What is a sacrament?
A sacrament is a sacred Christian rite recognized as of particular importance and significance. In the Roman Catholic Church, there are 7 sacraments:
- Baptism
- Penance
- The Eucharist
- Confirmation
- Matrimony
- Ordination
- Anointing of the sick
The sacraments mark important stages of peoples lives. All the sacraments involve:
an “outward, visible sign”
that is a conduit for
an “inward and spiritual grace”
- Baptism
- Penance
- The Eucharist
- Confirmation
- Matrimony
- Ordination
- Anointing of the sick
The sacraments mark important stages of peoples lives. All the sacraments involve:
an “outward, visible sign”
that is a conduit for
an “inward and spiritual grace”
"outward signs of inner grace" in the Eucharist.
The phrase "outward signs of inward grace" dates back to Peter Lombard, a 12th-century Catholic theologian, known as the Master of the Sentences. He said that the outward sign was both a symbol of the inner grace and also its cause.
The “Outward and Visible Sign” consists of two parts: matter, and form:
1. Matter - the material substance used.
Bread and Wine in the Eucharist
Breaking, Pouring, Eating, Drinking in the Eucharist
The “Inward and Spiritual Grace”
The spiritual benefits gained from the outward sign.
In the Eucharist, the bread and wine is blessed and transformed into the body and blood of christ. This process is know as transubstantiation. Only the physical appearance of the bread a wine remain.
The Eucharist expresses outward signs of inner grace because the bread and wine is only a symbol of what we actually consume. These materialistic things are the outward sign, but the inner grace is the body and blood of christ, and the spiritual nourishment that comes with it. The inner grace refers to the benefits the sacrament gives us.