t102 lesson intro to sacraments

SACRAMENTS

Understanding Sacraments through History

OUTLINE

SACRAMENTS in:• Pre-Christian Writings• Scriptures• Patristic Age• 6th to 12th Centuries• 13th to 16th Centuries• 16th to 19th Centuries• 20th Century

PRE-CHRISTIAN WRITINGS

• Gk. “mysterion” in worship– This term is used in the description of

cultic rites (Mithras, Isis and Osiris).– These rites called “mysterion” by Greeks

were used to insure new birth and vitality after death.

PRE-CHRISTIAN WRITINGS

• Gk. “mysterion” in Philosophy– This was used also by Plato, an ancient

Greek philosopher (c. 428-347 B.C.)– For Plato, tangible things were symbols of

heavenly reality and the initiated learned secret teachings which brought them wisdom.

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SCRIPTURES

Gk. “mysterion” in the Scriptures

Old Testament– Its meaning is broader than that of the

sacraments, as we know them today.– It refers to God’s saving action enacted in

history which gives wisdom to save (Wis. 6:22); the wisdom revealed looks toward an eschatological mysterion that God will reveal (Dan. 2:28, 47).

SCRIPTURES

Gk. “mysterion” in the Scriptures• New Testament (Synoptics)

– It refers to “the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven” (Mt. 13:11; Mk. 4:11; Lk. 8:10), which Jesus reveals through parables.

SCRIPTURES


Pauline Literature– It often refers to Christ, (1Cor. 2:7-10; Rom.

16:25-26; Col. 1:26-27, 4:3; Eph. 1:9-10, 3:3-12; 1Tim. 3:16) who reveals the divine will to save all people, who Himself is the mystery through whom all things are restored, and who dwells in those who believe. Christ crucified is the supreme manifestation of God’s wisdom (1Cor. 2:1f.; Col 2:2).

SCRIPTURES


Pauline Literature– While the rites of Baptism

and Eucharist are known in the N.T. era (Acts 2:41; 1 Cor. 11:17-34) and their usage is reflected in the N.T. texts, neither of them is called sacrament at that time.

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PATRISTIC AGEAPOSTOLIC FATHERS

– They are so called because of their nearness to the time of the apostles. This period extends from the earliest writer to around the middle of the second century.

– Sacramentology emerged in their writings. Their polemic against the Gnostics (Gk. Gnosis or “revealed knowledge,” they promised a secret knowledge of the divine realm) and the Manichees (an ancient religion) brought about the earliest systematic reflection on the sacraments.

PATRISTIC AGE

The APOLOGISTS• Justin Martyr (d. 165) • Tertullian (c. 160-220)

PATRISTIC AGE

The APOLOGISTS• Justin Martyr (d. 165)• He describes the reality of

both Baptism and Eucharist but he does not use the word sacrament.

• The baptized are called “reborn” and “enlightened.”

• Tertullian (c. 160-220)• He introduces the term sacrament

into Christian language when speaking about Christian initiation. For him, sacramentum means a sacred action, object or means. In sacramental rites, there is a two-fold reality in their visible dimension: element and word. Word is the word of God which has a determinative role in sacraments as to the things used in their celebration.

PATRISTIC AGE4th to 5th Centuries• Patristic authors dealt with the question of the

sacraments in their catechetical instructions delivered for the candidates for Christian initiation.

• Cyril of Jerusalem, Ambrose of Milan, John Chrysostom and Theodore of Mopsuestia are examples of Patristic authors.

PATRISTIC AGE

4th to 5th Centuries• Their works described the various rites of

initiation and elaborated on their meaning. Some terms used at this time would influence later theological reflection: typos (symbol) and aletheia (reality).

• While no systematic doctrine of sacraments has yet evolved, these catecheses evidenced the important role which commentary on the rites plays in understanding what the sacraments are.

PATRISTIC AGE

ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430)

O.T. Sacraments: rituals of circumcision, sacrifices, offerings, the temple altars, pasch, anointing, etc.

N.T. Sacraments: baptism, eucharist, the paschal mystery, imposition of hands, ordination, the Lord’s prayer, symbol of faith, feasts, etc.

St. Augustine

• All sacraments pertain to the magnum sacramentum-mysterium, Christ and the Church.

• No systematic treatment of sacramental doctrine, but he leaves a terminology and understanding about sacraments which later theologians would develop.

• He calls sacrament a sacred sign, a signaculum, a visible work.

St. Augustine

• He introduces the term res in connection with sacramentum to distinguish between the sacrament of Christ’s body and the reality or effect of the sacrament when received.

• Reality or res means the ultimate effect of the eucharist, that is, the grace of union with Christ.

St. Augustine

• Sacraments are effective because Christ and the Holy Spirit act through them.

• Baptism and certain other sacraments have permanent effects: later theology would call this the sacramental character.

• A sacrament is a celebration in which the things commemorated, the passion of Christ, are applied. Sacraments are instituted by Christ after the resurrection.

OUTLINE


6th to 12th Centuries

ST. ISIDORE OF SEVILLE (d. 636)

There are three sacraments: baptism, chrism and eucharist.

