St. Francis of Assisi, Confessor

Baltimore track

Baltimore Catechism No. 3

Lesson 27 — On the Sacramentals

Q. 1060.How may persons sin in using Sacramentals?

A.Persons may sin in using Sacramentals by using them in a way or for a purpose prohibited by the Church; also by believing that the use of Sacramentals will save us in spite of our sinful lives. We must remember that Sacramentals can aid us only through the blessing the Church gives them and through the good dispositions they excite in us. They have, therefore, no power in themselves, and to put too much confidence in their use leads to superstition.

Q. 1061.What is the difference between the Sacraments and the sacramentals?

A.The difference between the Sacraments and the sacramentals is: 1st. The Sacraments were instituted by Jesus Christ and the sacramentals were instituted by the Church; 2d. The Sacraments give grace of themselves when we place no obstacle in the way; the sacramentals excite in us pious dispositions, by means of which we may obtain grace.

Q. 1062.May the Church increase or diminish the number of Sacraments and Sacramentals?

A.The Church can never increase nor diminish the number of Sacraments, for as Christ Himself instituted them, He alone has power to change their number; but the Church may increase or diminish the number of the Sacramentals as the devotion of its people or the circumstances of the time and place require, for since the Church instituted them they must depend entirely upon its laws.

Q. 1063.Which is the chief sacramental used in the Church?

A.The chief sacramental used in the Church is the sign of the cross.