Girard and the “Sacrifice of the Mass”: Mimetic Theory and Eucharistic Theology

Lusvardi reflects on how historian Rene Girard made distinction between mimetic theory that make his views possible to reconcile with traditional Catholic Eucharistic theology with an understanding of the Mass as holy sacrifice. Girard clarifies his role as that of an anthropologist, not a theologian. Drawing on Swiss theologian Raymund Schwager, he also makes a fundamental distinction between the sacrifice of others and self-sacrifice. With these distinctions in mind, it hope to show that mimetic theory offers a rich, though naturally limited, interpretive paradigm with the potential to deepen rather than undermine traditional Catholic Eucharistic theology. Girard's thought centers on his claim that the "mimetic cycle of violence" lies at the root of all human culture. Because mimetic desire involves wanting what others have, mimesis fuels both growth and conflict. Without mimetic desire, people would have neither language nor culture, but neither would have "mimetic rivalry", the conflict, strife, and violence that break out when people want what other people have.