There’s a major and exceptionally important difference between a sacrament and a sacramental. Do you know what that difference is? God’s grace flows through a sacrament; His grace does not flow through a sacramental.

Jesus gave us the seven sacraments. If we are properly disposed when we receive them, God’s grace consumes our immortal soul. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) in paragraph 1131 gives this definition. “A sacrament is an efficacious sign of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us.” According to Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, when something is efficacious it has the power to produce the desired effect. Peter Kreeft, Ph.D., in his book Catholic Christianity says, “Because the sacraments work from God, not from us, we are free to focus all our attention on God, not on ourselves, and to invest all our faith and hope in Him, not in ourselves.” The sacraments are our path to heaven. They strengthen us for the difficult challenges we face throughout our earthly life.

Holy Mother Church gives us sacramentals. CCC 1667 gives this definition. “Sacramentals are sacred signs which bear a resemblance to the sacraments. They signify effects, particularly of a spiritual nature, which are obtained through the intercession of the Church.” The Church institutes sacramentals to help us open our hearts and minds to God’s presence in every aspect of our lives. The public prayer life of the Church, sacred liturgy, and the sacraments help us to grow in holiness. From the early days of Christianity, the Church has given us sacramentals to also help us grow in holiness. The proper use of sacramentals will open our souls to God with greater love. CCC 1670 says, “Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church’s prayer, they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it.” Our entire day should revolve around Christ. Sacramentals can help us to order our day and to raise our hearts and minds to God.

Ceremonies, individual blessings, blessed objects, and the use of the blessed objects are categories of sacramentals.

A sacramental ceremony is associated with each sacrament. This ceremony does not include the sacrament itself. For example, at a baptism when water is poured over the person who is being baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, the ceremony ceases and the actual sacrament occurs. Once the person has been baptized the sacramental ceremony continues. Sacramental ceremonies can also include Exposition and Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, time spent in adoration of the Blessed Sacrament, and devotions pertaining to Mary and the saints. Novenas fall into this sacramental category.

All blessings are sacramentals. Sacramental blessings include the blessing of persons, meals, objects, and places. The Catechism says that every blessing praises God and prays for His gifts. When I was first ordained, I received the hardbound Book of Blessings. It’s a large book that’s two inches thick. It contains blessings for every situation and object. You can bless students and teachers, hospitals and homeless shelters, new and old buildings, religious and secular buildings, mothers before they give birth, a child not yet baptized, cars, boats, and wagons, meals and the pots and pans you cook in, tools and equipment, fields and flocks, organs and guitars. An exorcism is a blessing. In an exorcism, the name of Jesus Christ is invoked to protect a person or object from the power of the devil. Jesus performed exorcisms. He passed His authority to perform exorcisms on to the Church.

Blessed objects are aids for deepening our devotion to God and the saints. Blessed objects include religious metals, rosaries, scapulars, statues, paintings, and holy water. Bishops, priests, and deacons do blessings. The three holy oils (sacred chrism, oil of catechumens, and oil of the sick) are blessed objects. These oils are blessed by a bishop, usually at the Holy Thursday Chrism Mass.

Finally, the use of a blessed object is a sacramental. Once an object has been blessed, it is blessed forever. Therefore, wearing a blessed object, praying a blessed rosary, displaying a blessed statue or painting is a sacramental. The presence of blessed objects in your home, car, and work place will help to focus your family’s attention on God. Consider placing a holy water font in your home; fill it with holy water; and sign yourself with it throughout your day. Teach your children to use holy water. You can get holy water from the holy water font in a Catholic Church. Your parish priest or deacon can make you a container of holy water for use in your home.

I’ll close by repeating this insightful statement from CCC 1670. “Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church’s prayer, they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it.” Sacramentals are not magic. Do not put your faith and hope for eternal salvation in them. Instead, use them to deepen your devotion to God and to grow in holiness.

For more insight read CCC paragraphs 1113, 1116, 1131, 1667-79. Also, pull out your “Catholic” Bible and reference Gen 12:2-3; 27:27-29, 38; Deut 21:5; Mk 1:25-26; 3:14-15; 6:7, 13; 16:17; Lk 6:28; Acts 3:26; Rom 12:14; Eph 1:3; Heb 11:20; 1 Pet 3:9.