Tuesday 22 July 2008

Talking About Sacraments (Part 1)

John O’Donohue, in his book Anam Cara defines a sacrament as ‘a visible sign of invisible grace.’ He continues:

In that definition there is a fine acknowledgement of how the unseen world comes to expression in the visible world. This desire for expression lies deep at the heart of the invisible world. (pp. 72-73)

The threshold between God and the cosmos is paper thin. In traditional language we can say that we are surrounded by sacraments. The whole of the created order is sacramental. From constellations in the sky to the smallest seed, the created universe tells the glory of God. We live in a sacramental universe.

And it is not just ‘things’ that are sacraments. Touch is a sacrament. The caress of a lover carries with it more than a simple explanation of skin brushing skin. If it were not so, why did God become human, and could it have even been possible? It were not so how could we be ambassadors of Jesus Christ? How could we be the temple of the Holy Spirit?