A sacramental (Latin pl. ''sacramentalia'') is a sacred sign, a ritual act or a ceremony, which, in a certain imitation of the

sacrament A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol ...

s, has a spiritual effect and is obtained through the intercession of the Church. Sacramentals surround the sacraments like a wreath and extend them into the everyday life of Christians. Sacramentals are recognised by the Catholic Church, the

Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, officially the Orthodox Catholic Church, and also called the Greek Orthodox Church or simply the Orthodox Church, is List of Christian denominations by number of members, one of the three major doctrinal and ...

, the

Oriental Orthodox Churches The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 50 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to the Nicene Christian tradition. Oriental Orthodoxy is ...

, the

Church of the East The Church of the East ( ) or the East Syriac Church, also called the Church of Seleucia-Ctesiphon, the Persian Church, the Assyrian Church, the Babylonian Church, the Chaldean Church or the Nestorian Church, is one of three major branches o ...

, the

Lutheran Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

churches, the

Old Catholic Church The terms Old Catholic Church, Old Catholics, Old-Catholic churches, or Old Catholic movement, designate "any of the groups of Western Christians who believe themselves to maintain in complete loyalty the doctrine and traditions of the undiv ...

, the

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

churches, and

Independent Catholic Independent Catholicism is an independent sacramental movement of clergy and laity who Independent Catholicism#Appeal of Independent Catholicism to Catholic and Christian tradition, self-identify as Catholic (most often as Old Catholic or as Ind ...

churches. In the

Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...

prayer cloth A prayer cloth is a sacramental used by Christians, in continuation with the practice of the early Church, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles: Prayer cloths are especially popular within the Catholic and Pentecostal traditions of Christianit ...

s and holy oil are mentioned in reference to praying for healing.

Holy water Holy water is water that has been blessed by a member of the clergy or a religious figure, or derived from a well or spring considered holy. The use for cleansing prior to a baptism and spiritual cleansing is common in several religions, from ...

is a sacramental that the faithful use to recall their

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

; other common sacramentals include blessed candles (given to the faithful on

Candlemas Candlemas, also known as the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus Christ, the Feast of the Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary, or the Feast of the Holy Encounter, is a Christian holiday, Christian feast day commemorating the presentation of ...

), blessed palms (blessed on the beginning of the procession on

Palm Sunday Palm Sunday is the Christian moveable feast that falls on the Sunday before Easter. The feast commemorates Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem, an event mentioned in each of the four canonical Gospels. Its name originates from the palm bran ...

), blessed ashes (bestowed on

Ash Wednesday Ash Wednesday is a holy day of prayer and fasting in many Western Christian denominations. It is preceded by Shrove Tuesday and marks the first day of Lent: the seven weeks of Christian prayer, prayer, Religious fasting#Christianity, fasting and ...

), a

cross necklace __NOTOC__ A cross necklace is any necklace featuring a Christian cross or crucifix as its pendant. Crosses are often worn as an indication of commitment to the Christian faith, and are sometimes received as gifts for rites such as baptism and c ...

(often taken to be blessed by a pastor before daily use), a headcovering (worn by women, especially during prayer and worship),

blessed salt Blessed salt has been used in various forms throughout the history of Christianity. Among early Christians, the savoring of blessed salt often took place along with baptism. In the fourth century, Augustine of Hippo named these practices "visible ...

, and

holy card In the Christianity, Christian tradition, holy cards or prayer cards are small, Catholic devotions, devotional pictures for the use of the faithful that usually depict a religious scene or a saint in an image about the size of a playing card. Th ...

s, as well as

Christian art Christian art is sacred art which uses subjects, themes, and imagery from Christianity. Most Christian groups use or have used art to some extent, including early Christian art and architecture and Christian media. Images of Jesus and narrative ...

, especially a

crucifix A crucifix (from the Latin meaning '(one) fixed to a cross') is a cross with an image of Jesus on it, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the (Latin for 'body'). The cru ...

. Apart from those worn daily, such as a cross necklace or devotional scapular, sacramentals such as a family Bible, are often kept on

home altar A home altar or family altar is a shrine kept in the home of some Western Christian families used for Christian prayer and family worship. Home altars often contain a cross or crucifix, an image of Jesus Christ, a copy of the Bible (especially ...

s in Christian households.

