The Sacraments
The Sacraments
Illustration by: John Patrick Publishing Co. 1
What is a Sacrament
'Sacrament' is a word of Latin origin. It is derived from the word 'sacrare' and denotes a thing which produces holiness — a means of sanctification. A sacrament is defined as 'an outward sign instituted by Christ to confer grace'1 . As the Catechism of the Catholic Church notes, "Seated at the right hand of the Father and pouring out the Holy Spirit on his Body, which is the Church, Christ now acts through the sacraments He instituted to communicate His grace."2
In the early Church the term was applied indiscriminately to symbols and signs that were not sacramental rites in the technical sense. Many of these have survived and are classified by the Church as sacramentals. However, only the visible signs of internal sanctification are called Sacraments in the proper sense, and each of these is associated with a specific liturgical rite. All are rooted in, and dervived from, Sacred Scripture. Described by St. Augustine in the 4th century, the precise language and actions were codified by the Christian philosophers, known as the Early Scholastics, in the 12th and 13th centuries. Thus, the term 'sacrament', only refers to these specific rites, according to the powers which they signify.
What is a sign
The important part played by the word 'sign' in the definition of a Sacrament, makes it necessary to explain the meaning of that term. A sign is something, the knowledge of which leads to the knowledge of some other thing as yet unknown. Between a sign and the thing it signifies there must be some connection. As the Sacraments naturally symbolize an interior grace, they have been chosen by Christ to perform this office (to confer Sanctifying Grace) and formally instituted for that purpose.
“When the sign is applied to the one who receives the Sacrament, it signifies inward grace and has the power of producing it in the soul. The external action performed by the minister of the Sacrament is called a sign of the inward grace because it signifies and represents outwardly what is produced inwardly and invisibly in the soul. Grace, as a spiritual gift rather than a physical one, is something that the recipient cannot see. The words and actions of each sacrament, along with the physical artifacts used (such as bread and wine, blessed water, or anointed oil), are representations of the underlying spiritual reality of the sacrament and "make present… the grace that they signify." They help make the grace a physical reality." Thus, for example, the external sign in Baptism (washing with water) fittingly symbolizes the cleansing of the soul from sin.3
Sacraments are effective
As stated in the Catechism, "The Sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us through the work of the Holy Spirit."4 Thus, the Sacraments are "powers that comes forth" from the Body of Christ and accomplish the work they are intend to do.
Jesus’ words and actions during his hidden life and public ministry were already salvific, for they anticipated the power of his Paschal mystery. They announced and prepared what he was going to give the Church when all was accomplished. The mysteries of Christ’s life are the foundations of what he would henceforth dispense in the sacraments, through the ministers of his Church, for “what was visible in our Savior has passed over into his mysteries".5
The Sacraments are ever-living and life-giving. They are actions of the Holy Spirit at work in His Body, the Church. They are “the masterworks of God” in the new and everlasting covenant.6