Real Presence

The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist is a term used in Christian theology to express the doctrine that Jesus is really or substantially present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically.

There are a number of different views in the understanding of the meaning of the term "reality" in this context between contemporary Christian confessions which accept it, including the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Church of the East, Lutheranism, Anglicanism and Methodism. These differences correspond to literal or figurative interpretations of Christ's Words of Institution, as well as questions related to the concept of realism in the context of the Platonic substance and accident.

By contrast, the doctrine is rejected by the Radical Reformers and their followers. Efforts at mutual understanding of the range of beliefs led in the 1980s to consultations on Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry (BEM) through the World Council of Churches. These consultations included the Catholic Church.

Eucharistic theology as a branch of Christian theology developed during the medieval period; before that, during the early medieval period theological disputes had focussed mostly on questions of Christology.

...
Wikipedia