The Sacraments

Adapted from Introducing the Orthodox Church: Its Faith and Life by Anthony M. Coniaris (Light and Life Publishing Company).

From the Church, Christ reaches out to us with the Sacraments to bring to us His grace and love.

Every sacrament puts us in touch with Christ and applies to us the power of the Cross and the Resurrection.

St. Leo the Great said, "He who was visible as our Redeemer has now passed into the Sacraments."

It has also been said that the blood and water on the Cross, flowing from the Body that was pierced by the lance, represents the Sacraments. These flow from Christ's love for us, which led Him to give His life in our behalf.

The Sacraments are the kiss of God where He pours out the riches of His love. They communicate to us the very life of God.

Every Sacrament is a theophany, the appearance of God to us for a specific purpose and need.

The Sacraments are the means by which "the same graces are present nowadays which were formally imparted in the Upper Room, or at the waters where the disciples of Jesus baptized." ("Orthodox Spirituality", by a Monk of the Eastern Church SPCK 1968)

The Sacraments are the ways by which we come into intimate personal contact with Jesus today.

The Sacraments are like the hands of Jesus reaching out over the expanse of time to touch us with His love and power and to let us know that He is still with us.

Through the Sacraments we go to Christ to appropriate the fullness of life that is in Him.

A Sacrament is a divine rite instituted by Christ and/or the Apostles which through visible signs conveys to us the hidden grace of God. The basic requirements are: divine institution, visible sign, and the hidden power of God.

Number of Sacraments

The Orthodox Church numbers among the Sacraments the following:

1. Baptism
2. Chrismation of Confirmation
3. The Eucharist
4. Confession of Repentance
5. Holy Orders
6. Holy Matrimony
7. Holy Unction or The Anointing of the Sick

We must realise, however, that traditionally the Orthodox never limited the Sacraments to seven. The number seven is rather symbolic and is used to indicate perfection of grace. To place a imitation on the number of sacraments is to view them from a very narrow perspective. If a sacrament happens whenever God's grace is mediated to man through matter, then there is no limit to the number of Sacraments.

Some of the other sacraments or sacramentals listed by Orthodox writers are:

1. Monastic Profession
2. The Great Blessing of Waters at Epiphany
3. The Funeral Service
4. The Consecration of a Church