Catholicism is characterized by sacramental celebrations. It is through the sacraments that humanity enters into intimate contact with the living God and into deeper relationship with the faith community in which the sacraments are most properly celebrated. The goal of this book is to foster a deeper appreciation for these familiar rituals and to encourage personal development of a sacramental outlook toward everyday life experiences. The booklet begins with some broad-based thoughts on sacraments. Relationships, definitions, the teaching of prominent doctors of the church, the role of ritual and symbol, and contemporary understandings are presented. An examination of the sacramental system follows. Then each sacrament, placed in its defining group of initiation, healing, or vocation, is discussed.

Finally, the origin and meaning of sacramentals concludes the booklet. Questions throughout the text facilitate understanding. Examples are as follows: When have you experienced an event filled with inexhaustible meaning? When have you had a sense of the holy? Can you think of a story or event which, though not factually true, accurately revealed the way something was?