The Theology of the Sacraments
I have been Catholic my whole life and have participated in and witnessed all seven sacraments. I have a unique perspective on the sacraments, especially since I witnessed and remember my own baptism at twelve years old. I have taught catechism classes and prepared young adults for the reception of the sacraments for over twenty-five years. During this period, I have learned the following concepts: Sacraments as Christ among Us; Baptism - Spiritual Rebirth; Confirmation - An Affirmation; Eucharist - Being One in Christ; Reconciliation - Cleansing and Renewal; Holy Matrimony - Of One Heart, Mind and Body; Holy Orders - Surrender of Self to God; Anointing of the Sick - Healing of Heart, Body and Spirit. As documentation, I have provided a picture of me serving during mass.
Sacraments as Christ among Us
The sacraments are mysteries possessing inward and outward qualities, visible and invisible. I have experienced that the sacraments touch each and every one of our senses. They permeate to the very depths of our souls. Through this observation, I have learned that we feel the coolness of water. We taste the bread and the wine. We smell the incense and the sweetness of the Holy Oil. We hear the beautiful canticles offered up to the Lord. All the while, we see this entire drama take place with our eyes. These are the visible and outward components that one experiences through the Sacraments. The Sacraments are mysteries because of that which we cannot experience with our external senses. The visible is what we see; the invisible is what we believe. I have observed that when one partakes of the Sacraments, one gradually acquires those intangible qualities that lift one’s soul to heaven; such as love, peace, joy, kindness, forgiveness, courage, knowledge, inner strength and the like. Thus, through the Sacraments, Christ becomes present within those who seek and follow him. The sacraments actually go deeper into one’s life and transcend the apparent boundaries of each one. One becomes a living sacrament. Each sacrament is a vessel of God’s grace and the presence of Christ in a very mystical and mysterious way. Likewise we too, who are called by God’s name, and have responded to his invitation to participate fully in the sacraments, are living sacraments ourselves. We are living vessels of Christ. We are living and true signs of Christ among us. The proof that I have to bear is the witness of those who can give testimony of my personal sacramental life.
The sacraments are normally celebrated within the context of the community, the Church; and yet, have a very personal air to them. I have experienced, as I am praying during the liturgy within the confines of the community, my prayer is uplifted in unison with those around me; yet the conversation is directly between Heaven and me. I have learned through time and experience that the grace of the Lord overshadows each of those who partakes of the Sacraments. This is evidenced by the inner strength that the individual receives and because of the grace dispensed through the Sacraments. The grace of the Lord is given to every Christian, individually and personally.
Baptism - Spiritual Rebirth
Baptism is one of those sacraments which is included in what we call the Rite of Initiation. Since I can remember my own baptism, it carries a very special significance for me. It is customary for a Catholic to be baptized as an infant, even though many Protestants argue against infant baptism citing that Jesus was an adult when he was baptized. I personally was twelve years old when I was baptized, and I made my own decision. Since I will be telling of my own experience, I will concentrate on the circumstances surrounding one who has reached the age of reason. It is worth repeating that we, who are called by God’s name and have responded to his invitation to participate fully in the sacraments, are living sacraments ourselves. We are living and true signs of Christ among us. And the first step to that response is baptism. Baptism is a washing of all of our past and present sins. It is a blanket pardon, a clean slate being offered. One of the most important points to know about baptism, especially as far as infant baptism is concerned, is the fact that all human beings are born with original sin. We have sin from the moment of our conception. Baptism gets rid of original sin and puts us in a state of grace and grafts us into the family of God. We are made God’s children, God’s holy people. Upon realizing that my sins would be erased, every one of them since conception brought me to experience awe for God’s love and mercy. I would invite any person considering baptism as an adult to sincerely examine his faith and come to terms with the sinfulness of human nature and realize the freedom in the forgiveness of God’s mercy.
Baptism, when administered at the age of reason, requires repentance of sin and a renunciation of evil and all that is contrary to a Christian life. It is like we have to die to our old nature and be renewed with a new life. Jesus describes this process as being reborn. It is a dying to self to live in service and love of God and fellow human being. This I have tried to do my whole life. Even though I may have been baptized once with water, I have had many baptisms of dying to self. Every time I would deny my self in order to serve others, it was a new baptism, a new birth. Living the sacrament of baptism could be challenging. For me, it has been an ongoing battle against anything contrary to the life of Christ and the example he left us. It has been a constant renunciation of sin. Living a sacramental life entails proclaiming the word of God in word and deed. I have remembered often how the scriptures admonish us to be the salt of the earth and a light that shines. We are called to go out and proclaim the God News to all people. And how do we do this? My personal style of proclaiming Christ to others is by trying to be that light and salt of the earth that Jesus tells us about. I have felt that my calling has been to share Christ through love and example and then by word if the moment is appropriate. I can probably describe myself as someone who plants. I plow the field and scatter the seed, but the one who nourishes, waters and gives warmth to make them grow is the Lord himself.
