The sacraments of the catholic church
About
Christ instituted the sacraments of the new law. There are seven: Baptism, Confirmation (or Chrismation), the Eucharist, Penance, the Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders and Matrimony. the seven sacraments touch all the stages and all the important moments of Christian life:1 they give birth and increase, healing and mission to the Christian's life of faith. There is thus a certain resemblance between the stages of natural life and the stages of the spiritual life. (CCC #1210)
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The sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us. the visible rites by which the sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required dispositions. (CCC #1131)
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The Church celebrates the sacraments as a priestly community structured by the baptismal priesthood and the priesthood of ordained ministers. (CCC #1132)
The Holy Spirit prepares the faithful for the sacraments by the Word of God and the faith which welcomes that word in well-disposed hearts. Thus the sacraments strengthen faith and express it. (CCC #1133)
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The fruit of sacramental life is both personal and ecclesial. For every one of the faithful an the one hand, this fruit is life for God in Christ Jesus; for the Church, on the other, it is an increase in charity and in her mission of witness. (CCC # 1134)
baptism
The origin and foundation of Christian Baptism is Jesus. Before starting his public ministry, Jesus submitted himself to the baptism given by John the Baptist. The waters did not purify him; he cleansed the waters. . . . Jesus did not need to be baptized because he was totally faithful to the will of his Father and free from sin. However, he wanted to show his solidarity with human beings in order to reconcile them to the Father. By commanding his disciples to baptize all nations, he established the means by which people would die to sin – Original and actual – and begin to live a new life with God.
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In Baptism, the Holy Spirit moves us to answer Christ's call to holiness. In Baptism, we are asked to walk by the light of Christ and to trust in his wisdom. We are invited to submit our hearts to Christ with ever deeper love. (Taken from the USCCB)
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According to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, these are the Guidelines for Godparents
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For children that is less than 7 years old, please call the office at 610-449-0600. For older children, please contact the Religious education Office at ext. 215.
Communion oR Eucharist
Jesus said: "I am the living bread, which came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread, he will live forever [...] He who eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood has eternal life [...] abides in me and I in him" (Jn 6, 51.54.56). (CCC #1406)
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The Eucharist is the memory of Christ's Easter, that is, of the work of salvation carried out by the life, death and resurrection of Christ, a work that is made present by the liturgical action. (CCC #1409)
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Preparation for First Communion allows children to have the opportunity to understand more of the doctrines of the Church, and the importance of this Sacrament, along with the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
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According to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, in Saint Laurence, the child can receive their first holy communion when he/she is in the 3rd grade.
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To inquire about the confirmation sacrament, even if you are an adult, please call the Religious Education Office at 610-449-0600 Ext. 215
confirmation
The prophets of the Old Testament foretold that God's Spirit would rest upon the Messiah to sustain his mission. Their prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus the Messiah was conceived by the Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. The Holy Spirit descended on Jesus on the occasion of his baptism by John. Jesus' entire mission occurred in communion with the Spirit. Before he died, Jesus promised that the Spirit would be given to the Apostles and to the entire Church. After his death, he was raised by the Father in the power of the Spirit.
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Confirmation deepens our baptismal life that calls us to be missionary witnesses of Jesus Christ in our families, neighborhoods, society, and the world. . . . We receive the message of faith in a deeper and more intensive manner with great emphasis given to the person of Jesus Christ, who asked the Father to give the Holy Spirit to the Church for building up the community in loving. (Taken from the USCCB)
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According to the Archdiocese of Philadelphia, in Saint Lorenzo, the youth can receive the sacrament of Confirmation when he/she is in the 7th grade.
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To inquire about the confirmation sacrament, even if you are an adult, please call the Religious Education Office at 610-449-0600 Ext. 215
PenanCE
(Reconciliation or Confession)
The forgiveness of sins committed after Baptism is granted by its own sacrament called the sacrament of conversion, confession, penance or reconciliation. (CCC #1486)
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In the eyes of faith, no evil is more serious than sin and nothing has worse consequences for sinners themselves, for the Church and for the whole world. (CCC #1488)
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To receive this sacrament for first time, please contact the Religious Education Office at 610-449-0600 Ext. 215.
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For regular confession, you can come to the church on Saturdays at 3:15 PM or call the office and make an appointment with a priest at 610-449-0600 Ext. 0.
Anointing of the Sick
In the Church's Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, through the ministry of the priest, it is Jesus who touches the sick to heal them from sin – and sometimes even from physical ailment. His cures were signs of the arrival of the Kingdom of God. The core message of his healing tells us of his plan to conquer sin and death by his dying and rising.
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The Rite of Anointing tells us there is no need to wait until a person is at the point of death to receive the Sacrament. A careful judgment about the serious nature of the illness is sufficient.
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When the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick is given, the hoped-for effect is that, if it be God's will, the person be physically healed of illness. But even if there is no physical healing, the primary effect of the Sacrament is a spiritual healing by which the sick person receives the Holy Spirit's gift of peace and courage to deal with the difficulties that accompany serious illness or the frailty of old age. (Taken from the USCCB)
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To receive to anointing of the sick, please call the rectory at 610-449-0600 Ext 0.
marriage
The marriage alliance, by which a man and a woman constitute an intimate community of life and love, was founded and endowed with its own laws by the Creator. By its nature it is ordered to the good of the spouses as well as to the generation and education of children. Among the baptized, marriage has been elevated by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament (CIC #1660).
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Marriage is based on the consent of the contracting parties, that is, on the will to give each other definitively in order to live an alliance of faithful and fruitful love. (CCC #1662)
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The Christian home is the place where children receive the first announcement of the faith. For this reason the family home is rightly called "Domestic Church", a community of grace and prayer, a school of human virtues and Christian charity. (CIC#1666)
If you wish to married in the Church of Saint Laurence, you must obtain a recent baptismal certificate, contact the office at 610-449-0600 Ext 0, and make an appointment at least 6 months in advance, to conduct the necessary investigations. In the state of Pennsylvania, marriage in the church is also valid civilly.
holy orders
Ordination to the priesthood is always a call and a gift from God. Christ reminded his Apostles that they needed to ask the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into the harvest. Those who seek priesthood respond generously to God's call using the words of the prophet, "Here I am, send me" (Is 6:8). This call from God can be recognized and understood from the daily signs that disclose his will to those in charge of discerning the vocation of the candidate. (Taken from the USCCB)
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To help you to discern or inquire about to become a permanent deacon, please speak with the Pastor and/or contact the School of Diaconal Formation. If you want to become a priest, please speak with the Pastor and/or contact the Vocation Office