Of God and His Creatures
Of the Need of Sacraments
THE death of Christ is the universal cause of man's salvation: but a
universal cause has to be applied to particular effects. Thus it was
found necessary for certain remedies to be administered to men by way
of bringing Christ's death into proximate connexion with them. Such
remedies are the Sacraments of the Church. And these remedies had to be
administered with certain visible signs: -- first, because God provides
for man, as for other beings, according to his condition; and it is the
condition of man's nature to be led through sensible things to things
spiritual and intelligible: secondly, because instruments must be
proportioned to the prime cause; and the prime and universal cause of
man's salvation is the Word Incarnate: it was convenient therefore
that the remedies, through which that universal cause reaches men,
should resemble the cause in this, that divine power works invisibly
through visible signs.
Hereby is excluded the error of certain heretics, who wish all visible
sacramental signs swept away; and no wonder, for they take all visible things
to be of their own nature evil, and the work of an evil author (B. III,
Chap. XV).*
These visible sacramental signs are the instruments of a God Incarnate
and Crucified (instrumenta Dei incarnati et passi).
4.51, 52 : Arguments against Original Sin, with Replies
4.57 : Of the Difference between the Sacraments of the Old and of the New Law