BAPTISM

The Sacrament of Baptism joins a person to Christ’s mystical body (his church) and allows them to receive all other sacraments. By Baptism persons are cleansed of both their original sin and personal sin, have punishment for sin remitted, receive sanctifying grace (a share in the divine life), and a special character. Through baptism we truly become adopted daughters and sons of God, temples of the Holy Spirit. Through this Sacrament, we are truly made anew, become members of the Church, receive both theological & moral virtues, and receive the actual grace to assist us in living a moral life.

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CONFIRMATION

“By the Sacrament of Confirmation, the baptized are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed.”
                          CCC 1285

Necessary for the completion of baptismal grace, Confirmation helps us to witness, spread, and defend the faith both by word and action in our daily lives.

Confirmation is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit as witnessed by the Apostles on the day of Pentecost.

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HOLY EUCHARIST

Instituted by Jesus himself on the night before He died, the Eucharist is considered the source of summit of Christian life. It is in the Eucharist that we truly and substantially encounter Jesus. The reception of this Sacrament completes Christian initiation.

The Eucharist is truly Jesus’ Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. It is not bread, or holy bread, or a cracker or biscuit; rather, it is truly and substantively Jesus himself. It is at the Mass, through validly ordained bishops and priests, whereby the Eucharist is truly made present.

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HOLY EUCHARIST Continued

So what happens during the Mass at the words of consecration? At the words of consecration, spoken by a validly ordained bishop or priest and the invocation of the Holy Spirit, the bread and wine truly become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus. So while the appearance and the accents of bread and wine remain (e.g. appearance and taste), its substance truly changes into Jesus himself. This is known as Transubstantiation. After consecration, Christ is present wholly and entirely in each of the species. Thus, you receive the whole Christ.

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RECONCILIATION

The Sacrament of Reconciliation (known commonly as Confession) was instituted by Jesus Christ himself when He first appeared to the Apostles after His Resurrection. Breathing on them, Jesus said, "Receive the Holy Spirit. For those whose sins you forgive, they are forgiven; for those whose sins you retain, they are retained."   John 20:22-23 Reconciliation stresses the action of God, who uses the sacrament to reconcile us to Himself by restoring sanctifying Grace in our souls.

This sacrament is one of two sacraments of healing in the Catholic church.

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HOLY ORDERS

The Sacrament of Holy Orders “is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time: thus, it is the sacrament of apostolic ministry. It includes three degrees: episcopate, presbyterate, and diaconate.” CCC 1536

Established at the Last Supper by Jesus Christ himself, the Sacrament of Holy Orders has been handed down by the Apostles through their successors (the Bishops) throughout time. That is why you can historically trace the church lineage of our current Pope back to Peter the Apostle.

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ANOINTING OF THE SICK

The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick confers a special grace on Christians suffering from a serious illness or old age. Only a bishop or priest can administer this Sacrament (not a deacon).

During the celebration of this Sacrament, the priest or bishop lays their hand on the sick, or elderly person and prays for a special grace and then anoints them with the Oil of the Sick, typically on the forehead and both hands. Unlike the Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and Holy Orders, this Sacrament can be repeated.

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HOLY MATRIMONY

The Sacrament of Marriage is one of the two Sacraments of Service of Communion (the other is Holy Orders), which are directed towards the salvation of others. Such Sacraments “confer a particular mission in the Church and serve to build up the People of God.”
                            CCC 1534

Through the Sacrament of Marriage one man and one woman are joined together in a sacred covenant for life for the good of the spouses and for the procreation and education of offspring. God is the sole author of marriage.

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