Introduction
This will give a very brief overview of the sacraments which we have in the Roman Catholic Church and what one needs to do to receive them here at Saint Helen's. I have tried to give a brief quote from the Bible about each sacrament, and then a quote or two from the Fathers of the Church. These are writers who lived at the time the Church was just beginning and these quotes show us how our faith has remained constant throughout the centuries.

Following the quote there is a brief explanation of the sacrament and what requirements there are for receiving the sacrament. The explanation and requirements given here are not complete, just an overview, so please call the parish office to get the complete answers to your questions.

Towards the end of the page there is a short section for Catholics who want to receive a sacrament, such as Holy Communion or Confirmation, which they somehow missed as they were growing up.

Finally, you will find a brief section on how people who are not Catholic can learn about the Catholic Church and perhaps be baptized and/or received into the Church.

We hope this information will be a help to you.

To contact us, use the following number and/or e-mail:

Parish office: 623-979-4202 or St_Helen@diocesephoenix.org

The Sacraments of Initiation

The first three sacraments, Baptism, Confirmation and the Eucharist, are called the "Sacraments of Initiation" because they are the sacraments by which a person becomes fully a Christian. They are the basis and foundation of our life in Christ.

Baptism
"Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit …" (Matthew 28:19)

"Concerning baptism, baptize in this way: baptize in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, in running water. If you have no running water, then baptize in other water; and if you are not able in cold, then in warm. If you have neither, pour water three times on the head, in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
Didache or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles" chapter 7, verses 1-3.

This is a very early "catechism" which comes to us from about the year 140 A.D., within 40 years of the death of St. John, the "disciple whom Jesus loved" and the author of the Gospel according to John.

What a miracle it is to bring a new life into the world! A great miracle also is having that new life share in the divine life of God. This is the miracle that happens at Baptism. A person is given the new life of God within them self and becomes a member of the Catholic Church.

To fulfill the requirements of the Diocese of Phoenix, the parents should call for a pre-baptism interview and then attend three classes here at St. Helen's. This can often most easily be done during the pregnancy. The purpose of the interview and the classes is to gather information about the parents, godparents and child for our baptismal register and to help the parents know more about the sacrament of baptism and its relationship to God and the Church, and to explain the ceremonies of the sacrament.

For baptism, one or two godparents are needed. They should be baptized, confirmed and practicing Catholics. A baptized member of another Christian church may also act as a "Christian Witness" to the baptism, and their name will appear in the baptismal register. Because of the requirement of Confirmation to be a godparent, godparents must be at least 16 years of age.

Since baptism is the formal entrance of a person into the Catholic Church, there should be at least some sign given that the parents of the child are practicing their Catholic faith. It is not right to obtain a sacrament which imposes both rights and obligations on a person and then never give the individual the opportunity to exercise those rights or fulfill the obligations.

Baptism literally opens the gates of heaven on earth for the one baptized. May their life be a reflection of that honor.

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Confirmation
"Then there appeared to them tongues as of fire, which parted and came to rest on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. …"
(Acts 2: 3-4)

"Baptism, the Eucharist, and the sacrament of Confirmation together constitute the "sacraments of Christian initiation," whose unity must be safeguarded. It must be explained to the faithful that the reception of the sacrament of Confirmation is necessary for the completion of baptismal grace. For "by the sacrament of Confirmation, [the baptized] are more perfectly bound to the Church and are enriched with a special strength of the Holy Spirit. Hence they are, as true witnesses of Christ, more strictly obliged to spread and defend the faith by word and deed." The Catechism of the Catholic Church, #1285

Confirmation is the sacrament that is the completion of Baptism and the bridge between Baptism and the Eucharist. In most of the Catholic world outside of Great Britain, Canada and the United States, the sacrament of Confirmation is given sometime around the age of reason (usually around 7 or 8 years of age) and before the person receives the sacrament of Holy Communion, the Eucharist. In the United States, the usual age of a person receiving Confirmation is 16, but in practice each Diocese is free to make its own regulations.

In the Diocese of Phoenix, the confirmand (the one receiving Confirmation) must be at least a junior in high school and 16 years of age by the time of the reception of the sacrament, whichever is older. So, a person may be 16 years old as a sophomore, but he/she may not receive the sacrament of Confirmation until their junior year.

As with baptism, a person to be confirmed should have a "sponsor". A sponsor may be any baptized and confirmed practicing Catholic. The sponsor will walk with the confirmand on his/her journey toward Confirmation, challenging them in the practice of the faith, in their love and service of the Lord and in their knowledge of the faith. A sponsor should be a person who can really help the confirmand develop their faith life.