Ichthys The ichthys or ichthus (), from the Greek (, 1st cent. AD Koinē Greek pronunciation: , "fish") is, in its modern rendition, a symbol consisting of two intersecting arcs, the ends of the right side extending beyond the meeting point so as to ...

emblems are sacramentals applied to vehicles to signify that the owner is a Christian and to offer protection while driving. When blessed in a

betrothal An engagement or betrothal is the period of time between the declaration of acceptance of a marriage proposal and the marriage itself (which is typically but not always commenced with a wedding). During this period, a couple is said to be ''fi ...

ceremony,

engagement ring An engagement ring, also known as a betrothal ring, is a ring indicating that the person wearing it is engaged to be married, especially in Western cultures. A ring is presented as an engagement gift by a partner to their prospective spouse ...

s become a sacramental. As an adjective, ''sacramental'' means "of or pertaining to sacraments".

Biblical basis

The

Biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

basis for the use of sacramentals is that

Jesus Christ Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

used a form of sacramentals himself; for example, when he healed a blind man, he made a mud paste that he put over the eyes of the man, before telling him to wash in the Pool of Siloam.

Prayer cloth A prayer cloth is a sacramental used by Christians, in continuation with the practice of the early Church, as recorded in the Acts of the Apostles: Prayer cloths are especially popular within the Catholic and Pentecostal traditions of Christianit ...

s and holy oil are mentioned in reference to praying for healing, as in and .

Denominational usage

Catholic

The

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

currently defines sacramentals as "sacred signs which ... signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church. By them men are disposed to receive the chief effect of the sacraments, and various occasions in life are rendered holy". Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church's prayer, they prepare one to receive grace and dispose a person to cooperate with it. "For well-disposed members of the faithful, the liturgy of the sacraments and sacramentals sanctifies almost every event of their lives with the divine grace which flows from the Paschal mystery of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ. From this source all sacraments and sacramentals draw their power." The

Catechism of the Catholic Church The ''Catechism of the Catholic Church'' (; commonly called the ''Catechism'' or the ''CCC'') is a reference work that summarizes the Catholic Church's doctrine. It was Promulgation (Catholic canon law), promulgated by Pope John Paul II in 1992 ...

lists three types of sacramentals:

blessing In religion, a blessing (also used to refer to bestowing of such) is the impartation of something with doctrines of grace, grace, Sacred, holiness, spiritual Redemption (theology), redemption, or Will of God, divine will. Etymology and Germani ...

consecrations Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

and dedications, and exorcisms. Rosary beads, scapulars, medals and religious images are more accurately termed

devotional articles Devotional objects (also, devotional articles, devotional souvenirs, devotional artifacts) are religious souvenirs (figurines, pictures, votive candles, books, amulets, and others), owned and carried by the religious, who see them as imbued wi ...

; prayers such as the rosary, the stations of the cross, litanies, and novenas are called popular devotions or "expressions of popular piety". The

Latin Church The Latin Church () is the largest autonomous () particular church within the Catholic Church, whose members constitute the vast majority of the 1.3 billion Catholics. The Latin Church is one of 24 Catholic particular churches and liturgical ...

allows the bestowing of certain sacramentals, such as blessings, "to catechumens and even to non-Catholics unless there is a prohibition of the Church to the contrary.Code of Canon Law 1170
/ref>

Lutheran

In Lutheran churches, sacramentals such as palms and crosses, are used by the faithful.

Anglican

A text of the

Episcopal Church in the United States of America The Episcopal Church (TEC), also known as the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America (PECUSA), is a member of the worldwide Anglican Communion, based in the United States. It is a mainline Protestant denomination and is ...

includes items such as the Anglican rosary, ashes, and palms among objects counted as sacramentals.

Pentecostal

Pentecostal Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a movement within the broader Evangelical wing of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that emphasizes direct personal experience of God in Christianity, God through Baptism with the Holy Spirit#Cl ...

theologian Mark Pearson states that the

speaks of sacramentals, sometimes referred to as points of contact, such as blessed

s () and holy oil (). He states that

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

is the source of

healing With physical trauma or disease suffered by an organism, healing involves the repairing of damaged tissue(s), organs and the biological system as a whole and resumption of (normal) functioning. Medicine includes the process by which the cells ...

and that Pentecostal clergy "can confidently offer

prayer File:Prayers-collage.png, 300px, alt=Collage of various religionists praying – Clickable Image, Collage of various religionists praying ''(Clickable image – use cursor to identify.)'' rect 0 0 1000 1000 Shinto festivalgoer praying in front ...

, administer the various sacramentals, and lay hands on the sick".

References

External links

Catechism of the Catholic Church: Sacramentals
{{Catholic protection Christian belief and doctrine

Biblical basis

Denominational usage

Catholic

Lutheran

Anglican

Pentecostal

Further reading

References

External links