"The seven sacraments touch all the stages and all the important moments of Christian life; they give birth and increase, healing and mission to the Christian's life of faith. There is thus a certain resemblance between the stages of natural life and the stages of spiritual life." (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1210)

Sacraments are visible signs of God's invisible grace. As the old Baltimore Catechism so succinctly put it, "A sacrament is an outward sign instituted by Christ to give grace." A sign is something we can perceive with our senses. We can see and feel the water used in baptism. The priest can hear the words of the penitent in confession. The seven sacraments of the Church were given to us by the Lord Jesus himself so that we may receive sanctifying grace, the grace that makes us holy. And the sacraments truly confer the grace they signify. The pages in this section provide more information about the Sacraments at St. Stephen Martyr.