Confirmation - An Affirmation
Confirmation is also included in what we call the Rite of Initiation. This is the moment in which we as baptized Catholic Christians have the opportunity to say “yes” to our faith. If we were baptized as infants, then our parents and Godparents, who brought us to the altar of God in faith, took upon themselves to take our baptism vows in our name and on our behalf. We were way too young to be conscious of what was taking place, yet we were incorporated into the family of God. In my case, as I said before, I was baptized when I was twelve. I knew exactly what I was seeking and was well aware of the vows that I made before the Lord. During Confirmation we are given the opportunity to affirm our faith and renew our baptism vows. Confirmation is administered usually during our high school years or later, and is usually performed by a bishop. Confirmation is the sacrament in which we receive the Holy Spirit in a very special way. My Godmother, again, in my confirmation played a very special role. She was the one who stood behind me with her hand on my shoulder while I was being confirmed. She is the one person in my life, besides Jesus himself, who, for me, was the embodiment of the Holy Spirit. On that day I knew that I was going to be filled, filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit and charged with the responsibility of bearing the fruits of the Holy Spirit. The gifts of the Holy Spirit are seven: wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, piety, and holy fear. I was fifteen when I was confirmed and even by then I knew that the working of the Holy Spirit was often imperceptible. I had an idea that I would not see fire come down from heaven and land on the heads of each of us who were being confirmed. That holy fire that symbolized the purity and truth of God seared my heart, my mind and soul. This was just the beginning. In my confirmation, I cannot say that something happened, rather something began to happen. This was another beginning, a new life in the Spirit. It was not just a matter of me receiving; rather it was a matter that included my response. I was now charged with the responsibility of using those gifts, that I would develop over time, to edify the church of Christ. I now had to be an active member of the community that Jesus established as his church, his body. Now is the time that I had to become the hands of Jesus, the feet of Jesus, the very heart of Jesus. Having died, resurrected and ascended into heaven, we, the followers of Jesus, are called to be his presence in the world. How wonderful to be able to say: “here I am, Lord, do unto me according to thy will.” Now is the time that we seek to do God’s will by surrendering our own. By emptying ourselves of pride and selfishness, the Spirit of God fills us with grace, peace and love; and all of these virtues overflow from our very being to those around us enabling us to share the presence of God within us.
Eucharist - Being One in Christ
The Eucharist is the last of the sacraments included in the Rite of Christian Initiation. It is commonly known as Holy Communion. The word Eucharist may sound strange and mysterious to the ears. It comes from both the Latin and Greek roots and has the meaning of “giving thanks.” Eucharist is the sacrament that is most frequently received. One may receive Holy Communion daily. The principal elements of Holy Communion are the bread and wine. The bread and wine are consecrated during the mass and then shared during the communion rite among all of those whose conscious is free of mortal sin. How did this rite originate and what does it mean? Through my own personal experience of reading the scriptures constantly and also participating in Jewish ceremonies in the Temple and in Jewish homes, I came to realize that the Catholic faith, the very beginning of Christianity, started with the Jewish followers of Christ Jesus, being a direct descendent of David; I knew all too well the historic story of Moses, the Passover and the exodus of the Jews from the land of Egypt after having been slaves for four hundred years. That night of the Passover, the Lord Most High commanded all of the Jews to sacrifice an unblemished lamb and put its blood on the doorposts of their homes. In this way the angel of death would “pass over” their homes and no harm would come to those residing within. Otherwise every inhabitant of Egypt who was firstborn, whether it may be man or beast would die in punishment for the Pharaoh of Egypt’s obstinacy for not releasing the Jews from bondage at the Lord’s command through Moses. During that night every Jew and his household was to share a meal of the roasted lamb, unleavened bread, bitter herbs and wine. This night was to be remembered throughout all generations.
