THE ARREST OF INQUIRY. 67 



ther goes to show, is that by eating a thing its physi- 

 cal and mental qualities are acquired. So the bar- 

 baric mind reasons, and extends the notion to all 

 beings. To quote Mr. Frazer: " By eating the body 

 of the god he shares in the god's attributes and pow- 

 ers. And when the god is a corn-god, the corn is 

 his proper body; when he is a vine-god, the juice 

 of the grape is his blood; and so by eating the bread 

 and drinking the wine the worshipper partakes of 

 the real body and blood of his god. Thus the drink- 

 ing of wine in the rites of a vine-god like Dionysus is 

 not an act of revelry; it is a solemn sacrament." 

 It is, perhaps, needless to point out that the same 

 explanation applies to the rites attaching to Deme- 

 ter, or to add what further parallels are suggested 

 in the belief that Dionysus was slain, rose again, and 

 descended into Hades to bring up his mother Semele 

 from the dead. This, however, by the way. What 

 has to be emphasized is, that in the quotation just 

 given we have transubstantiation clearly anticipated 

 as the barbaric idea of eating the god. In proof of 

 the underlying continuity of that idea two witnesses 

 — Catholic and Protestant — may be cited. 



The Church of Rome, and in this the Greek 

 Church is at one therewith, thus defines the term 

 transubstantiation in the Canon of the Council of 

 Trent : 



" If any one shall say that in the most holy sacrament of 

 the Eucharist there remains the substance of bread and wine 

 together with the body ind blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, 



