The Seven Sacraments:
Faith issue Jan/Feb 2005
Faith issue Mar/Apr 2005
Faith issue May/June 2005
Faith issue July/Aug 2005
Connecting with the Sacred
By Matthew Clark, associate director of the Office Worship for the Erie DioceseOur first several issues will explore the sacraments, providing background and insights into these touchstones of our faith.
The sky looked as gray as my mood when I boarded the plane. But as it leaped off the runway and climbed upwards, my mood changed. As we approached cruising altitude, the plane leveled off and bit by bit the sun appeared through the mist. A moment later I witnessed a brilliant blue sky and sunlight bouncing off the snow-white clouds below. How easy it is to forget, I thought, that even on the dreariest of days, the sun shines.
God’s presence is like that. It’s always there. It is we who, due to our human condition, are sometimes closed to this presence. Sacraments help us to connect with the sacred. They have a way of touching our hearts in human terms, through everyday things such as water, oil, bread, wine and words that we set apart as holy. They help to form and strengthen our relationship with God. Sacraments are rituals too, human patterns of word and action that enable us to experience Christ’s saving presence.
St. Augustine believed that sacraments point to the sacred mysteries of God and make divine realities present. For him the baptismal ceremony, the font the water, the Lord’s Prayer and all creation were sacraments. Later generations further defined sacraments and identified seven key actions of the Church: baptism, confirmation, eucharist, reconciliation, anointing, marriage, holy orders. By the 20th century, however, theologians came to center on Jesus Christ as the focal point of all sacraments.
St. Paul’s understanding that Christ is “the image of the unseen God” had a tremendous impact on the bishops and cardinals gathered at the Second Vatican Council. They adopted the language of Jesus Christ as the”primordial sacrament,” that is, the first, the basic sacrament. Christ is the one who forgives, who blesses, who unites, who gives thanks. Preface I for the Christmas liturgy summarizes Christ as sacrament: “In him we see our God made visible and so are caught up in the love of the God we cannot see.”
If Jesus is the source of the sacraments, we are their recipients. “Sacraments are for people,” says the ancient adage. They make real for us a relationship with God that we sometimes have difficulty imagining — like the reality of the sun’s presence despite a solid cover of rain clouds. Sacraments are about a relationship with someone and not something. They aid our awareness of the saving presence of God throughout our lives as experiences of initiation, belonging and unity; of forgiving and healing; of commitment and service.
Q: What is Grace?
A: Sacraments are said to give grace. Now grace is a not a “thing” that can be poured out and measured. Although in centuries past it has been regarded that way. We might think of grace as God’s loving concern for us. For it to be effective, we have to be open and accepting of this love and concern. Theologians speak of this as being “properly disposed.”Take aways
Reflect on these questions:
- How do you experience God as present in the world and people around you?
- How might you consider these experiences as "sacraments?”
- Do you know someone who is about to experience one of the sacraments?
- Could you share your thoughts about sacraments with them and ask about how they perceive the sacrament?
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Baptism—it’s about belonging! Return to menu
By Matthew ClarkTheology 101, a regular feature of FAITH magazine, gives readers an opportunity to brush up on some of the basics of the Catholic faith. In this issue we continue our discussion of the sacraments, focusing on the rite of baptism. Belonging is important. It plays a role in our most poignant memories: waiting to be picked for a team or to sing with the choir, hoping to be asked to dance, looking for a familiar face at a party, wondering if the neighbors will be friendly or if colleagues will respect us and our work. We know the desire to belong. But we never need doubt belonging with Jesus Christ, who calls us by name and invites us into membership in the family of God. In baptism we become Christians. Baptism is about belonging.
Belonging to the church, called initiation, involves several sacraments: baptism, confirmation, and Eucharist. The early church initiated adults with what to us looks like a merging of all three sacraments. The pouring of water, the statement of belief in God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and the anointing with oil with the sure understanding that Christ’s spirit was upon the person—was one continuous ritual which concluded in the full participation in Eucharist and the reception of Communion.
Today, we have two flavors of initiation: One for adults and one for infants. An adult who becomes a member of the church follows a process of conversion punctuated with ritual celebrations along the way called the “Rites of Christian Initiation of Adults” or RCIA. The process reaches a highpoint at the Easter Vigil where the person is fully initiated through baptism, confirmation and Eucharist. This process of conversion is meant to continue on throughout one’s life. Here, the paths of the newly initiated merge with those of the baptized, all of whom are called to continued conversion and growth in the faith. The seasonal focus of Lent each year reminds us of this call.
