This class addresses the nature of the Church and of the sacraments. These two concepts are closely related to one another. Sacrament means “mystery.” The mystery of the sacraments is the real presence of God’s divine action in our material world through visible and tangible signs. In the sacraments we see and deal with something material but what truly happens is that we are in direct contact with God.
This is what happened with Jesus Christ two thousand years ago. “Philip said to him, "Master, show us the Father, and that will be enough for us." Jesus said to him, "Have I been with you for so long a time and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me?” (John 14:8-10).
The sacrament is the human body of Christ: the mystery of the true God walking with us on this earth as a man. After the Ascension and the Pentecost, Jesus remains on this earth with his body but this time we cannot see it. His body is here in mystery. This is why we call it the “Mystical Body of Christ,” which is the proper definition of the Church.
It is impossible to understand what the Church is without focusing on the mystery and the impact of the Incarnation on the entire history of creation. We live now in the “age of the Church,” in which Christ “lives and acts in and with his Church” through “the sacraments” (Catechism of the Catholic Church n. 1076).
It is only by framing correctly these concepts that we can properly understand and appreciate all the nuances and features of the Christian doctrine regarding the Church.
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