conjunctionists

Conjunctionists were a group of early Protestant theologians, primarily active in the 16th century, who held a particular view on the doctrine of the Eucharist. Their main theological concern was to explain how the body and blood of Christ were present in the sacrament of Holy Communion. While they rejected the Roman Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, which asserted that the substance of the bread and wine is changed into the substance of Christ's body and blood, they also disagreed with the Zwinglian view that Christ's presence was purely symbolic or memorial.

Instead, conjunctionists, most notably figures like John Calvin and Martin Bucer, proposed that Christ's true body and blood are present, not in, with, or under the elements themselves, but rather are "conjoined" with them through the action of the Holy Spirit. This spiritual presence is received by the faithful through faith. The bread and wine serve as divinely appointed signs and means through which believers are united with Christ and receive the benefits of his sacrifice. This perspective sought a middle ground, affirming a real presence of Christ in the sacrament without resorting to the physical transformation of the elements.