against the law in 2 ways:
--1. It was cannibalism if they ate his flesh
--2. AGAINST the mandate not to drink or eat any unbled plasma from animals hunted as stated to Noah(Gen. 9) and in Leviticus 17 in hunting and several other places in the Law given to the Israelites!
--DID THEY break his skin and bite into his muscle tissue?
--DID JESUS puncture himself and pour out his blood into the wine goblets?
--AND did the disciples throw-up after they engaged in such a sick activity, and does the account say they had to clean up the mess before going to the garden.
--WHEN JESUS WAS in the garden , was he distinguishable with any bandages after the munching session?
--WAS HE WEAKENED after the Last supper when his blood supply was taxed?  OR did he advance to the garden in good health?
--WAS HE NOT a man & indeed bled after the scourged him and became weak from thirst & hunger?
---THERE is absolutely nothing in the context to show any of that happened--It is important to view any Bible account as we would read any report and not embellish anything it contains in a private interpretation:

(2 Peter 1:19-21) “. . .. 20 For YOU know this first, that no prophecy of Scripture springs from any private interpretation. 21 For prophecy was at no time brought by man’s will, but men spoke from God as they were borne along by holy spirit.”