Dear Remie,
Yes, but the Eucharist is all these things and more.
Protestantism tended to counter the RC theology of the Eucharist in terms of Real Presence with a spiritual Presence.
The Eastern Church, of course, said, "The Eucharist is both."
The Eucharist is a Symbol as well as the Real Presence of Who it symbolizes.
Schmemann wrote that a symbol is not something that "represents" something else.
It is something that "Re-presents." And in order to do that, it must partake of the reality of what it re-presents.
So Protestant and RC theologies of the Eucharist could be seen as representing two sides of the Orthodox coin on this subject.
Alex
