THEO10001 Lecture Notes - Lecture 25: Gumball Machine, Anointing, Epiclesis
Document Summary
The sacraments: participation in the body of christ. The belief that spiritual realities are meditated through material means: inanimate objects: water, oil, bread, wine, other people, experiences. Most christians believe that god"s love can be experienced through material/physical means: the world is charged with the grandeur of god . In christian worship, these physical means are the sacraments; ritual which meditate. God"s presence and love to those who participate. Means what it signifies: meaning is fixed: symbol: And manifests the reality to which it points. Sacraments: like signs and symbols, they point to something beyond themselves, like signs and symbols, they are about communication. Among humans in community: this communication demands interpretation. The scriptures, the church, and sacramental theology explain the sacraments" meaning to christians: list of sacraments. Sacraments are not magic and they don"t work like a gumball machine. The grace given in the sacraments is nothing other than living in relationship with god.
