International Theological Commission

The Reciprocity between Faith and Sacraments in the Sacramental Economy International Theological Commission

The personal relationship with the Triune God is realized through faith and the sacraments. Between faith and the sacraments there is a mutual ordination and a circularity, in a word: an essential reciprocity. However, confession of faith precedes sacramental celebration, while sacramental celebration secures, seals, strengthens and enriches faith. Yet today, in pastoral practice, this interaction is often blurred or even ignored.

This document therefore intends to highlight the essential reciprocity between faith and sacraments, showing the mutual implication between faith and sacraments in the divine economy. In this way it can contribute to overcoming the fracture between faith and sacraments wherever it occurs, in its double aspect: whether it is a faith that is not aware of its essential sacramentality; or whether it is a sacramental praxis carried out without faith or whose vigor raises serious questions regarding the faith and the intention according to faith that the practice of the sacraments requires.