Transubstantiation

The language of "transubstantiation" affirms that while the appearances of the bread and wine remain the same, the substance of both really change. Through the action of the Holy Spirit in the liturgy, the bread and wine become the sacramental signs of Christ's presence; they are no longer bread and wine but the body and blood of Christ.

"The body of Christ offered to Christians in consecrated bread and wine is not something but someone. In the Eucharist Christ is present not as an 'object' to be admired but as a person (a 'subject') to be encountered." -Nathan Mitchell