Chalice (Catholic Encyclopedia article)
Herbert Thurston · 1913
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Description
The chalice ranks first among sacred vessels. By a figure of speech, the cup itself often stands for the Precious Blood. St. Paul calls it the communion of the blood of Christ. No reliable tradition survives about Christ's Last Supper vessel. In the sixth and seventh centuries pilgrims at Jerusalem were shown a chalice said to be the actual one. It was kept in the Holy Sepulchre with the sponge offered to the Saviour on Calvary.
Later claimants fared no better under scrutiny. Antoninus of Piacenza called the Jerusalem vessel onyx. Adamnan, less than a century later, called it a silver cup with two handles holding a Gallic sextarius. Two more vessels were later venerated as the Last Supper chalice: the sacro catino of Genoa, a green glass dish long taken for emerald, and an agate cup at Valencia. The article judges the tradition untrustworthy and late.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Herbert Thurston |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 1913 |
| COLLECTION | REFERENCE |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 19 KB |
| LICENSE | PUBLIC_DOMAIN |
| RIGHTS | PUBLIC DOMAIN |
| SOURCE | New Advent — Catholic Encyclopedia (1913) |