What Constitutes the Gathered Eucharistic Assembly?

Abstract

This essay asks one key question: How do you know if the Eucharistic body is constituted? After a reflection on why my views shifted over time, I examine what Luther’s Babylonian Captivity of the Church indicates about the constitution of the Eucharistic assembly, then, I address the physicality of worshippers joining online, finally from the perspective of liturgical ethics, I identify five factors that contribute to any given assembly’s discernment about the extent to which their Eucharistic body is constituted.