{"id":64208,"date":"2024-05-19T11:07:42","date_gmt":"2024-05-19T16:07:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/?p=64208"},"modified":"2024-05-21T18:10:34","modified_gmt":"2024-05-21T23:10:34","slug":"a-sacramental-vision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/praytellblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/05\/19\/a-sacramental-vision\/","title":{"rendered":"A Sacramental Vision"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

One traditional view of the Catholic sacramental patrimony holds that the seven sacraments are channels of God\u2019s grace.  Indeed, the Catechism of the Council of Trent<\/a> teaches:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Through the Sacraments, as through a channel, must flow into the soul the efficacy of the Passion of Christ, that is, the grace which He merited for us on the altar of the cross, and without which we cannot hope for salvation. Hence, our most merciful Lord has bequeathed to His Church, Sacraments stamped with the sanction of His word and promise, through which, provided we make pious and devout use of these remedies, we firmly believe that the fruit of His Passion is really communicated to us.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

My point here is not to arm wrestle with this formal teaching of the church.  Rather, I note that at times this teaching has been understood to mean that these channels of grace are more or less exclusive<\/em> means by which believers encounter the grace of God.  Additionally, this teaching has been understood at times to mean that these channels are for the benefit of individual believers as individual believers.  Outside the wall of the church, the world is quite literally pro-fane (outside the temple).  Sacraments nourish believers to make their way in this grace-less world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Among others, Karl Rahner has argued against this view.  (See his seminal \u201cConsiderations on the Active Role of the Person in the Sacramental Event\u201d in vol. 14 of Theological Investigations<\/em>).  Drawing in part on the insights of Rahner, Edward Schillebeeckx, and others, official Catholic teaching at Vatican II moved toward the idea that the church itself is \u201clike a sacrament\u201d (Lumen gentium 1<\/a>).  Subsequent statements, though not possessing conciliar authority, have applied the term \u201csacrament\u201d to Jesus Christ.  Examples include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n