The confirmand should also take a "Confirmation name" which can be either their own baptismal name or the name of a saint. During the ceremony of Confirmation, the confirmand is anointed with the oil called "Sacred Chrism". "The post-baptismal anointing with sacred chrism in Confirmation and Ordination is the sign of consecration." (Catechism, #1294)

Confirmation is the beginning of the adult faith life of a person. From this time on a person may hold any office or ministry in the Church. The Holy Spirit comes upon the person in a special way and gives them the strength to live their lives as a good practicing Catholic Christian. Confirmation, then, is a beginning, not a goal.

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Holy Eucharist
"Then he took the bread, said the blessing, broke it, and gave it to them, saying 'This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me.' And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, 'This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you."
(Luke 22:19-20)

"The Word is everything to a child: both Father and Mother, both Instructor and Nurse. 'Eat my Flesh,' He says, 'and drink my Blood.' The Lord supplies us with these intimate nutriments. He delivers over his Flesh, and pours out his Blood; and nothing is lacking for the growth of his children. O incredible mystery!"
St. Clement of Alexandria, The Instructor, about 200 A.D.

Receiving Communion: "In approaching, therefore, do not come up with your wrists apart or with your fingers spread, but make of your left hand a throne for the right, since you are about to receive into it a King. And having hallowed your palm, receive the Body of Christ, saying over it the 'Amen'. Then, … partake, being careful lest you lose anything of it. … Then, after you have communicated yourself with the Body of Christ, come forward also to the cup of His Blood, not reaching out with your hands, but bowing; and sanctify yourself by partaking also of the Blood of Christ. … Then, while awaiting the prayer, give thanks to God, who has deemed you worthy of such great Mysteries."
St. Cyril of Jerusalem, Mystagogic, "The Catechetical Lectures" about 350 A.D.

On the night before He died, Jesus Christ took bread and wine and, by His power as God, changed them into His Body and His Blood and gave them to us as a gift, as our spiritual food. Receiving his Body and Blood is the only thing that we have Christ asking us to do "in memory of me". When we receive the Eucharist, the Body and Blood of Christ, we receive our God. What a gift! What a mystery, that the one who created us should come and share his life with us.

Obviously in order to receive this wondrous gift, a person must be prepared well. At Saint Helen's children usually receive First Holy Communion when they are in the third grade. They should have already had at least a year's participation in our Religious Formation program, have been baptized and been prepared for and had the opportunity to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

There is also a need for the parents to be quite involved in the preparation of their child for the reception of the Eucharist. The parents must know what their children are learning and help them along the way to this great sacrament. Most importantly, this means that the parents themselves should be attending church on a regular basis. It is a great time for the parents to renew and reinvigorate their own faith. The saddest thing would be for parents to prepare their child for this great gift, let them receive it, and then take it away from them by never bringing the child to church again except perhaps at Christmas and Easter. Communion should be a means for reuniting the entire family around God's altar. May it be that blessing to all our families!

First Holy Communions are usually celebrated on the second Sunday after Easter Sunday. Since we have more children receiving First Holy Communion than we could possibly fit into our church, counting their families and friends, we have the children receive at several Masses on this weekend. Dressed in their Communion finest, they enter the church in the entrance procession and receive Communion together. Because this ceremony takes place at most of the Masses on this weekend, the whole parish gets to rejoice at seeing all of these young children receiving the Body and Blood of Christ for the very first time. It is indeed a parish celebration of great joy for us, for the parents, for the child and for the whole parish community.

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Reconciliation (Confession)
"As the Father has sent me, so I send you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained."
(John 20:22-23)

"By all means, let it be irksome to sin again; but let it not be irksome to repent again. Let it be shameful to be endangered again; but let no one be ashamed to be freed again. Medicine must be repeated for a repeated sickness. You will show your gratitude to the Lord if you do not refuse what He offers you again. You have offended, but you are still able to be reconciled. You have One to whom you may make satisfaction, and indeed he is willing."
Tertullian, Repentance about 203 A.D.

Knowing that we are all fragile and inclined to sin, Jesus gave us a great sacrament in which we can receive his divine forgiveness for our sins. Sin is a turning away from God. It is deciding to do something that we know to be wrong, but we are going to do it anyway. After sin, if we are truly sorry for having transgressed God's law and done something wrong, we can confess to God through the priest and God, again through the priest, will forgive us.

To receive this forgiveness, called "absolution", we must do three things: confess our sins, be truly sorry for them, and have a "firm purpose of amendment" which is a fancy way of saying that we have to be willing to try our best not to commit the sin again. The priest cannot under any circumstances at all reveal to anyone (even to the sinner who confessed it if he should meet him/her after confession) the sin and the sinner. He may never connect the sin and the sinner. If a person later wants to talk to the priest about his/her confession, he or she must give the priest permission to talk about it. Don't be surprised if the priest does not remember, we are trained not to remember people's sins.

