Introduction to the Sacraments

I encountered this statement in an online conversation a couple of years ago:

“In seminary we learned that the major difference between Catholics and Protestants is that the Catholic Church believes that salvation comes through the sacraments and we do not. BTW, to the Catholics on the forum -- I'm not anti-Catholic. I'm just stating facts.”

The Sacraments are often a source of great misunderstanding between Catholics and Protestants. The statement above is a perfect example. On the face of it, there is a degree of truth there, and some Catholics would be tempted to explain the Sacraments in just such a way. The problem lies in the lack of depth (and Catholics can, at times, be just as guilty of this shallow view as Protestants). You simply can’t say that salvation comes through the Sacraments without explanation. Unfortunately, Protestant hearing often shuts down about now, and this shutdown is completely understandable. It’s caused by the idea that salvation is coming from something other than Jesus Christ. Protestants bristle. Catholics bristle back. Temptations to relive the Thirty Years War run rampant.

This ground is ripe with opportunity for heated misunderstanding.

If there is any genuine desire to understand what we Catholics believe, then exploring the depth of the Sacraments isn’t just a good idea, it’s absolutely necessary. (If there isn’t a genuine desire to understand, then feel free to stop reading now.)

A STARTING POINT

Let’s begin by being clear and blunt: Catholics believe that we are saved by the grace of God. This grace is made available to us through the death and resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Period. (As in Ephesians 2:8)

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE

Before we go any further, I want to introduce a passage from the Gospel according to Luke:

“And there was a certain woman having an issue of blood twelve years, who had bestowed all her substance on physicians, and could not be healed by any. She came behind him, and touched the hem of his garment; and immediately the issue of her blood stopped. And Jesus said: Who is it that touched me? And all denying, Peter and they that were with him said: Master, the multitudes throng and press thee, and dost thou say, Who touched me? And Jesus said: Somebody hath touched me; for I know that virtue is gone out from me. And the woman seeing that she was not hid, came trembling, and fell down before his feet, and declared before all the people for what cause she had touched him, and how she was immediately healed. But he said to her: Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go thy way in peace. ” Luke 8:43-48 (Douay-Rheims Bible). Parallel texts in Matthew 9:20-22 & Mark 5:25-34

We need to look at how this beautiful passage works in the Catholic view of the Sacraments. But before we can do that, we need to set this Lucan passage in context.

“The woman that hath an issue of blood many days out of her ordinary time, or that ceaseth not to flow after the monthly courses, as long as she is subject to this disease, shall be unclean, in the same manner as if she were in her flowers. Every bed on which she sleepeth, and every vessel on which she sitteth, shall be defiled. Whosoever toucheth them shall wash his clothes: and himself being washed with water, shall be unclean until the evening.” Leviticus 15:25-26 (Douay-Rheims Bible)

“For the life of every creature is the blood of it; therefore I have said to the people of Israel, You shall not eat the blood of any creature, for the life of every creature is its blood; whoever eats of it shall be cut off.” Leviticus 17:14 (RSV-CE)

By Jewish standards of the day, the woman in Luke 8:43-48 was ritually unclean. The blood that flowed from her was the life of her flesh. Her life was draining away. She comes to Christ in search of healing. She reaches out to him in faith, and she is healed. In fact, in this translation He declares her whole – not just “healed”, but whole – and bids her go in peace. Just as the woman in the Scripture reaches out to him to be made whole, so must we. It is in this way that we reach out to Him in the Sacraments; we do so because of our uncleanness, we seek to be made whole and healed, we do these things in faith. There is a subtle beauty in this.

The seven sacraments flow directly from Jesus Christ. Without Christ, the Sacraments would be of no value at all. Just as virtue (or power, depending on the translation) flowed through the hem of His garment to make the woman whole, so Christ’s power and grace flow through the Sacraments to make us whole.

BIBLICAL PHYSICALITY

Protestants that have made it this far may be asking, “Why would God make up a system that requires physical matter to distribute grace?” Fair question.

The answer is found in Scripture.

