Valid Sacraments

In a Sacrament the inward gift of grace is given if the proper minister uses the proper matter and form with the intention of doing what Our Lord wills to be done or of doing what the Church does.

Benefit of a Sacrament

But we must always remember that a Sacrament does us good only if we love Our Lord and are sorry for the sins which we have committed in thought, word and deed.  If a person does not love Jesus and is not sorry for his or her sins, then the Sacrament will be bad for that person.

What makes people’s souls sick and ill is not bothering either about God or about their sins; or, in other words, being without love and without penitence.  And if they receive a Sacrament, such as Holy Communion, in that state it makes them worse then they were before.  Their heart grows hardened towards God so that he no longer means anything to them, and their conscience becomes dulled and unfeeling so that they sin with scarcely an uneasy thought.  So before we can receive any good from a Sacrament, we have first to be sorry for our sins and make up our minds to turn over a new leaf, and then we have to turn to God in trust and love.