Outward Signs of God’s Grace
Christianity is not only a faith of ideas. God has made us creatures of body and soul, and throughout Holy Scripture He uses created things—water, bread, wine, oil, human words, and the laying on of hands—to accomplish His purposes.
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The Church therefore speaks of a Sacrament as an outward and visible sign through which God gives an inward and spiritual grace.
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At the Church of the Ascension, we receive the seven Sacraments of the historic Catholic Church:
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Baptism · Confirmation · Holy Eucharist · Penance · Holy Matrimony · Holy Orders · Unction of the Sick
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The Sacraments are not merely symbols of our devotion to God. They are acts of Christ in His Church through which He meets, strengthens, forgives, sanctifies, and sustains His people.
Christian Initiation
Holy Baptism
New Birth in Christ
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Holy Baptism is the Sacrament of Christian initiation by water in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.
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In Baptism we receive the forgiveness of sins, are made regenerate by the Holy Ghost, united to Christ, made children of God by adoption, and incorporated into His Body, the Church. Baptism is therefore not merely an outward sign of a faith already possessed, but a true means of grace and new birth in Christ.
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Because Baptism is God’s gracious act rather than simply an expression of an individual’s understanding, the Church baptizes both infants and adults. Those baptized are subsequently instructed in the Christian Faith and prepared for Confirmation.
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Baptism is administered only once, for it marks the Christian permanently as belonging to Christ.
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Confirmation
Strengthened by the Holy Ghost
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In Confirmation, a baptized Christian publicly renews the promises of Baptism and receives the laying on of hands by a bishop.
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Through prayer and the bishop’s laying on of hands, the baptized are strengthened by the Holy Ghost for mature Christian discipleship and fuller participation in the sacramental life of the Church (typically by being admitted to receive holy communion).
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Confirmation also expresses something important about the nature of the Church: the Christian does not live the Faith in isolation, but belongs to the Apostolic Church whose ministry continues through the historic episcopate.
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[Note: Baptized, yet unconfirmed adults, desirous to be confirmed may be admitted to holy communion by the priest.]
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The Sacramental Center
The Holy Eucharist
The Body and Blood of Christ
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The Holy Eucharist stands at the center of the worship and sacramental life of the Church.
At the Last Supper, our Lord took bread and wine and commanded His Apostles to continue this sacred action in remembrance of Him.
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We believe that in the Eucharist Christ truly gives us His Body and His Blood under the forms of bread and wine. Holy Communion is therefore far more than a symbolic memorial. Christ makes Himself truly present and feeds His faithful people with the Bread of Heaven and the Cup of Salvation.
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In the Eucharist the Church also sacramentally participates in the one, perfect, and all-sufficient Sacrifice of Christ upon the Cross. That Sacrifice is never repeated—Christ died once for all—but His one Sacrifice is sacramentally pleaded and made present in the worship of the Church.
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For this reason, the Holy Eucharist is the principal act of worship at Ascension each Sunday.
Forgiveness & Vocation
Penance
Confession, Absolution,
and Reconciliation
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Sin damages our communion with God and with one another, and Christ has entrusted to His Church a ministry of reconciliation and forgiveness.
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In the ordinary course of Anglican Christian life, the General Confession and Absolution in the service of Holy Communion are sufficient for the faithful reception of the Sacrament and for the normal life of repentance and forgiveness.
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Private sacramental confession is not required for parish membership or for receiving Holy Communion. It is available, however, for those who desire it—especially when a particular sin weighs heavily upon the conscience, when spiritual counsel is needed, or when a person seeks the personal assurance of hearing Christ’s forgiveness pronounced in sacramental absolution.
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In private confession, a Christian confesses his or her sins to a priest, receives spiritual counsel as appropriate, and hears the Church’s declaration of Christ’s forgiveness.
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What is confessed in sacramental confession is treated with the strictest confidentiality.
Holy Matrimony
A Lifelong Covenant
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Holy Matrimony is the sacramental union of one man and one woman in a lifelong covenant of fidelity.
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In marriage, husband and wife give themselves to one another before God and receive His grace to live together in faithfulness, mutual love, patience, sacrifice, and holiness.
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Christian marriage is ordered toward the mutual good of husband and wife and, according to God’s providence, the procreation and Christian nurture of children.
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The Church therefore understands Matrimony not simply as a private contract between two individuals, but as a holy vocation lived before God and within the life of His Church.
Ministry & Healing
Holy Orders
Bishops, Priests, & Deacons
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Through Holy Orders, the Church continues the Apostolic ministry entrusted by Christ to His Apostles.
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We receive the historic threefold ministry of:
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Bishops · Priests · Deacons
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Bishops possess the fullness of the Apostolic ministry and stand within the historic Apostolic Succession, maintaining continuity in the Church’s teaching, sacramental ministry, and pastoral oversight.
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Priests share in the bishop’s ministry through preaching, teaching, pastoral care, and the administration of the Sacraments. Deacons are ordained particularly to ministries of service and assistance in the Church’s worship and pastoral life.
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In continuity with the received practice of the historic Church, Holy Orders are conferred upon men who are duly called, examined, and ordained to these ministries.
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Ordination is not merely the appointment of someone to perform a church office.
Through prayer and the laying on of hands, a man is sacramentally set apart for a particular ministry within Christ’s Church.
Unction of the Sick
Healing, Strength, & Grace
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Christ showed particular compassion for the sick and suffering, and the Epistle of St. James directs the sick to call for the priests of the Church, who are to pray over them and anoint them with oil.
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In Holy Unction, the sick are anointed with blessed oil and commended to God in prayer.
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The Church prays for healing according to God’s will, but the Sacrament is not limited to the expectation of physical recovery. Through it, Christ gives grace, strength, forgiveness, peace, and consolation to those experiencing illness, weakness, or serious infirmity.
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Holy Unction may be received whenever serious illness or need makes it appropriate. It is not reserved only for the final moments of life.
Grace for the Whole Christian Life
The seven Sacraments accompany the Christian throughout the whole course of life:
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Baptism regenerates and gives new birth.
Confirmation strengthens.
The Holy Eucharist nourishes.
Penance reconciles.
Holy Matrimony sanctifies married life.
Holy Orders provides the Church with Apostolic ministry.
Unction strengthens and heals the sick.
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Through all of them, the emphasis remains upon God’s grace. The Sacraments are gifts Christ has entrusted to His Church so that His people may live and grow in communion with Him.
