Catholic Dictionary
Find accurate definitions of over 5,000 Catholic terms and phrases (including abbreviations). Based on Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.
Your Term:
BREAD (symbolic)
Represents the Eucharistic, especially the broken loaf reminiscent of the Disciples at Emmaus, who on Easter Sunday recognized Christ in the "the breaking of the bread" (Luke 24:30). Often referred to as the staff of life, bread is the emblem of several saints noted for their feeding of the poor, e.g., St. Roch (1295-1378), the mendicant friar, and St. Geneviève (422-500), patroness of Paris, St. Elizabeth of Hungary (1207-1231), whose hidden loaves were changed into roses when her benevolence needed secrecy. St. Anthony of Padua's (1195-1231) gifts were universally referred to as "St. Anthony's Bread," soon transferred into food for the hungry.
