As the name implies, the Sacraments are sacred rites instituted in the Church by Jesus. Properly speaking, there are seven Sacraments in the Catholic faith: Baptême, Confirmation, le Eucharistie, Confession, Mariage, Orders, et le Onction des malades.
Through the Sacraments believers receive God’s grace through material things like water, bread, wine and oil.
The Sacraments may be understood as outward signs that convey the grace they signify. Water, Par exemple, signifies cleanliness and life. By the grace of God, the waters of Baptism actually cleanse the soul of sin and fill it with divine life (voir Evangile de Jean, 3:5, et le Actes des Apôtres, 2:38). The Sacraments are patterned after the Incarnation, in which God, a spiritual being, took on human flesh–and the invisible one became visible.
The idea of grace being transferred through material things is a Biblical concept.
In the New Testament alone, we see water used in this way (encore, voir John 3:5; 9:7; Actes des Apôtres, 8:37; celui de Paul Letter to Titus 3:5; or Peter’s Première lettre 3:20 – 21); as well as oil (voir le Evangile de Marc 6:13, or the Lettre de Jacques 5:14); clay (voir John 9:6); garments (Marquer 5:25 ou Luc 8:43); and even handkerchiefs (voir le Actes des Apôtres 19:11-12).
God’s grace is transmitted through other sensible things, aussi, such as Mary’s voice and Peter’s shadow (voir le Evangile de Luc 1:41, 44, et le Actes des Apôtres 5:15, respectivement).