YOUCAT* Sacramentals are sacred signs or sacred actions in which a blessing is conferred. [1667-1672, 1677-1678]
“You Catholics do some strange things — use candles to bless your throat, ashes on your forehead, waving palm branches …” Heard that before? What’s up with that?
Candles, ashes, palm branches, holy water. These are just a few sacramentals used by Catholics. Sacramentals remind us of God’s presence in our lives and call us to prayer. They don’t confer the grace of the Holy Spirit the way the sacraments do, but through our prayer, sacramentals prepare us to receive grace so to live our lives in truth.
*Youth Catechism of the Catholic Church
Lisa Gomes is the director of the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry