Sacraments and Sacramentals
We recognize that the Sacraments have a visible and invisible reality, a reality open to all the human senses but grasped in its God-given depths with the eyes of faith. When parents hug their children, for example, the visible reality we see is the hug. The invisible reality the hug conveys is love. We cannot “see” the love the hug expresses, though sometimes we can see its nurturing effect in the child.
The visible reality we see in the Sacraments is their outward expression, the form they take, and the way in which they are administered and received. The invisible reality we cannot “see” is God’s grace, his gracious initiative in redeeming us through the death and Resurrection of his Son. His initiative is called grace because it is the free and loving gift by which he offers people a share in his life, and shows us his favor and will for our salvation. Our response to the grace of God’s initiative is itself a grace or gift from God by which we can imitate Christ in our daily lives.
The saving words and deeds of Jesus Christ are the foundation of what he would communicate in the Sacraments through the ministers of the Church. Guided by the Holy Spirit, the Church recognizes the existence of Seven Sacraments instituted by the Lord. They are the Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, the Eucharist), the Sacraments of Healing (Penance and the Anointing of the Sick), and the Sacraments at the Service of Communion (Marriage and Holy Orders). Through the Sacraments, God shares his holiness with us so that we, in turn, can make the world holier.
Sacraments and Social Mission: Living the Gospel, Being Disciples | en Español
This 28 page booklet and study guide highlights the connections between the celebration of the sacraments and our social mission as followers of Jesus and the Body of Christ. . Print copies are also available for $5.95/booklet from USCCB Publishing.
Sacrament of Reconciliation
- Confessions are heard in English, Polish and Spanish on Saturday 4:00 pm – 4:45 pm.
Sacrament of Baptism
- Baptism of children is celebrated in English on the first, second and third Sunday of the month at 3:15 pm. In Spanish on the fourth Sunday of the month at 3:15 am. In Polish every Sunday at 2:30 pm. You must call the Parish Office at (708) 423-0321 between 8:30 a.m. and 8:00 p.m. to make arrangements prior to the baptism.
Weddings – The Sacrament of Matrimony (CCC, 1601)
- “The matrimonial covenant, by which a man and a woman establish between themselves a partnership of the whole of life, is by its nature ordered toward the good of the spouses and the procreation and education of offspring; this covenant between baptized persons has been raised by Christ the Lord to the dignity of a sacrament”.
