The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines the sacraments as being “…the signs and instruments by which the Holy Spirit spreads the grace of Christ the head throughout the Church which is his Body” (paragraph 774). When we celebrate the sacraments, we have a true and real encounter with God who seeks a deeper relationship with his people.
For information regarding reception and/or preparation for each of the sacraments please click on the desired link(s) below:
The Sacraments in Church Documents
“The purpose of the sacraments is to sanctify people, to build up the body of Christ, and, finally to worship God. ”
Sacrosanctum Concilium
Documents of Vatican II
“The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. “
Catechism of the Catholic Church
Paragraph 1131
“Jesus refers to this same unity in the image of the vine and the branches: ‘I am the vine, you are the branches” (Jn 15:5), an image that sheds light not only on the deep intimacy of the disciples with Jesus but on the necessity of a vital communion of the disciples with each other: all are branches of a single vine.”
John Paul II
Christifideles Laici
