SACRAMENTS: GRACE IS GIVEN What is a Sacrament? The sacraments of the New Testament were instituted by Christ the Lord and entrusted to the Church. As actions of Christ and the Church, they are signs and means which express and strengthen the faith, render worship to God, and effect the sanctification of humanity and thus contribute in the greatest way to establish, strengthen, and manifest ecclesiastical communion. Accordingly, in the celebration of the sacraments the sacred ministers and the other members of the Christian faithful must use the greatest veneration and necessary diligence. When or how did Christ institute the sacraments? How are they entrusted to the Church? What is the purpose of Sacraments? 1. They are how we express our faith. A leper came to him beseeching him and kneeling said to him: If you will, you can make me clean (Mk 1:40). What great faith! The poor fellow abandoned by men and considered to be abandoned even by God has more faith than many who are following, in Christs footsteps. Real faith does not get lost in subtle reasoning, but goes by a very simple logic: God can do all He wishes; He has only to will it. To his bold request expressing limitless trust, Jesus responds with an action that was unheard of among a people, who were forbidden to have and contact whatsoever with lepers: He stretched out his hand and touched him. In the Sacraments we do not get caught up in subtle reasoning asking questions like, Am I really absolved and forgiven my sins?, Is the host really the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Jesus?, Will baptism and confirmation really give me grace to live a holy life and be strong? We could ask these questions about the Sacraments, but in the end, we come to Jesus as the leper did, with faith. We pray along with Saint Thomas Aquinas, Faith will tell us Christ is present, when our human senses fail or God, I believe, help my unbelief. The Sacraments are always a matter of faith; they stretch, challenge, and express our faith. 2. They are the means from which our faith is strengthened. In the Sacraments we see the matter (material used the in Sacrament), and we hear the form (the words prayed or spoken), the grace given by Christ and His Church however invisible. We cannot see the Grace, itself, but either immediately as in the case of the leper the leprosy left him immediately or in time, we see the effects of the Grace in our life and the lives of others. The strength of faith we receive in the Sacrament is seen in the fact that we must continually come back to the source of Grace, Jesus and His Church. If we continue to go back we will receive healing and strength. 3. They are how we worship God. Jesus, who had come to redeem man from sin and its consequences, had the right to go beyond the old law, and does so with the deliberate action of one who had full powers...God is master of the law, and can break it...By welcoming and touching the leper, Jesus infringes the law; then he fulfills it, saying, Go, show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded.The Old Testament Law stated that, The leper shall dwell alone in a habitation outside the camp. Thus it is strange to find this leper inside a city. Perhaps he has heard of Jesus and has been eagerly looking for a chance to approach him. At last he found him and breaks the strict precept of the old Mosaic Law in order to speak to him. Christ is his hope, his only hope. The law is both broken, but also respected. Jesus is not a revolutionary, who breaks and then destroys the law, He rather respects the law, but desires to perfect and fulfill it. New law, new priesthood, new worship is not new because the old is destroyed, it is new because the old has been perfected and fulfilled by Christ. It is Christ that is giving the grace. Grace is always primary. The leper shows faith. Faith is secondary. The new law is one of grace (the Sacrament) and faith (the one receiving the Sacrament). This Grace and Faith is at the core of our worship, and it is this worship that leads to works. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so not one may boast. For we are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus for the good works that God has prepared in advance, that we should live in them. Jesus did not abolish religion or law. Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. In Jesus the old becomes new, for the one who sat on the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. GOSPEL - Luke 5:12 It happened that there was a man full of leprosy in one of the towns where Jesus was; and when he saw Jesus, he fell prostrate, pleaded with him, and said,Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean. Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him, and said, I do will it. Be made clean. And the leprosy left him immediately. Then he ordered him not to tell anyone, but Go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses prescribed; that will be proof for them. The report about him spread all the more, and great crowds assembled to listen to him and to be cured of their ailments, but he would withdraw to deserted places to pray.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 20:48:51 +0000
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