St. Isidore of Seville

• He was clearly influenced by Augustine.• He contends that beneath the covering of

bodily things used in these sacred actions “the divine power works secretly the salvation proper to these same sacraments”; these are fruitful when administered in the church by the Holy Spirit who works the effects of sacraments.


CAROLINGIAN REFORM (2nd half of 8th Century) sought to unify liturgical practices in the Western Church and to insure codification in all areas of Church life.

This is the reform brought by Charlemagne (742-814 AD).

Carolingian Reform

Two problems arise:• How to describe sacraments in a way that preserved

their reality as both symbolic and real at the same time. By this time the notion of symbol had lost its meaning as something real, and the language of substance was used to describe what was real.

• From this time on theologians search for a satisfactory explanation of how sacraments are both signs and realities at the same time.

• Theologians also continue to distinguish sacraments from other sacred rites and to determine their number.


PETER DAMIAN (d. 1072)

There are 12 sacraments:- baptism, - chrismation,- anointing of the sick, - anointing of a bishop, - a king, - canons, - monks and - hermits, - the dedication of a church, - penance, - consecration of virgins and- matrimony.


PETER ABELARD (d. 1142)

He listed 5 sacraments:Baptism, chrismation, eucharist, anointing, and matrimony.

He distinguished between major and minor sacraments: the spiritual are the major sacraments, the minor are not.


ST. BERNARD (d. 1154)

For him, there are eleven sacraments, including the washing of the feet.


NEW DEFINITIONS OF SACRAMENT DEVELOPED

The Augustinian formula sacrum signum was adjusted to sacrae rei signum, i.e., a sacrament is a sacred sign because it is the sign of a sacred reality.


HUGE OF ST. VICTOR (d. 1141)

The restriction of the number of sacraments to seven (7) was still unknown at this point. Huge counted such rites as the use of holy water or blessed ashes, the consecration of monks and burial as “receptacles of grace.”

Huge of St. Victor• He maintained that the key to interpreting sacraments

was God’s interventions in history, especially in creation and the incarnation.

• He notes the things that are sacraments in the strict sense since not every sign of a sacred thing is a sacrament. He writes that a sacrament “is a corporeal or material element set before the external senses, representing by similitude, signifying by institution and containing by sanctification, some invisible and spiritual grace.”

• He contextualized his treatment of sacraments by speaking about the incarnation and the church as the body of Christ.


BERENGAR denies the true presence of Christ in the eucharist.

It leads to the formulation of the expression res et sacramentum in the 12th century. Res (Augustine) signifies the grace of union with Christ as the ultimate effect of eucharistic participation. grace.”

12th century Sacrament

• During this period sacraments continued to be understood as self-expressions of the church and as part of how the divine economy of salvation is experienced in the present.

• The dominant theme is the notion of sacrament as a remedy for sin.


PETER LOMBARD (d. 1160)

He determined that there are seven (7) “sacraments of the New Law”:baptism, confirmation, the bread of blessing, i.e., the eucharist, penance, extreme unction, orders, marriage.


PETER LOMBARD (d. 1160)

Significance of seven:• A significant number of completion,

totality and inclusiveness (eg. 7 days of creation in Gen)

• It is the sum of three, the symbol for the divine, and four, a symbol of cosmic perfection (or the three persons in God and the four seasons).

• Thus, the seven sacraments demonstrate God’s saving presence at all times.

Peter Lombard

• He states that “a sacrament is properly so called because it is a sign of the grace of God and the expression of invisible grace, so that it bears its image and its cause.

• Thus, begin the notion of cause and causality into the definition of sacrament.

• A sacrament is invisibilis gratiae visibilis forma, i.e., a sacrament is the visible form of an invisible grace, and that a sacrament efficit quod figurat, i.e., a sacrament produces [the effect] which it represents.

Peter Lombard

• Beginning of the hylomorphic interpretation of sacramental sign:

• function of “matter” to the sensible things used in the celebration,

• function of “form” to the words that accompany the application of matter to the subject of the sacrament.

• As a result, the terms valid and invalid appear in connection with the sacraments.

•

Peter Lombard

• There came also the emergence of the principles of ex opere operato (by the work done) means that sacraments are effective by means of the sacramental rite itself not because of the worthiness of the minister or participant and not just ex opere operantis (by the work of the doer) which means that the effectiveness of sacraments depends on the moral rectitude of minister or participant.

• It is from Lombard’s works that the formula emerged, “the intention of doing what the church does.”

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THOMAS AQUINAS (d. Mar. 7, 1274)

The 7 Sacraments are appropriate and significant for each of them deals with a facet of human life.

Thomas Aquinas

• With him, Catholic teaching on the notion of sacrament advances far beyond anything that had yet been achieved.

• For him, the function of sacraments is to initiate, restore, preserve or intensify the life of grace in believers.

• He describes a sacrament as the sign (Augustine) of the Incarnate Word, His passion and resurrection, which sanctifies the participant.

• The effects of sacraments are not only remedies for sin. They produce new life, the life of Christ in the Church.


THE COUNCIL OF FLORENCE (1438-1445)

The 7 Sacraments are maintained and based on the Thomasian perspective.

