A Sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace.
This short definition, learned by generations of Catholic children from the Baltimore Catechism,
contains the whole of sacramental theology in seed. Each of its three parts is essential.
A sacrament is an outward sign: something perceptible to the senses, which signifies an invisible
reality. It was instituted by Christ: no man, not even the Church herself, could invent a
sacrament, because only God can attach the gift of grace to a material sign. And it gives grace:
it does not merely point to grace, as a picture points to its subject, but actually causes the
grace it signifies.
WH Y O U T WA R D S I G N S ?
St. Thomas Aquinas explains that God gives grace through visible signs because it suits our
nature. We are not angels but creatures of body and soul, who come to know spiritual things
through the senses. Our Lord Himself, the Word made flesh, saved us through a visible human
body. He healed the blind man with clay and spittle, the woman who touched the hem of His garment,
and the sick through the laying on of hands. The sacraments continue that same pattern. In
them, Christ still touches us through water, oil, bread, wine, and human words, so that we may be
certain of His action and humbled by receiving heavenly gifts through humble things.
MAT T E R A N D F O RM
From the Middle Ages onward, theologians described each sacramental sign as made up of two
parts, borrowing the terms of philosophy. The matter is the thing or action used, such as the pouring
of water in Baptism. The form is the words that give the matter its meaning, such as “I baptize
thee in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.” The Council of Florence, in
its Decree for the Armenians (1439), taught that every sacrament is accomplished by three things:
the matter, the form, and the person of the minister, who must have the intention of doing what
the Church does. If any one of these is lacking, the sacrament is not confected.
H OW T H E SAC R AME N T S WO R K : E X O P E R E O P E R A T O
Against the Reformers, the Council of Trent (Session VII, 1547) solemnly defined that there are
seven sacraments of the New Law, all instituted by Jesus Christ, and that they confer grace ex
opere operato, “by the work performed.” This means that the sacrament acts by the power of Christ,
not by the holiness of the priest. A validly baptized child is truly baptized even if the priest who
baptized him was a sinner, because it is Christ who baptizes. St. Augustine said that whether
Peter baptizes or Judas baptizes, it is Christ who baptizes. This doctrine gives the faithful great security:
the gifts of God do not depend on the worthiness of His ministers.
T H E D I S P O S I T I O N S O F T H E O N E WH O R E C E I V E S
The sacraments are not magic. Although their power comes from Christ, the fruit they bear in a
soul depends on the dispositions of the one who receives them. A man who receives Holy Communion
in mortal sin receives the true Body of Christ, but he receives it to his own condemnation
and commits a sacrilege (1 Corinthians 11:29). The more faith, sorrow for sin, love, and desire a
soul brings to a sacrament, the more grace it receives. This is why the Church has always urged
careful preparation and devout thanksgiving.
T H E G R AC E O F T H E SAC R AME N T S
Every sacrament gives or increases sanctifying grace, the supernatural life of God in the soul,
which makes us His adopted children and heirs of heaven. In addition, each gives its own sacramental
grace, a special help suited to its purpose: strength for the soldier of Christ in Confirmation,
help for husbands and wives in Matrimony, and so on. Baptism and Penance are called “sacraments
of the dead,” because they are meant to give spiritual life to souls dead in sin. The other
five are “sacraments of the living,” because they are to be received in the state of grace, and they
increase the life already present.
T H E SAC R AME N TA L C H A R AC T E R
Three sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders, imprint on the soul a character: an indelible
spiritual mark that configures the soul to Christ and can never be erased, even by sin. For
this reason these three can never be received more than once. The baptized man who falls away
remains baptized; the priest who abandons his priesthood remains a priest forever. In heaven, the
theologians taught, the character will shine to the glory of those who have kept it, and in hell it
will be to the shame of those who have betrayed it.
SAC R AME N T S A N D SAC R AME N TA L S
The sacraments must be distinguished from sacramentals: holy water, blessed candles, the sign of
the cross, medals, scapulars, blessings, and the like. Sacramentals were instituted by the Church,
not by Christ, and they do not give grace of themselves. They obtain favors from God through the
prayers of the Church and the devotion of those who use them, and they dispose us to receive
grace and to avoid sin. A Catholic home well furnished with sacramentals is a home where the
presence of God is never forgotten.