How the Eucharist Can Save Civilization

By: Dr. Jared Staudt

Narrated by: Andrew Hansen

The greatest civilizations have all sought immortality.

From inventions to massive monuments, these societies have tried to produce something that would define them and last forever. But only one is eternal: God himself. Christ’s greatest gift, his divine flesh and blood in the Eucharist, is the eternal defining legacy of Christendom, the flower of Western civilization. The Eucharist is not just a doctrine; it is a reality to be lived, and it must shape our entire lives and culture. Indeed, from hospitals to the great cathedrals, this gift defined Western Civilization and allowed it to reach its highest heights.

Yet now, our Western Civilization verges on complete collapse because we lack this supernatural framework. We have reverted to being barbarians, devoid of a noble vision of human life and the personal cultivation of virtue. But there is a remedy: a return to a Eucharist-centered life.

What once took us to our summit can once again be our source for a flourishing civilization. The Blessed Sacrament has more power than any medicine to heal the body and soul, more strength than any army to defeat our foes, and more grace to transform our civilization by first transforming us. Only the Holy Eucharist, which built the great culture of Christendom, can both renew and save our secular culture by infusing it with beauty, festivity, community, and charity.

©2023 R. Jared Staudt PhD. (P)2023 TAN Books

did not really fulfill the premise

I heard an interview with the author on Ave Maria radio. in that interview, he was very excited about the topic and had several ideas about how to live it out. Unfortunately 95% of the book is all history. I understand that the author was trying to give a history of the mass and the Eucharist as a basis for the theme of this book. Ultimately, in my opinion, he spent very little time dealing with concrete examples of how this could be lived out in the modern world.
I came away with the impression that his intention was to outline how the Eucharist helped form modern Western Civilization, and then how it had been lived over the centuries. Using this background as a way to present his premise that the Eucharist can revitalize and save the culture today.
it was a worthy premise, however the reason I purchased the book was because I was looking for more concrete examples about how we could put this into practice, which left me disappointed.
For those that do not have a background in church history or the development of Eucharistic theology, this would be a good book to learn more about these topics. I don't believe that the premise of the title is ultimately fulfilled.