M.Paul Sacramental 1
Faith and Worship
Worship is an essential expression of our faith.
When we pray and worship God we express and strengthen our faith.
There is a Lain saying coined in the Middle Ages which makes this point:
“Lex orandi, lex credendi” that means: “the rule of prayer is the rule of faith”
In our worship, we make use of the “stuff” of our humanity (What we can see, hear, feel, taste, touch,
experience) to express the reality of God’s presence and action in our lives that we cannot see.
“God became one of us in the humanity of Jesus, so that through our humanity and the “things” of our
human life (time, space, water, oil, bread, wine…), we could become one with him.
“Since the Son of God honored us be becoming incarnate-the true visible image of God-we use signs
and symbols, objects and gestures, to help us experience God’s invisible presence.” (USCCA-p.171)
Liturgy
What make up liturgy?
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Sacred Time: It’s time we set aside for God, set aside time for meditation every day. One
element of our liturgy. We need to refocus ourselves but we set aside that time to make it for
God.
Sacred Space: like a chapel or a church. We need to focus on God in these places. Like a
meeting tent.
Symbols: the sacramental symbol brings about what it signifies it makes happen. Ex: Sacrament
of reconciliation doesn't only symbolize the forgiveness of sin and it makes it happen
Gestures: in the sacramental life there are gestures also that communicate something and even
in our lives Church. Ex: Jesus be in my mind on my lips in my heart so that we get ready to
receive the Word. Many gestures go along with what we believe they express our faith in that
particular mystery whatever it might be (ex: through my fault, or kneeling in the Creed on
Christmas Eve.)
Words: every Sacrament has matter and form. The matter is the object we use. The symbols and
gestures are the matter. The form is the word. They come together.
What is the Liturgy?
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The official worship of the Church (ex: pray the rosary, making a corss: it’s not liturgy)
The Church’s celebration of what she professes and lives
The summit toward which the activity of the Church is directed
The fount from which all the power of grace flows
The privileged place for catechizing the people of God.
M.Paul Sacramental 2
The Three Dimensions of the Liturgy
Liturgy
Takes a past event
Makes it present
As a pledge of the life to come
Passion, Death,
and Resurrection of Jesus
Eucharistic Celebration
Eternal Life and Unending Joy
The Liturgy links the past and the future in the present moment of grace!
Etymology of the Term: Sacrament
From the Latin term: "sacramentum"
In pre-Christian times it was:
From the Greek term:
"mysterion" which meant:
1. A pledge of money or property deposited in
the temple by parties to a contract.
1. Something secret or hidden
2. A reality not fully manifested
2. An oath of allegiance made by soldiers to
their commander and to the gods of Rome.
Therefore, it was associated with a religious
ceremony in a sacred place.
This term is used in both the Old and New
Testaments in speaking of the "mystery" of God, the
"mystery" of God's Plan, the "mystery" of Christ.
From the second century on, Christian writers began to use the term to refer to the sacred symbols and
ceremonies used in the Church
Concept of "Sacramentality": a visible expression of a deeper, invisible, supernatural reality
Christ: the Sacrament of God
The Church: the Sacrament of the Risen Christ
The Sacraments: the signs and means of continuing the saving mission of Jesus in and through the Church