I accept Scripture, but not your interpretation!
How many followers of Christ left him when he affirmed his True Presence in the Eucharist?
“The bread that I will give is my flesh for the life of the world. (53) The Jews therefore strove among themselves, saying: How can this man give us his flesh to eat? (54) Then Jesus said to them: Amen, amen, I say unto you: except you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you shall not have life in you. (55) He that eats my flesh and drinks my blood, hath everlasting life; and I will raise him up in the last day. (56) For my flesh is meat indeed and my blood is drink indeed. (57) He that eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him. (58) As the living Father has sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eats me the same also shall live by me. (59) This is the bread that came down from heaven. Not as your fathers did eat manna, and are dead. He that eats this bread shall live forever.”
(61) Many therefore of his disciples, hearing it, said: This saying is hard,’ and who can hear it? (62) But Jesus, knowing in himself, that his disciples murmured at this, said to them: Doth this scandalize you? (63) If then you shall see the Son of man ascend up where he was before?.(64) It is the spirit that quickens: the flesh profits nothing. The words that I have spoken to you, are spirit and life. (65) But there are some of you that believe not. For Jesus knew from the beginning, who they were that did not believe, and who he was, that, would betray him. (66) And he said: Therefore did I say to you, that no man can come to me, unless it be given him by my Father. (67) After this many of his disciples went back; and walked no more with him. (68) Then Jesus said to the twelve: Will you also go away?
What did I interpret?
When Jesus 'this is my body'; it is OBVIOUS to any rational person that His BODY was standing there talking to them.
Bottom line: do I HAVE to believe the little wafer and sip of wine REALLY turns into Jesus' flesh and blood to enter into Heaven?A simple yes or no will satisfy my curiosity.
Yet no one was going to be a cannibal.
To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia:
Greetings.
24 We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said. 25 So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26 men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28 It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29 You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality. You will do well to avoid these things.
Farewell.
Acts Chapter 15
A large number left when the thought he was talking about the physical flesh and blood. The eating of which was strictly prohibited since God first set laws. Those that stayed evidently had faith enough that they knew He would not be talking about something that directly contradicted what God had told them earlier. Jesus in fact did explain a short time later that it wasn’t the flesh but the Spirit that gives life so clearly those that left misunderstood just as the Catholics have done and still do.