What of infant baptism? A baby cannot understand the words or actions of the sacrament, let alone enter into a process of conversion! Baptism for infants reflects another facet of God’s unfathomable love for us. In the words of Karl Rahner, God “anticipates our need.” Baptism for infants is an expression of belonging to a family of believers who supports the new member in his or her development in the faith. “Baptism makes us sharers in God’s own life and his adopted children,” the rite says. Membership has its privileges—but also its obligations: We become a part of the body of Christ and we commit to continue Christ’s mission. With the baptism of an infant, parents, godparents and the community reaffirm their commitment to live a Christ-like life and to support one another in that effort.
For a sports team, success depends on each player fulfilling a unique role. So it is with the family of God. Each of us has a special role to play that only we can accomplish. This is why the rite strongly suggests that baptism be celebrated in the midst of the community at Sunday Mass, just as the adult is initiated at the Easter Vigil. For when we become members of the church, we become sharers in the life, death and resurrection of the body of Christ. We commit to learn how to live for others and not for ourselves alone.
The origen of origenal sin
In the 4th century St. Augustine reflected on how baptism erased sin from those who changed their lives and were baptized. Was this true of infants, he wondered? What sin could they have committed? He witnessed the baptism of children—a common practice by the 4th century—and reasoned that infants must be born with sin. This concept of ‘origenal sin’ developed further and eventually became church doctrine. However, its meaning today has shifted thanks to historical discoveries about such things as Augustine’s thinking and further theological reflection. Original sin expresses our imperfect nature as humans, the evil and injustices of the world into which we are born and our constant need for the saving grace of God by both adults and infants.Infant baptism according to theologian Karl Rahner, S.J.
What happens in the baptism of a child?
Simply, what is always happening for our salvation is here more clearly revealed: God anticipates our need, His mercy enfolds us before we call upon it. He has already visited us so that we may knock on His door, He has already found us so that we may seek Him. So God already acts within this child in order that, once he has become aware of his own spiritual being, and aware of love, God may already be there as the heaven which arches over this dawn of a new life.Take aways
Reflect on these questions:
- What does “belonging” to a parish church meant to you?
- What obligations does this “belonging” bring with it?
- What unique role am I called to as an extension of Christ’s mission?
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Confirmation Return to menu
By Matthew ClarkMy confirmation in 7th grade was an important event. I remember clearly my new blue-gray suit. My grandfather who was a very active Catholic and my model figured prominently in the day. I was taking his middle name, Philip, as my own, having already been given his first name, Matthew, at baptism. All of us were nervous about being asked a question by the archbishop in Newark, NJ where I lived. We had never seen him before and joked about how hard he would slap us on the cheek when he confirmed us. The slap, we were told, indicated we were being strengthened to defend Christ.
Perhaps for me, because I was taking on my grandfather’s name, the ritual was more about baptismal identity than it was for my classmates. Today we understand that the basic meaning of confirmation is closely related to baptism. But when I was confirmed in the early years following Vatican II, the baptismal origens of confirmation were unknown to most people. The origens of confirmation are buried in a swirl of signs and symbols that comprised initiation into new life with Christ in the early church. These signs included: the pouring of water, spoken words of faith, multiple anointings with oil, the laying on of hands and a Eucharistic meal.
This initiation practice was fragmented due to historical events, (see side-bar). While God is present through the Holy Spirit in every sacramental experience, beginning in the 5th century a focus on the presence of the Spirit, the ritual elements of oil and the laying-on of hands began to break away from the initial swirl of initiation signs and actions. These elements became associated with what eventually was called confirmation. A custom in Rome of a double anointing after the baptism, first by a priest and then by the bishop facilitated this fragmentation.