Here at Saint Helen's parish children are prepared to receive the Sacrament of Reconciliation early in the 3rd grade. They are also given the opportunity to receive the sacrament that year if they wish and their parents think that they are ready. They should have been in the religious education program for at least one year previous to receiving this sacrament.

Again there is a real need for parents to be involved in the training of their children for this sacrament. This training is best done by encouragement and by example. A child will not go to church, go to confession, or go to Communion unless the parents show them the way. We do ask the parents to attend classes for parents and to assist in preparing their children for this wonderful sacrament. It is also a great time for the parents to renew their own spiritual lives. There are usually a couple of special "reconciliation services" or "penance services" for the children to receive their 1st reconciliation.

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Marriage
"There was a wedding in Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding."
(John 2:1-2)

"How am I able to tell of the happiness of that marriage which the church unites and strengthens with the Eucharistic Sacrifice and seals with a blessing, which the angels announce and which the Father considers valid? What a beautiful couple two believers make, who share one faith, one promise, one way of life and the same service of the Lord! Both are children of the same Father, both are fellow servants. There is no division of spirit or body, but they are truly two in one flesh. Where there is one flesh there also is one spirit. Together they pray, together they work and together they make their fast. They instruct one another, encourage one another and sustain one another. They are each together in the church, at the table of God, in difficulties, in persecutions, in refreshment. Neither of them conceals anything from the other, neither of them shuns the other, neither is a burden to the other. They freely visit the sick and help those in need. They give alms without need of persuasion, make sacrifices without hesitation and attend to their daily work without hindrance. They do not hide the sign of their faith, and are neither hurried in their thanksgiving nor muted in their blessing. When Christ sees and hears these things he rejoices and sends his peace to these spouses. Where these two are, there Christ is. Where Christ is, there is no place for the evil one."
Tertullian, Ad Uxorem, To My Wife, about the year 203 A.D.

Marriage in the Roman Catholic Church is the one sacrament where the couple administer the sacrament to themselves "in the presence of a priest (or deacon) and two witnesses." In marriage two people pledge before God their love for each other exclusively for the rest of their lives. In our faith a man and a wife form a "domestic church", a church in their home. It is there that they will nourish one another physically and spiritually; it is there that they will train their children in the ways of God. Such a state of life is not to be taken lightly. It is holy, it is life-giving.

Knowing the pressures that marriages are under today, the Church does everything she can to assist couples in preparing for the marriage, not just for the wedding. Couples coming to the Church to receive this wonderful sacrament are asked to take part in a period of preparation. This is why they are asked to notify the church at least six months before the desired wedding date. We want to help couples have the best possible marriage, so we want to try and prepare them well.

As with everything, there are documents the couple must obtain. They need to get new copies of their Baptismal, Confirmation, and First Holy Communion certificates. These cannot be the ones which the family has kept since the original event, but must be newly issued by the parish in which the celebration of the sacrament took place. If need be, the priest or deacon doing the wedding preparation can give you the address if you know the church and the city. There are also programs for the couple and other requirements. See the priest or deacon who is doing the preparation for complete details.

Please, do not set a date or get a reception hall or plane tickets for relatives until you have confirmed a date and time for the wedding. It has happened that couples have booked a hall only to find that the church is not available for their desired date. Also, if either party has a previous marriage, even if it was not done in a Catholic Church, this previous marriage must be annulled before a wedding date can be set.

If a "mixed marriage", that is, one between a Catholic and a non-Catholic, is to take place, the non-Catholic may certainly invite his minister to take part in the ceremony. See the priest or deacon for how this can be done.

Weddings are discouraged during the Holy Season of Lent. If a wedding must take place at this time, it will be just the wedding ceremony, not including a Mass.

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Holy Orders
"Jesus said to them again, 'Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, so I send you.' And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the Holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.'"
(John 22:21-23)

"While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, 'Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.' Then, completing their fasting and prayer, they laid hands on them and sent them off."
(Acts 13:2-3)

"Therefore it is necessary … that you should do nothing without the bishop, but be subject also to the presbytery, as to the Apostles of Jesus Christ our hope, for if we live in him we shall be found in him. And they also who are deacons of the mysteries of Jesus Christ must be in every way pleasing to all men. For they are not ministers of food and drink, but servants of the Church of God; they must therefore guard against blame as against fire.
"Likewise let all respect the deacons as they would Jesus Christ, and just as they respect the Bishop as a type of the Father, and the Presbyters as the Council of God and College of Apostles. Without these, it cannot be called a Church."
St. Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Trallians, @107 A.D.