After reading the gospels of the New Testament, I began to see a parallel. Now Jesus, on the night before he was crucified and during the Passover season, shared that same meal with his closest friends and followers. He prayed and during the blessing of the bread and wine, proclaimed that the bread was his body and the wine his blood. He said that all who shared in this meal should do so in his memory until he returned in his glory. What does all of this mean? Did the bread actually and physically turn into flesh and the wine into blood? Outwardly, it probably did not. It most likely still tasted and looked and smelled like bread and wine. But inwardly it had been transformed into the very essence of Jesus, His body, blood, soul, spirit and all of his humanity and divinity. Remember the sacrificial lamb that the Jews would use on the night of Passover? Well, I realized that Jesus in this act is proclaiming himself as that sacrificial lamb. His life would be given up in offering to the Father. As a child, when I would receive Holy Communion, I was so filled with joy that I could not contain my exuberance. I would run all the way home in sheer ecstasy.
Reconciliation - Cleansing and Renewal
The sacrament of Reconciliation, also called the Sacrament of penance or more commonly known as Confession, is the vehicle in which we humble ourselves before the Lord and are willing to look deep within ourselves and see the truth. It is a process of unmasking ourselves. This is often a painful process because I have found that it often goes against the grain of our human nature. We are many times afraid of exposing ourselves to the truth; but after having done so, I have found that the experience is freeing, even though there were times in which I felt guilt for having to confess the same things over and over again. But I realized that the whole idea of falling down is to get back up again.
The first and very difficult step is to recognize that there is something wrong in our lives. Often this process is hard because many times we gradually and unknowingly slip into sin. It often feels as if everything is normal and natural. “What sin?” we ask ourselves. But when we put our lives to the light of the scriptures, as I have done so many times, I find that I far miss the mark. We ask ourselves, “How could we have gone so far astray?” A natural response would be to deny that there is anything lacking in our behavior. But wait! We are not only asked to look at our behavior but also we are required to look at our very heart. I have come to know that our heart is the very root of who we are. We may try to rationalize that we did nothing wrong, but have we judged others in our heart? Have we inwardly falsely accused our neighbor? Have we harbored and nourished thoughts of lust or anger with an unwillingness to forgive? These are just a few of those painful searching questions we must ask ourselves. This is often difficult to do without guidance, preparation and prayer. So my first step is to pray about it. We must ask the Holy Spirit to search deep within our hearts and shed light on our failings and shortcomings. Here, there is no room for a false humility, rather an honest and sober view of whom we are. My personal response is to put my heart against the measuring stick of the scriptures and the life of Christ. Sin is the symptom, the sickness lies deep within our hearts and only the Lord can heal a heart. After we have prayed and meditated and have recognized our failings, the next step is to feel sorrow for these failing. How have my judgments in my heart against my neighbor, family, coworkers or even strangers contributed in hurting them, hurting God, and even myself. We should excite our hearts and our inner beings to feel true contrition and compunction of heart. It is through this spiritual pain and anguish that we are led to pray for forgiveness and to repent. What does repent mean? Repent, put simply means to turn one hundred eighty degrees and go the other way. If we are headed into the wrong direction, then we make an about-face. We must be willing to work on those little details that put a thorn in our conscience. Now here’s the hard part, one we are headed in the right direction, we must keep our course steady. It often seems and feels easier to go back to our old ways. The problem is that if we slide back into old habits that bruise our consciences; it is often a multiple of times more difficult to get our act back together again. The bottom line of confession is that the truth will set us free. By our confession and the grace of God, we are forgiven.
Holy Matrimony - Of One Heart, Mind and Body
Holy Matrimony is the symbol of the unity of the Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. It signifies the total embrace that the Lord shares with all creation. From the moment that God created man, he said that it was not good for man to be alone. So we were made to share the deepest most inner parts of our being with another. When man and woman come together in Holy Matrimony, the two become as one. It is interesting to note that throughout the scriptures this unity is described between God and humankind. First of all, we are said to be made in the image of God. Then the Father sends his son who after his death, resurrection and ascension into heaven, is described as the head of the Church and the Church is described as the bride of Christ, and Christ as the Bridegroom. Also Jesus is described as the head of the body and we his followers as being the various parts of the body. Jesus also commands us to be of one mind and spirit. All of these are exhortations and invitations to being one with God and one with each other. All of the sacraments seem to allude to that being one with the Lord and one with each other. Holy Matrimony seems to put an authentic human element to that oneness. The expression of the love of God is no longer something mystical that can only be experienced with the mind and soul but rather with our whole person, everything that makes us human. Now we have the capability of experiencing a physical and very human oneness with each other. A total surrender of our very being to another and yet even though we are individuals, we become united, and our ultimate joy is expressed in that unity. The common thread of this union must be love. As the Lord created us out of love, so too, he has made us co-creators as we are sharing the ultimate expression of our love. Love begets life.
