For Catholics, the Sacrament of Baptism is the first step in a lifelong journey of commitment and discipleship. Baptism is the first sacrament of Christian initiation. Through Baptism we are freed from sin, we become adopted sons and daughters of God and are embraced into the family of the Church.
The origin and foundation of Christian Baptism is Jesus. Before starting his public ministry, Jesus submitted himself to the baptism given by John the Baptist. The waters did not purify him; he cleansed the waters. . . . Jesus did not need to be baptised because he was totally faithful to the will of his Father and free from sin. However, he wanted to show his solidarity with human beings in order to reconcile them to the Father. By commanding his disciples to baptise all nations, he established the means by which people would die to sin – Original and actual – and begin to live a new life with God.
Baptism transforms us. It marks our soul for life and eternity. In baptism, the Holy Spirit moves us to answer Christ’s call to holiness. In baptism, we are asked to walk by the light of Christ and to trust in his wisdom. We are invited to submit our hearts to Christ with ever deeper love.
The Holy Eucharist is the “source and summit of the Christian life,” according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC 1324).
The Eucharist Is Not a Symbol: Beyond Symbolism
Jesus is substantially present—body, blood, soul, and divinity—in Holy Communion. People may misunderstand and believe that the Eucharist is only a symbol of the body and blood of Christ. It is much more than that.
Catholics often refer to this as the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. Think of the Real Presence as the core of what the Eucharist is: in other words, its “substance.” In addition, after the consecration, look at the bread and wine as external characteristics or “accidents” that visibly endure without change; aspects like color, size, shape, or any other observable feature.
In offering the Sacrament of the Eucharist, the substance of bread and wine change into the body and blood of Christ, while the accidents (taste, appearance, etc.) remain unchanged.
Confirmation is the sacrament that completes Baptism; in it the gift of the Holy Spirit is bestowed upon us.
Anyone who freely decides to live a life as God’s child and asks for God’s Spirit under the signs of the
imposition of hands and anointing with chrism receives the strength to witness to God’s love and might in
word and deed. He is now a full-fledged responsible member of the Catholic Church. [CCC 1285-1314]
This sacrament is called Confirmation because the faith given in Baptism is now confirmed and made strong. During Baptism, parents and godparents make promises to renounce Satan and believe in God and the Church on the child’s behalf. At Confirmation, those same promises are renewed, this time the
child or adult is speaking for themselves.
Traditionally, the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude (courage),
knowledge, piety, and fear of the Lord. These gifts are supernatural graces given to the soul. The
fruits of the Holy Spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, trustfulness, gentleness and
self-control.
The sacrament of Reconciliation is also known as Penance an Confession, among other names.
The sacrament of Reconciliation is a sacrament in which the priest, as the agent of God, forgives sins committed after Baptism, when the sinner is heartily sorry for them, sincerely confesses them, and is willing to make satisfaction for them.
By his death on the Cross, Jesus Christ redeemed man from sin and from the consequences of his sin, especially from the eternal death that is sin’s due.
So it is not surprising that on the very day he rose from the dead, Jesus instituted the sacrament by which men’s sins could be forgiven.
The Sacrament of Matrimony signifies the union of Christ and the Church. It gives spouses the grace to love each other with the love with which Christ has loved his Church; the grace of the sacrament thus perfects the human love of the spouses, strengthens their indissoluble unity, and sanctifies them on the way to eternal life - CCC 1661
The Sacrament of Marriage is a covenant, which is more than a contract. A covenant always expresses a relationship between persons. The marriage covenant refers to the relationship between the husband and wife, a permanent union of persons capable of knowing and loving each other and God. The celebration of marriage is also a liturgical act, appropriately held in a public liturgy at church. Catholics are urged to celebrate their marriage within the Eucharistic Liturgy.
By their marriage, the couple witnesses Christ's spousal love for the Church. One of the Nuptial Blessings in the liturgical celebration of marriage refers to this in saying, ‘Father, you have made the union of man and wife so holy a mystery that it symbolises the marriage of Christ and his Church.’
llness can lead to anguish, self-absorption, sometimes even despair and revolt against God. It can also make a person more mature, helping him discern in his life what is not essential so that he can turn toward that which is. Very often illness provokes a search for God and a return to him - CCC 1501
When the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick is given, the hoped-for effect is that, if it be God's will, the person be physically healed of illness. But even if there is no physical healing, the primary effect of the Sacrament is a spiritual healing by which the sick person receives the Holy Spirit's gift of peace and courage to deal with the difficulties that accompany serious illness or the frailty of old age.
In the Church's Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, through the ministry of the priest, it is Jesus who touches the sick to heal. The core message of his healing tells us of his plan to conquer sin and death by his dying and rising.
The Sacrament of the Sick is administered normally in situations of the immediate prospect of surgery, for those who are significant of age, or those in danger of death. That said, the Rite of Anointing tells us there is no need to wait until a person is at the point of death to receive the Sacrament. A careful judgment about the serious nature of the illness is sufficient; in this way, it is appropriate for both children and adults.
Through Holy Orders, the Church hands down from century to century the ministry entrusted by Jesus Christ to his apostles, until the end of time (CCC 1536).
Three Degrees of Holy Orders
There are three orders of the Sacrament of Holy Orders namely: Episcopate (Bishop), Presbyterate (Priest) and Diaconate (Deacon).
Diaconate. The deacon (Greek: diakonos) is the ordinary minister of Baptism and may lead wedding and funeral services. The deacon also preaches at Mass and attends to the pastoral care of the people. Typically, deacons take a lead in the charitable works of the parish to which they are assigned.
Presbyterate. In addition to the faculties and duties of the deacon, a priest (Greek: presbuteros) may celebrate the Mass, hear Confession, and anoint the sick. If delegated by his bishop, the priest may also confer Confirmation. Each of our parishes is in the care of a priest or group of priests.
Episcopate. The bishop (Greek: episkopos) is a successor of the apostles and possesses the fullness of the Sacrament of Holy Orders. He therefore has the faculty to celebrate all Seven Sacraments. The duties most unique to him are to ordain priests and deacons, as well as to confer Confirmation as the apostle in the diocese.
Priesthood
The Bible affirms that Jesus Christ is the ‘one mediator between God and men’ (2 Timothy 2:5). This singular and unique priesthood of Jesus Christ is made present through the ministerial priesthood in those called to the presbyterate or priesthood. As St Thomas Aquinas puts it, ‘Only Christ is the true priest, the others being only his ministers’ (CCC 1545).
Those who are not ordained, the lay faithful, participate in another kind of priesthood - the common priesthood - by virtue of their baptism. The ministerial priesthood is at the service of the common priesthood; it is directed at unfolding the baptismal grace of all Christians (CCC 1547).
In the Roman tradition, priests observe celibacy - that is to say, they do not marry – ‘for the sake of the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 19:12)’. Joyfully, they consecrate themselves with undivided hearts to the Lord and his affairs (see 1 Corinthians 7:32), giving themselves entirely to God and his people (CCC 1579).
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