Chapter I. On Necessity of Means

I first note these words of the Council of Trent: "If anyone says that Eucharistic Communion is necessary for little children before they have arrived at the years of discretion, let him be anathema."¹ Wherefore note that here the matter concerns real reception of the Most Holy Eucharist; hence it is of faith that such reception is not necessary for little children. These things being noted, with respect to necessity of means I say:

I. It is disputed whether or not the Most Holy Eucharist is necessary by necessity of means for justification, this necessity being taken in the proper sense, namely so that it is necessary by way of efficient cause. Some affirm this because of these words of St. John: "Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink His Blood, you will not have life in you."² Hence in their opinion the Most Holy Eucharist, if it can conveniently be done, must be received in reality; if this cannot conveniently be done, it must be received in desire; but little children receive it in this way through the Church. In this opinion it must also be admitted that Baptism and Penance do not justify except with desire for the Most Holy Eucharist.

Others deny that the Most Holy Eucharist is necessary by necessity of means for obtaining justification, both because Sacred Scripture³ assigns Baptism as a sufficient means for acquiring first grace, and because the Most Holy Eucharist is the sacrament of the living and therefore per se supposes grace, and because it is very difficult to admit that a sacrament which by a great part of human beings, that is, by little children per se, or by force of natural condition, cannot conveniently be received in reality, and therefore must be received in desire, that such a sacrament, I say, has been constituted necessary by necessity of means. I said: cannot conveniently be received in reality, and this indeed in such a way that it is forbidden by the Church to give the Most Holy Eucharist to little children.

Nevertheless a peculiar necessity of means is rightly admitted, namely by way of final cause, insofar, namely, as the Most Holy Eucharist is the end of all the sacraments, so that they, even Baptism and Penance, do not confer grace except by looking toward the Most Holy Eucharist (St. Alphonsus, III, 192).

II. It is disputed besides whether or not the Most Holy Eucharist is necessary by necessity of means for preserving grace. Some deny this, because there are other means also for preserving grace. Others affirm it, "because just as the life of the body cannot long be preserved without material food, so the life of the soul cannot be preserved without this spiritual food, at least in desire, and indeed explicit desire in one who notices the necessity of this sacrament" (St. Alphonsus, VI, 193). At least moral necessity seems commonly to be admitted.

With respect to the opinion of St. Thomas on the necessity of the Most Holy Eucharist, cf. III, q. 73, a. 3; III, q. 79, aa. 1 and 3; III, q. 80, aa. 2 and 11.

¹ Session 21, canon 4; cf. chapter 4.

² John 6:54.

³ Mark 16:16; Gal. 3:27; Titus 3:5.