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The Sacramental Economy

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The Sacramental Economy Touched by Christ: The Sacramental Economy Talk 7. Sacramental Character 1 Sacramental Character • The term “character” in sacramental theology comes from the notion of a seal that imprints an image as a sign of possession, identity, authority, or mission, as on an official document, a coin, an animal, slave, or legionary. It comes from the Greek word χαρακτήρ, which signifies a seal in both an active sense, as an instrument for marking or impressing a seal; and a passive sense, as the seal, stamp, or distinctive mark that is impressed. This sense of the word exists in English to indicate a letter stamped on a page. • Hebrews 1:3 refers to Christ as the “very stamp” (χαρακτήρ) of the Father: “He reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature, upholding the universe by his word of power.” • As Christ is the perfect imprint of the Father, so the faithful have been imprinted with the stamp of the Son by the agency of the Holy Spirit in Baptism. 2 Character and Seal • The term “character” in sacramental theology is practically synonymous with the term “seal” (in Greek, σφραγίς). • In John 6:27 He says that the people should seek not “for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to eternal life, which the Son of man will give to you; for on him has God the Father set his seal.” • Christ can give us the food of eternal life because through the mystery of the Incarnation He has been sealed by the Father with that same eternal life possessed by the Father. 3 Character and Seal 2 Corinthians 1:21–22: “But it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has commissioned [anointed] us; he has put his seal upon us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” 4 Character and Seal Ephesians 1:13–14 : “In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance.” In Ephesians 4:30, Paul refers back to the seal mentioned in 1:13 in order to exhort the Ephesians to persevere in the Christian life: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, in whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” 5 Character and Seal Colossians 2:11–12 connects the symbolism of circumcision and Baptism: In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ; and you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead. Circumcision as a type of Christian initiation manifests the abiding effect of the sacrament, which continues to mark the baptized, even if their life no longer conforms to the demands of the covenant with which they have been sealed. 6 Sacramental Character and the Analogy of a Coin with the Seal of Christ Clement of Alexandria also uses the analogy of the coin with its inscription and image: For he [the Christian] has through Christ the name of God written on him and the Spirit as an image. Even brute beasts through their branding show whose is the flock, and the branding-mark establishes a claim to them. Thus the soul of the believer, which has received the seal of truth, bears the marks of Christ upon it. (Clement of Alexandria, Ecloga 86) 7 Sacramental Character and St. Augustine’s Analogy of a Legionary’s Brand “Similarly with those who possess the baptism of Christ; if they return to unity, we do not change or destroy their title, but we acknowledge the title of our King, the title of our Commander. What are we to say? O wretched patrimony, let Him whose title you bear own you; you bear the title of Christ, do not be the property of Donatus.” (Augustine, Second Discourse on Psalm 21.31, in St. Augustine On the Psalms, 1:228.) 8 Three Meanings of the Seal • A seal thus has three principal purposes: to show permanent identity, to give an abiding mission to a person (as to a soldier or minister), and to confer delegated power to someone to be able to carry out his mission. Sacramental character is an invisible word or seal that has all three of these meanings, in an analogous way. 9 Catechism of the Catholic Church, §§1295–96 on the Sacramental Seal By this anointing the confirmand receives the “mark,” the seal of the Holy Spirit. A seal is a symbol of a person, a sign of personal authority, or ownership of an object. Hence soldiers were marked with their leader’s seal and slaves with their master’s. A seal authenticates a juridical act or document and occasionally makes it secret. Christ himself declared that he was marked with his Father’s seal [Jn 6:27]. Christians are also marked with a seal: “It is God who establishes us with you in Christ and has commissioned us; he has put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.” This seal of the Holy Spirit marks our total belonging to Christ, our enrollment in his service for ever, as well as the promise of divine protection in the great eschatological trial. 10 Rebaptism Controversy • In the third and fourth centuries, a fierce controversy arose in North Africa over whether Baptism imparted by heretics or schismatics is valid, and thus whether or not those baptized by heretics or schismatics should be re-baptized when they return to the unity of the Church. • St. Cyprian, bishop of Carthage from AD 249–257, vigorously argued for the invalidity of heretical and schismatic sacraments. This meant that those baptized in a heretical or schismatic sect who returned to Catholic unity needed to be baptized. • Pope Stephen I and later St. Augustine argued for the opposite position, holding with Tradition that Baptism is valid even when the minister is a heretic, schismatic, or lapsed in persecution, provided the essential elements of the sacramental sign are conserved. Stephen based himself on the ancient practice of Rome. 11 Rebaptism Controversy St. Augustine saw this practice as belonging to apostolic Tradition on account of its universality: This custom, which I believe comes from apostolic tradition, like the many things that are not found in the [apostles’] writings or in the councils of those who followed them, and yet, because they are preserved by the universal Church, are believed to have been handed down and commended by none but them. 12 Rebaptism Controversy • St. Cyprian argued that Baptism outside the unity of the Church, which is illicit, could not give grace, because grace and charity go together and there cannot be charity outside of communion with the Church. This meant that heretical or schismatic Baptism would be both illicit and unfruitful. St. Cyprian also took it to mean that it could not be valid, which is where his position departed from that of Pope Stephen and the universal tradition of the Church. • His position presupposes that if the effect of grace is not produced, nothing is effected. What he did not consider is that Baptism could be valid, producing an abiding and indelible effect, while still being unfruitful with regard to grace and salvation as long as the baptized remains culpably outside of the Church. 13 Rebaptism Controversy St. Augustine against the Donatists “For, just as those who return to the Church, who were baptized before they left, are not rebaptized, neither by any means are those who return, who were ordained before they left, re- ordained, but they either confer what they used to confer, if the Church’s wellbeing demands it, or, if they do not confer it, they nonetheless retain the sacrament of their ordination.” (On Baptism 1.1.2) 14 Rebaptism Controversy • St. Augustine deduces from this practice of the Church that the sacrament must somehow abide, even when unfruitful, precisely so that it can come back to life again through repentance. This applies both (a) when Baptism or Holy Orders are received unfruitfully outside of the Church in a heretical or schismatic sect, or in a state of mortal sin; and (b) when they are received fruitfully within the Church, but the person later (culpably) falls into heresy, schism, or apostasy, losing the fruit of grace, and then returns to the Church. 15 St. Thomas Aquinas on Sacramental Character: Abiding Christian Identity “It is a sign conferring on a man a likeness to some principal person in whom is vested the authority over that to which he is assigned: thus soldiers who are assigned to military service, are marked with their leader’s sign, by which they are, in a fashion, likened to him. And in this way those who are deputed to the Christian worship, of which Christ is the author, receive a character by which they are likened to Christ. Consequently, properly speaking, this is Christ’s character.” (ST III, q. 63, a. 3, ad 2) 16 St. Thomas Aquinas on Sacramental Character: Abiding Christian Identity “Now whenever anyone is deputed to some definite purpose he is wont to receive some outward sign thereof; thus in olden times soldiers who enlisted in the ranks used to be marked with certain characters on the body, through being deputed to a bodily service. Since, therefore, by the sacraments men are deputed to a spiritual service pertaining to the worship of God, it follows that by their means the faithful receive a certain spiritual character.” (ST III, q.
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