Sacraments

Sacraments are ‘not for the unconscious, the asleep or the dead”

A great teacher of our understanding of sacraments, Joseph Martos, called his book on sacraments “Doors to the Sacred” and said sacraments are ‘not for the unconscious, the asleep or the dead”! “Sacraments are for the awake and aware, the living and growing”. More about the Sacraments by Fr. Anthony Kain is available below.

Sacraments, Doors to the Sacred

The thing that is hard for us in a rational western society is that the language of sacraments is that of symbolism. Sacraments come to us in ritual actions that seek to resonate with the thoughts and feeling of those taking part in this baptism, this marriage, this Sunday Mass, this Anointing of the Sick, this Confirmation, this Ordination.

Some see the repetitive gestures and words that are meaningful to those who come to celebrate. Some see such repetition as boring. Yet it is like a footy match or netball game, the faithful in the know understand what is happening.

Sacraments bring God into our humanity, they invite us to an encounter with he divine which starts with our faith in what the early witness wrote about Jesus. They tell us about the Jesus they recalled and knew. He revealed in his life, his words, his actions who God is. He is the “Sacrament of God”

We, by putting out trust in the Gospel witness, come to encounter Jesus and we live and grow into him more and more, we become Christ, we are “Sacraments of Christ”, a community of the faithful.

We understand the seven sacraments from this starting point of Jesus, the Sacrament of God and the Faith Community, “the Sacrament of Jesus”.

Reconciliation

The Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) is available every Saturday at 11am, Our Lady of Victories Parish.