Introduction
Documents in this section pertain to the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church. They are: Baptism, Euchariast, Reconciliation, Confirmation, Marriage, Holy Orders and Annointing of the Sick.
Video Introduction to the Sacraments
The sacraments are outward signs instituted by Christ to give
grace. Signs, there are all kinds of signs around us but sacraments are
unique as signs because they are signs of the presence and love of God
for us and of our desire to come in contact or encounter God. By Msgr. John Zenz, archdiocese of Detroit (USCCB).
The Sacraments In Depth
Below are quick introductions to each of the seven sacraments with links to their own sections where each Sacrament is discussed in detail.
The Sacrament of Extreme Unction
One of the major ministries of Jesus was healing of the sick — even
raising the dead to new life. And of course, in the tradition of the
church, we are very familiar with St. Joseph, the foster father of
Jesus, as being the patron saint of happy death. Since Vatican II this sacrement is often called simple "Anointing or Healing of the Sick".
The Sacrament of Baptism
When many of us were baptized, say a half century or so ago, the
concern was to rush to have a child baptized right away to remove
original sin and allow the child to receive sanctifying grace and make
him or her a temple of God. Today, we have an appreciation of this
sacrament as part of something larger, initiation into the Church.
The Sacrament of Confirmation
The Sacrament of Confirmation is about proclaiming the good news of our
faith to all the world - be ready to go out to the ends of the earth as
did the apostles.
The Sacrament of Holy Eucharist
The third and final sacrament of initiation goes by many names. Most
commonly, we speak of the sacrament of the Holy Eucharist — sometimes
we say Holy Communion or the Mass. The sacrament really encompasses
many things.
The Sacrament of Holy Orders
We believe that Jesus Christ, the son of God, became human. And that
when he came among us, he was and is our true and eternal high priest.
He is also the prophet of God and he is truly the shepherd king or
ruler of God's people.
The Sacrament of Matrimony
All the sacraments involve God taking ordinary things and using them
for his purposes and so we use things like water and oil, bread and
wine. In the sacrament of marriage, we bring something very natural —
the human body and human love.
The Sacrament of Reconciliation and Penance
The Sacrament of Penance.
Jesus certainly forgave sins during his own lifetime as we see alluded
to a number of times in the scriptures.
