What are Sacraments?

     We recognize that the Sacraments have a visible and invisible reality, a reality open to all the human senses but grasped  
     in its God-given depths with the eyes of faith. When parents hug their children, for example, the visible reality we see is the
     hug. The invisible reality the hug conveys is love. We cannot "see" the love the hug expresses, though sometimes we can
     see its nurturing effect in the child.

    The visible reality we see in the Sacraments is their outward expression, the form they take, and the way in which they are  
    administered and received. The invisible reality we cannot "see" is God's grace, His gracious initiative in redeeming us
    through the death and Resurrection of his Son. His initiative is called grace because it is the free and loving gift by which
    he offers people a share in his life, and shows us his favor and will for our salvation. Our response to the grace of God's
    initiative is itself a grace or gift from God by which we can imitate Christ in our daily lives.

    The saving words and deeds of Jesus Christ are the foundation of what he would communicate in the Sacraments through 
    the ministers of the Church. Guided by the Holy Spirit, the Church recognizes the existence of Seven Sacraments instituted
    by the Lord. They are the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist), the Sacraments of Healing
    (Penance and the Anointing of the Sick), and the Sacraments at the Service of Communion (Marriage and Holy Orders).  
    Through the Sacraments, God shares his holiness with us so that we, in turn, can make the world holier.

    From The Unites States Conference of Catholic Bishops Webpage: http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/sacraments/ ______________________________________________________________________________________________

Baptism

Confirmation

Holy Eucharist

Reconciliation & Penance

Anointing of the Sick

Holy Matrimony

Holy Orders