What is a sacrament?
Sacraments identify with an “incarnational” theology – meaning God made the physical world, and Jesus, who is “God with us”, fully entered this physical world as a human being. God works through his created world, with no separation between physical and spiritual.
The three most common symbols are water (baptism), bread and wine (Holy Communion). These physical elements symbolise God’s promise of grace and mercy. They are signs of Jesus’ real presence in our lives and convey spiritual power through the Holy Spirit when we receive them by faith.
What does it mean to talk about bread and wine and the body and blood of Jesus?
In the first part of a Sunday service we hear God’s story of creation and redemption through the readings and the sermon. In the second part, we respond to this message by sharing communion around the Lord’s Table. Communion represents a shared family meal as the children of God. Jesus gathered his disciples and broke bread before he died, and when Jesus comes again, we will eat again in his presence. For now, we take communion in remembrance and thankfulness. As we eat, the outward sign is the bread and wine, and the inward sign of God’s grace is Christ’s body and blood given for us on the cross.
There are different interpretations of how this happens. For Protestant churches, like the Anglican Church, Christ’s presence is real but spiritual. This is seen in the words that are said as we are invited up to receive:
Draw near and receive the body and blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ in remembrance that he died for us.
Let us feed on him in our hearts by faith with thanksgiving.
The key point is that in taking and eating we remember what Jesus has done, and in a spiritual sense in eating his body and drinking his blood, the Holy Spirit transforms our whole being as we are continually fed and spiritually nourished to be sent into the world.
Baptism is a sacrament of new birth, meaning to wash away the old sinful life using the outward sign of water and receiving the inward sign of God’s grace (see: salvation by grace through faith). Baptism in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit makes us right with God by joining us with Christ as a child of God.
Some people are fully immersed in water for this – even at a beach or river, if they want to brave the cold! Others, especially babies, have only their heads washed.
One major issue for many is the question: When should baptism happen – as a baby or child, or when someone is an adult and can profess faith for themselves?
In the Anglican Church, we include babies in this sacrament. If we look through the Bible, it’s clear that babies and children are included in the family of God. In the early Christian Church, baptism involved whole households, including babies and children. This was the standard Christian practice for the first 1,500 years of the Church. It is an example of God’s unconditional love and grace, not something we can earn.
The key to remember is that in baptism we receive the free gift of God’s grace at the beginning of our Christian journey. But this gift is opened by faith as we live into our baptism. God’s gift of grace is given in baptism, to be received and opened with faith as we become alive in God.
Some parents would rather wait until their child can profess faith themselves. The Anglican prayer book includes a dedication service, where the parents can commit to bring the child up as part of the Christian community.
At some point however, it is important to profess our faith for ourselves – even if we were baptised as a baby – and for Anglicans that event is called “Confirmation”. Confirmation is special service so those who were baptised as a baby can profess their faith personally and receive a blessing from the bishop through the laying on of hands.
Anglicans typically do not re-baptise adults who were baptised as babies or children. This would be to deny the authenticity of the church which baptised them. Confirmation is a good way to affirm baptism later in a person’s life.
There are other sacramental actions that we use to symbolise God’s grace, like anointing with oil, absolution, ordination and even marriage. Each one represents a beautiful part of God’s character and work in us.
Check out other articles in the
Anglican Essentials
series below.
More articles in the
Anglican Essentials
series are to come.
We have invited these writers to share their experiences, ideas and opinions in the hope that these will provoke thought, challenge you to go deeper and inspire you to put your faith into action. These articles should not be taken as the official view of the Nelson Diocese on any particular matter.
What is a sacrament?
Sacraments identify with an “incarnational” theology – meaning God made the physical world, and Jesus, who is “God with us”, fully entered this physical world as a human being. God works through his created world, with no separation between physical and spiritual.
The three most common symbols are water (baptism), bread and wine (Holy Communion). These physical elements symbolise God’s promise of grace and mercy. They are signs of Jesus’ real presence in our lives and convey spiritual power through the Holy Spirit when we receive them by faith.
What does it mean to talk about bread and wine and the body and blood of Jesus?
In the first part of a Sunday service we hear God’s story of creation and redemption through the readings and the sermon. In the second part, we respond to this message by sharing communion around the Lord’s Table. Communion represents a shared family meal as the children of God. Jesus gathered his disciples and broke bread before he died, and when Jesus comes again, we will eat again in his presence. For now, we take communion in remembrance and thankfulness. As we eat, the outward sign is the bread and wine, and the inward sign of God’s grace is Christ’s body and blood given for us on the cross.
There are different interpretations of how this happens. For Protestant churches, like the Anglican Church, Christ’s presence is real but spiritual. This is seen in the words that are said as we are invited up to receive:
Draw near and receive the body and blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ in remembrance that he died for us.
Let us feed on him in our hearts by faith with thanksgiving.
The key point is that in taking and eating we remember what Jesus has done, and in a spiritual sense in eating his body and drinking his blood, the Holy Spirit transforms our whole being as we are continually fed and spiritually nourished to be sent into the world.
Baptism is a sacrament of new birth, meaning to wash away the old sinful life using the outward sign of water and receiving the inward sign of God’s grace (see: salvation by grace through faith). Baptism in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit makes us right with God by joining us with Christ as a child of God.
Some people are fully immersed in water for this – even at a beach or river, if they want to brave the cold! Others, especially babies, have only their heads washed.
One major issue for many is the question: When should baptism happen – as a baby or child, or when someone is an adult and can profess faith for themselves?
In the Anglican Church, we include babies in this sacrament. If we look through the Bible, it’s clear that babies and children are included in the family of God. In the early Christian Church, baptism involved whole households, including babies and children. This was the standard Christian practice for the first 1,500 years of the Church. It is an example of God’s unconditional love and grace, not something we can earn.
The key to remember is that in baptism we receive the free gift of God’s grace at the beginning of our Christian journey. But this gift is opened by faith as we live into our baptism. God’s gift of grace is given in baptism, to be received and opened with faith as we become alive in God.
Some parents would rather wait until their child can profess faith themselves. The Anglican prayer book includes a dedication service, where the parents can commit to bring the child up as part of the Christian community.
At some point however, it is important to profess our faith for ourselves – even if we were baptised as a baby – and for Anglicans that event is called “Confirmation”. Confirmation is special service so those who were baptised as a baby can profess their faith personally and receive a blessing from the bishop through the laying on of hands.
Anglicans typically do not re-baptise adults who were baptised as babies or children. This would be to deny the authenticity of the church which baptised them. Confirmation is a good way to affirm baptism later in a person’s life.
There are other sacramental actions that we use to symbolise God’s grace, like anointing with oil, absolution, ordination and even marriage. Each one represents a beautiful part of God’s character and work in us.
Check out other articles in the
Anglican Essentials
series below.
More articles in the
Anglican Essentials
series are to come.