Holy Orders is a sacrament with three levels, so to speak. The person who is ordained a bishop has received the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders. He is truly the spiritual leader of our Church. The priest, or presbyter, is ordained to assist the bishop in his role as chief teacher and liturgist. A priest is an extension of the bishop. The deacon is the extension of the priest, in a sense. The bishop and priest have as their chief duty the administration of the sacraments and the preaching of the Word of God. The deacon assists the bishop and priests in the administration of the sacraments and also preaches the Word of God.

In the early Church bishops, priests and deacons could be married. It soon became the practice that bishops could not be married. In the Western, or Roman Church (more correctly called the "Latin Church") the practice of having a married clergy had ended, for the most part, by the 12th century. In the 20th century the Latin Church began allowing non-Catholic ministers who converted to Catholicism to become priests even if they were married (we have one such priest here in the Diocese of Phoenix), but men who are baptized Catholic must remain celibate if they wish to be a priest or a deacon.

The Eastern Catholic Churches, all in union with Rome, have never abandoned the practice of a married clergy. We have two married Eastern Catholic priests in the Phoenix area. The standard practice in the Eastern Catholic Churches is that married men may become priests or deacons (but priests or deacons may not get married; they must be married before ordination). Generally the practice is that monks (priests in monasteries) are celibate, and parish priests are married, although some parish priests are also celibate. Bishops are chosen from the celibate clergy.

If a man wishes to become a priest or a deacon, he must contact his pastor who will then put him in touch with the proper people in the Diocesan Office.

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Anointing of the Sick
"Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone in good spirits? He should sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the priests of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven."
(The Letter of James 5:13-15)

"But a gate has been opened for seeking peace, whereby the mist has lifted from the reason of the multitude; and light has dawned in the mind; and from the glistening olive, fruits are put forth, in which there is a sign of the sacrament of life, by which Christians are perfected, as well as priests and kings and prophets. It illuminates the darkness, anoints the sick, and leads back penitents in its secret sacrament."
Aphraates the Persian Sage, Treatises, about 330 A.D.

This is the sacrament that used to be called "Extreme Unction", the "Last Anointing". This is no longer the case. Since the Second Vatican Council in the 1960's the name was changed to "The Anointing of the Sick" since it was for the sick not just for the dying.

Since the earliest days the Church has used oil to anoint people. We use it in Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Orders, and the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. Oil in the Church is a symbol of strength, and in this sacrament we pray that the person will be given the strength to return to their place before God's altar.

It is a sacrament for the sick. Therefore people should get it when they are sick. Many times people who have to go to the hospital call and come into the office to receive the sacrament before entering the hospital. This is great, because the person can join in the prayers along with their family. Many times the family gathers at the house and the priest comes and anoints the person at home when they can also pray with and for the sick person. This too is wonderful.

The worst thing to do, both for the sick person and the family, is to let a sick person deteriorate until they are unconscious and in immediate danger of death and then call the priest to see if he can come right over. There are times when the priest cannot come. Don't wait. If you wait until you need a priest "right now", you may not be able to get one. A real emergency, like a heart attack or a stroke, fine; we will try our best to get there. In other cases, please give us time. Call and make an appointment and then we will be able to come when the sick person as well as family can pray together for the individual. That can be a very moving and beautiful experience. The prayers are for healing, both physical and spiritual, and forgiveness of sins is part of this sacrament. That is why it must be administered by a priest and not by a deacon or anyone else.

If the sick person is in a hospital, please ask the hospital to call the Catholic parish that takes care of the hospital. That way you can make sure that you will get a priest in the quickest possible time.

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"Catching Up" On Your Sacraments
Sometimes, for a variety of reasons, a Catholic gets baptized but then does not receive any other sacrament or just perhaps Holy Communion. They then realize that they would like to renew their faith and have the other sacraments. This is really great. They are following God's call to become fully initiated Catholics, and we are most happy to help them out. Each person is different, so we urge you to call the parish office (623-979-4202) so that you can be placed in the best program for you.

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Coming Into the Catholic Church
Many times a person who is not Catholic will feel drawn to the Catholic Church. This can happen for a variety of reasons: the person is married to a Catholic, and likes the faith he/she sees in his/her spouse; the person is on a spiritual journey and has seen God working in some way in the Catholic Church; or the person has been drawn to the Church by a Catholic friend or acquaintance. In any case we welcome any and all who want to discover our Catholic Church, its spirituality, its way of life, its way of prayer.

Based on your background, if you are baptized or not baptized, or if you have had any education in the tenets of Christianity, etc., you will be placed in a program best suited to your needs and expectations.

If you are in a second marriage or have been married already and are planning to marry a Catholic, please let us know this so that arrangements can be made to have the first marriage annulled in the Catholic Church.

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