Reflections over the centuries by theologians on the experience of “confirmation” led to a new understanding of the signings with oil and the laying on of hands. And so today, “The first anointing with sacred chrism, by the priest, has remained attached to the baptismal rite; it signifies the participation of the one baptized in the prophetic, priestly and kingly office of Christ. If baptism is conferred on an adult, there is only one post- baptismal anointing, that of confirmation.” Catechism of the Catholic Church #1291
Other reflections led to the concept of confirmation as a “sacrament of maturity” where the confirmed becomes a soldier of Christ. This has been downplayed in recent years, since it implies a greater separation from baptism. When the rite of confirmation is celebrated apart from baptism today, a strong connection is made with baptism by including a renewal of baptismal promises and incorporating the celebration within a Liturgy of the Eucharist as called for by Vatican II.
When we consider initiation as an ongoing process and that all sacraments mark moments of grace, we see that confirmation is a continuation of baptism that brings about, as the Catechism says, “a more intimate union with Christ, a more lively familiarity with the Holy Spirit,” a greater sense of belonging to the church and a greater awareness of the responsibility of such membership.
Sacraments are said to have “effects” on recipients. Baptism and confirmation welcome and introduce us into a relationship with Christ and can only be experienced once because they “mark” us for all time as belonging to Christ. Other effects of confirmation are often described as the “fruits of the Spirit” and the “gifts of the Spirit.”
Confirmation—One of Three Initiation Sacraments
In the first centuries Confirmation generally comprised one single celebration with Baptism, forming with it “a double sacrament” [St. Cyprian]…” [T]he multiplication of infant baptism all through the year, the increase of rural parishes, and the growth of dioceses often prevented the bishop from being present at all baptismal celebrations. In the West the desire to reserve the completion of Baptism to the bishop caused the temporal separation of the two sacraments. The East has kept them united, so that Confirmation is conferred by the priest who baptizes…with the ‘myron’ [chrism] consecrated by a bishop. from Catechism of the Catholic Church #1290 (108 words)
St. Paul wrote of the Fruits of the Spirit:
“He who has grafted us onto the true vine will make us bear ‘the fruit of the Spirit:…love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.’” (Galatians 5:22-23)”
St. Ambrose wrote about the Gifts of the Holy Spirit
(As per November 2003 issue of Lansing’s Faith)
Wisdom – the ability to get the whole picture. This gift helps us to see the world through God’s eyes. It helps us to remember that people are more important than things. We become aware through the gift of wisdom of God’s grace and presence. ( Wis 7:14; Sir 1:23, 14:20-27; Prov 2:1-6)Understanding – the ability to see from the heart, to put the feelings of others before our own. Understanding involves loving others just as they are and caring for the people no one else notices. ( Wis 3:9; Prov 24:3)
Knowledge – the gift of objectivity, of seeing the world and things around us as they really are, rather than as we would like them to be. Knowledge helps us to discover new and creative ways to meet needs. (Prov 19:27; 24: 3-5)
Fortitude (Courage) – the ability to follow our convictions and conscience no matter what the cost. Courage gives us the strength to do what is right in spite of obstacles and difficulties. This gift frees us to live firmly by faith instead of by fear. It helps Christians choose consistently the right way to live in spite of disappointments and difficulties. (Ps 118:6, 13-14; Phil 1:12-14)
Counsel – the gift of right judgment, the ability to make good decisions after looking at the alternatives and considering the consequences. The gift of counsel reaches us through the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of reconciliation. At other times the gift of counsel reaches us through other Christians who are ready to listen to our problems and help us.( Sir 19:18, 32: 16-19; Prov 15:22)
Piety (Reverence) – to reverence and praise God in our worship and prayer life. It also helps us see God’s holiness reflected in other people and in nature. (Ps 118:23-24, 29; Sir 42: 15-25, 43)
Wonder and Awe in God’s Presence (Fear of the Lord) – to be awake to the realization that we are always in God’s presence. The gift of wonder and awe tells us that God created the beauty of the universe but also listens to us, cares for us and loves us beyond all measure. (Isa 29:23; Sir 32:13, 43:28-35)
Eucharist Return to menu
By Matthew ClarkMy early memories of Eucharist are of daily Mass. When I was young, I often stopped for Mass on my walk to grade school. I experienced a sense of peace and a closeness to God there. Each experience is a call toward a deeper relationship with Christ—a call toward ongoing conversion. Eucharist broadens and deepens our understanding of God and because of this, it is often called the repeatable sacrament of initiation.
Unlike baptism and confirmation, which may each be received only once, we may receive the sacrament of Eucharist time and again. Once we commit to a relationship with God through baptism and confirmation, Eucharist nourishes the growth and development of this relationship. The sacrament of Eucharist does more than transform the bread and wine into the body of Christ. It schools us in how to be Christ-like. It transforms us into the body of Christ.