There are plenty of examples in Scripture of Jesus using physical matter to perform miracles. Space and time do not allow me to include them all. Here are two quick examples: “And when he was come to the house, the blind men came to him. And Jesus saith to them, Do you believe, that I can do this unto you? They say to him, Yea, Lord. Then he touched their eyes, saying, According to your faith, be it done unto you. And their eyes were opened, and Jesus strictly charged them, saying, See that no man know this. ” (Matthew 9:28-30 DRB). Another example: “As he had said this, he spat on the ground and made clay of the spittle and anointed the man’s eyes with the clay, saying to him, Go, wash in the pool of Siloam, (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.” (John 9:6-7 RSV-CE).

There are plenty of other examples: Matthew 8:2, Matthew 8:14-15, Matthew 9:20-22, Matthew 9:24-25, Matthew 17:27, Mark 1:40-41, Mark 1:30-31, Mark 5:27-34, Mark 5:40-42, Mark 7:33-35, Mark 8:22-26, Mark 9:26-27, Luke 5:13, Luke 7:13-15, Luke 8:43-48, Luke 8:53-55, Luke 13:12-13, Luke 14:2-4.

Why use spit? Why make clay? Why use physicality at all?

Why use so many physical means to accomplish His goals when He could have done it at the turn of His will? The simple fact is that in some way it pleased Him to do so.

"But wait," someone shouts from the bleachers, "He did these things to prove His point. He did them to give visible proof to doubting mortals.” Not always. The text of Mark 7:33-35 specifically notes that the miracle is performed in private. And there are other points, such as Matthew 9:28-30 quoted above, where He told his followers not to tell anyone of His actions. If this were to prove a point visibly and publicly, why request that no one be told, and why perform miracles in private?

WHAT IS A SACRAMENT?

Three elements make a Sacrament. First, there has to be an outward sign perceptible to our senses. This can be an object or a spoken word. Second, there must be grace that accomplishes what is signified. For example, the water of baptism signifies cleansing, and the grace of baptism cleanses our souls of original sin. Most importantly, it must have been instituted by Jesus Christ during his earthly ministry. Without the institution by God Himself, it would be meaningless.

Specifics will have to wait until we get to the individual posts on each of the Sacraments. We’ll leave this for the moment, but a brief detour into etymology might prove interesting.

WHAT DOES A SACRAMENT DO?

The Sacraments infuse the soul with sanctifying grace. It’s that simple. (There may also be an effect on the soul of the recipient as well. The grace may consecrate a soul to a particular kind of life, as in marriage or the taking of religious orders.) I’d like to re-quote something here by Frank Sheed. This cuts to the heart of the matter:

“When we come to die there is only one question that matters -- Have we sanctifying grace in our souls? If we have, then to heaven we shall go. There may be certain matters to be cleared, or cleansed, on the way, but to heaven we shall go, for we have the power to live there. If we have not, then to heaven we cannot go; not because we lack the price of admission, but because quite simply our soul lacks the powers that living in heaven calls for.

“It is not a question of getting past the gate, but of living once we are there; there would be no advantage in finding a kindly gate keeper, willing to let us in anyhow. The powers of intellect and will that go with our natural life are not sufficient; heaven calls for powers of knowing and loving higher than our nature of itself has. We need supernatural life, and we must get it here upon the earth. To die lacking it means eternal failure." - Theology for Beginners

OBJECTIONS

There are, of course, a whole host of objections to each Sacrament. One person declared, “I can think of at least three people in the Bible that went to heaven without the Sacraments.” My response was, “ok, I agree”. She blinked several times, thinking that I was trying to trick her.

Enoch was assumed into heaven long before John the Baptist started baptizing. The good thief was saved without a drop of baptismal water in sight. There is no scandal here. We fully acknowledge that Almighty God can and does give grace to men in answer to their faith, aspirations and prayers. He can do these things without the use of any external sign or ceremony. This has always been possible. This will always be possible.

The Sacraments are a means, provided by God Himself, by which we may reach out to him. The Sacraments are like a spring from which flows God's grace. We may sip at the spring, or drink deeply, or ignore it entirely. But these actions are our choice.

Comments are open, but let us not get too sidetracked on objections just yet. The details will come and objections will be welcome at that point. Specific questions will have to wait until we get to the specific posts. This is, after all, only an introduction. Be patient.