The Lord is described as making covenants with his people, always accepting them back when they had gone astray. So too the Lord admonishes us as he says, what he has brought together, let no man put asunder. We are encouraged to work through our love supporting one another and bearing each other’s pain and burdens as well as sharing our joy and laughter. Just as the Lord constantly accepted a straying people because of his covenant, we too must obey our vows and work through our difficulties out of love. Notice that the exchange of rings is a symbol of unending unity. The wedding band has no beginning and no end, just as the love of God has no beginning and no end.
Holy Orders - Surrender of Self to God
Holy Orders, the sacrament of Holy Orders is the surrendering and giving or oneself to God in a very special way. It entails becoming part of a religious community which follows the rule of its founder. This self-giving is complete and total. It is an offering to God of our memories, understanding and our entire wills thought the profession of holy vows of chastity, poverty and obedience. Through Chastity, one gives up the most intimate expression of oneself, the joining of one’s body with another. In this way, the heart, mind and soul are free to focus on its one true love, its creator. One, who would have otherwise found his completeness in becoming one with his spouse, now finds his completeness by becoming one with God. The heart aches and the soul pines for the presence of God, just as a married man would find himself busy with the things of this wife and family. The person taking the vow of chastity finds himself busy with the things of God. He is now free to give himself to the church with uninterested love, giving of himself with no thought of receiving in return. His only joy is that of knowing that he is serving the Lord. He seeks the Lord with purity of heart and intention. One belongs to the person who holds the key to one’s heart and in this case, God hold the only key.
The vow of poverty is the giving up of personal possessions and belongings. Now the person seeking God labors with unselfish and selfless intent, with no thought of material gain. All that is obtained is shared with the religious community. It is through poverty that we experience our neediness and turn to the Lord for sustenance. It is now that we pray for our every need and depend upon his mercy.
Through obedience we offer one of the greatest sacrifices that of our will. We surrender ourselves to the will of God and find comfort in doing so. I say comfort, not because it feels good to give up our will for that of god’s. Often it is quite painful, even most of the times it is quite painful. Our comfort comes from our love that we feel for God and the assurance of his love and grace. Most of the times it is difficult to see farther than the present, so often we cannot or will not see the fruits of our labor.
When one answers the calling of Holy Orders, one fulfills the scriptures beckoning of becoming a poly people, a royal priesthood. One is set apart and often wears a habit. One gains even more as he gives up so much to follow the Lord. By giving up spouse and children, one has gained a whole world as family. By the giving up of material possessions one inherits the kingdom of God. And by the giving up of one’s will to the Lord, one gains his salvation.
Anointing of the Sick - Healing of Heart, Body and Spirit
The anointing of the Sick is the sacrament by which we lift our sufferings and bodily agonies up to God in prayer and beg him for his mercy and healing. It is our recognizing of the nature and frailty of our human body and our dependence upon God for life and health. The sacrament of the Anoint of the Sick used to be referred to as Extreme Unction and was administered only upon those who were dying. The church recognized the original purpose of the sacrament and went back to the roots which are based in scripture. The principal symbols of this sacrament are holy oil and the laying on of hands. Prayer is effective when the supplicant is humbled and broken, stripped of all pride and totally dependent on the mercy of God. When we are sick or dying we are prone to humbling ourselves before God and we are willing to confess our sins. Confession and asking for healing seem to go hand in hand, for sickness in our souls is often times manifested in our bodies. This is not to say that holy people do not suffer and get sick; on the contrary, many times, it is the holy one that suffers and contributes to the salvific plan of God by offering up his pains and burdens together with the suffering an death of Christ in prayer for others. The anointing of the sick is not just a prayer for healing; rather it is also an acceptance of our human situation and frailty. We ask the Lord to heal us and at the same time try to accept his vision and plan for our lives and ultimately our death. This, then, is our ultimate sacrifice, giving up our will not only in life but also at the hour of own death. We, as faithful and firm believers in the Holy Scriptures and the words of God trust in his love and mercy and realize that death is not a darkness, rather an extinguishing of our candles because the Dawn has come. We become aware and take that step of faith by knowing that God is Father of our life and also of our death. It is through our dying that we are granted eternal life, and the shedding of this shell to be united to that unending light.
Conclusion
I have found that through receiving the sacraments, we become living sacraments. We are called to be a sign of love and peace to those around us. We have to be the image of God’s love and mercy through our faith and actioins.