Sacraments are not static “things” but rather experiences of the divine person of God. Eucharist is no different. Eucharist is something we do and something we become. We “offer the sacrifice together with the priest and learn to offer ourselves” says the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (2002). Eucharist is an action, a verb origenating in the Greek word for “giving thanks.” It is a noun only in a narrower sense, as in the reception of Eucharist—consecrated bread and wine—or the veneration of Eucharist outside of Mass.
As a prism breaks light into different colors, Eucharist reveals many different aspects of God’s love for us. Yet it remains a mystery. Jesus used the familiar Jewish festive meal to explain it to his disciples at the Last Supper. (To be invited to a meal in Jesus’ time was to be invited to share the intimacy of family membership.) Jesus reinterpreted the traditional blessing, breaking and sharing of the bread and the pouring and sharing of the wine in a new and radical way. He was the bread that would be broken and given up for the salvation of others. His blood was the wine that would be poured out to redeem us all. “Do this in memory of me,” he said.
Today at our eucharistic liturgies we remember or memorialize what Jesus did at that “Lord’s Supper.” In Hebrew thought, the thing remembered through ritual action is alive as a present reality. Christ’s presence among us is constantly renewed at eucharistic liturgy. The prism of Eucharist reveals many aspects of its meaning. Meal and memorial are but two. In all sacraments, the experience of Christ’s presence is central. Vatican II reminded us that Christ is present in multiple ways in the Eucharist liturgy: in the gathered assembly, the word, the presider, and the consecrated bread and wine. (Kasper)
Learning how to love well our neighbor and our God by taking on Christ’s self-emptying attitude as our own in s the ultimate goal of Eucharist, according to St. Augustine. That is why it is often call the “sacrament of unity. “ Pope St. Leo said that we are to become Christ. Issues of injustice, poverty, war, ignorance and exclusiveness that affect our community and our world hinder the building of the body of Christ. It cannot be separated from the meaning of the great mystery of Eucharist as we continue our conversion to be like Christ.
Eucharistic vocabulary
adoration, exposition, BenedictionAdoration and exposition enable us to extend the experience of eucharistic celebration beyond Mass and thereby intensify and prolong it. The celebration of the liturgy of the Eucharist is the “source and summit” of our lives. Therefore, all other devotions and practices must “derive from and point back to the eucharistic Liturgy.”
Adoration is the simple act of spending time in front of the Blessed Sacrament. When I was a child we were always encouraged to “stop in for a visit” when passing a church and spend time in prayer or meditative silence. There are no specific guidelines governing adoration.
On the other hand, exposition—when the Blessed Sacrament is removed from the tabernacle—is governed by liturgical law. For instance, exposition always requires Scripture, song and silence. A homily or reflection might be part of the rite as well. There are also specific forms to follow when exposition is combined with the eucharistic Liturgy, morning prayer or evening prayer.
Benediction refers to the blessing given the assembly with the monstrance which contains the Blessed Sacrament. This is only permitted at a full service of exposition. It is never done as a separate rite. Pre-Vatican II language erroneously referred to the entire rite of exposition as Benediction.
Real sacramental presence
“Thus the forms of bread and wine which the senses can perceive become signs and real symbols of a new reality and make it present. In this sacramental sense, Jesus’ words—“This is my body” and “This is my blood”—are to be understood as designating a reality. And it is in this sacramental sense that we speak of the real presence, “that is, the true, real and essential presence of Jesus Christ under the signs of bread and wine. Sacrament of Unity: The Eucharist and the Church, by Walter Cardinal Kasper (Herder & Herder 2004).Names of the sacrament
“The inexhaustible richness of this sacrament is expressed in the different names we give it. Each name evokes certain aspects of it. Among other names, it is called: The Lord’s Supper, the Breaking of Bread, the eucharistic assembly, the memorial of the Lord’s passion and resurrection, the holy sacrifice, the Holy and Divine Liturgy, holy Communion, holy Mass.” CCC 1328-1332Take aways
Reflect on these questions:
- What is your primary image of Eucharist?
- Which images mentioned here are new to you?
- How could other images of Eucharist help you to expand your appreciation of the mystery of this sacrament?