Seven Scraments Essay

1706 Words7 Pages
The Seven Sacraments By Bobby Sims Foundations of Christian Faith, REL-123-DL02 Professor Hwang Summer I 2012 I have chosen to do my research paper on the Seven Sacraments. While doing this I will give my results on research as to how they developed, the dates they developed, and the reasons why they became so while giving a description of each of them along with the word Sacrament itself. What are the Sacraments and what religions participate in them? “The sacraments are about the mystery of a threefold communication: from God to humans, from humans to God, and among humans in community” (Mueller 198). “A sacrament is a ritual in which the Sacred (God) is present. Participation in a sacrament is participation in the Holy, a way of communing with God, of building or renewing one’s spiritual life” (Schulman 2009). “All world religions have sacraments, but only Christians call them sacraments…Most Christian churches celebrate sacraments, but there is a wide spectrum of understandings on the number and meaning of the sacraments” (Mueller 198). Where does the word sacrament come from? While doing research I found that “The word may have been suggested by its secular meaning, the oath of allegiance taken by a Roman soldier on enlistment. The Roman governor Pliny (ca. 112 CE) described Christians as those who bound themselves by an oath (sacramentum) not to commit crimes” (Metzger & Coogan, 2001). “A recruit for the Roman army became soldier by undergoing a sacramentum. The sacramentum resulted in new responsibilities and new advantages. The soldier acquired the responsibility for conforming to military discipline and obeying military commands. He also acquired social and legal benefits, because living conditions in the Roman Army were very good and veterans received special privileges and benefits. Ancient Latin theologians seized upon sacramentum as the
Open Document