Gives the first authoritative statement of the church on sacrament.


THE COUNCIL OF TRENT (1545-1563)

The Council Fathers did not intend to formulate a systematic doctrinal summary on sacraments. Instead, they dealt with individual areas of concern brought about because of the Reformers’ criticisms. Hence, the statement of Trent was said to be clarifications on controversial matters, but not a systematic treatment of sacraments.

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While much Post-Tridentine theology followed the Council’s Teaching with commentaries and catechisms, some works of this period dealt with issues raised by the Reformers.

The 7 Sacraments become definite in terms of:

Number (i.e. 7)Efficaciousness

Institution by ChristMatter and Form

Role of the Ordained Ministers


MELCHIOR CANO (d. 1560)

He dealt with the faith-sacrament question debated at the Council. He affirmed that the sacraments are undoubtedly necessary but in the same measure in which and

explicit faith, expressed in sensible signs, is necessary for a

person to be saved.


ROBERT BELLARMINE (d. 1621)

Spoke of the necessity of faith for the efficaciousness

of sacraments.


FRANCISCO SUAREZ (d. 1617)

His work represented a kind of manual that noted the Reformers’ objections and then presented the analysis and comment of the scholastics.

19th Century Development

Works on sacraments began to appear and they reflected the revival of interest in scripture, patristics, and in the history of theology.

OUTLINE


20th Century

• Liturgical scholars in the late 19th c. and early 20th c. reawakened the importance of liturgy as public worship which by its nature required the active participation of the participants.

This was the main stimulus within the Church for the contemporary renewal of sacramental practice and for a revived understanding of sacraments.

20th Century

These monks were the main contributors to the success of

the movement especially in the publication of important works

on sacramental teaching and in the celebration of the liturgy.

BENEDICTINE MONKS

20th Century

These are the results of the works of recent theologians as influenced by the liturgical movement.

NEW APPROACHES

Raymond Vaillancourt

and Kenan Osborne

Louis-Marie Chauvet

and David Power

Karl Rahner

Juan Luis Segundo

Post-Vatican II

developments

20th Century

The language of encounter and phenomenology

RAYMOND VAILLANCOURT and KENAN OSBORNE

Christ is the original sacrament (ursakrament) and the church is the ground sacrament (grundsakrament) of the seven ecclesial acts.

This approach signals a shift from emphasizing Christ’s presence in sacraments to the community’s transformation through sacraments. It also marks a shift from emphasizing sacraments as things to sacraments as event.

20th Century

Symbolism

LOUIS-MARIE CHAUVET and DAVID POWER

States that sacraments are essentially symbolic actions that affect participants on many levels with their ambiguity and polyvalence

God reveals and grants salvation through Christ’s paschal mystery in symbolic acts and words; at the same time the Church worships God through Christ empowered by the Holy Spirit by means of active participation in gestural speech and symbolic action.

Sacraments are respected as real symbolic encounters

20th Century

SECULARIZATION

THEOLOGIES

KARL RAHNER

Human nature has been redeemed and grace is always available to redeemed creation through Christ.

Sacraments are not the exclusive channels of God’s grace. Yet they are central moments and privileged means of encountering God through Christ

Sacraments are viewed as strong moments of God’s self-disclosure which occur throughout human life.

20th Century

LIBERATION

THEOLOGIES

JUAN LUIS SEGUNDO

Too facile celebration of sacraments can

numb consciences to the social and

political realities of living the Christian

life.

The challenge, which engagement in sacrament entails, is to live the justice and peace of God’s kingdom which is experienced in sacraments.

Tried to determine the life relation of sacramental participation.

Some Post-Vatican II Developments

Theologians attempt to articulate the importance of sacraments such as the relationship of evangelization and sacramental practice

due to the fact that some Christians no longer participate regularly in sacraments because they see little or no value in them.


• The relationship between sacramental celebration and a vibrant experience of Church life;

• question of prerequisite faith for admission to sacraments;

• and method employed in the Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults a model to follow in other sacraments.


• The revival of the term Anamnesis as a way of describing the memorial experienced in sacraments


• The restoration of the Word to a position of prominence in the revised sacramental rites since the Catholic and Protestant congregations share the same Word in worship.

• Karl Rahner argues that sharing in the Word is to share in what sacraments are at their foundation, signs of God’s self-communication and self-revelation


The traditional maxim lex orandi, lex credendi (the law of prayer establishes the law of belief) has been revived so that the liturgy becomes a major source of theological reflection.

Understanding the 7 Sacraments is beyond text and prayer. This is to consider the meaning of gesture, symbol, singing and silence.


The clear reference to the Spirit in almost all sacramental formulas and examples of the Eastern tradition in understanding sacraments as the work of the Holy Spirit helps Western theology today to address its absence in its interpretation of sacraments.

Satisfactory approach to the study of sacraments in the Post-Vatican II Church is still a work in

progress.

IT’S YOUR TURN!

t102 lesson intro to sacraments

Education

eschatological mysterion

prechristian writingsgk

rites of baptism

secret knowledge

centuries20th century3

centuries20th century6

centuries20th century11

ancient religion