Six major questions posed by St. Thomas
- Whether a sacrament is a kind of sign
- Whether sacraments are necessary for man’s salvation
- Whether the sacraments are the cause of grace
- Whether a sacrament imprints a character on the soul
- Whether God alone, or the preacher also, strives secretly towards the sacramental achievement
- Whether or not there should be 7 sacraments
One question and commentary that St. Thomas uses to scrutinize question in intensity
- Whether or not sacraments are essential for man’s deliverance
St. Thomas read the following articles that helped him answer the stated question above of whether or not sacraments are essential for man’s deliverance: Christian Sacred scripture; John of Damascus; Maimonides; and Paul the Apostle among others.
‘‘What I Found That Is or Is Not Useful for Understanding Sacraments Today’’
The subject of sacraments, since a very long time ago, has raised a lot of questions and noted different interpretations in terms of its significance before and after the coming of Christ and the relevance that it holds, not only in the present times, but also in the past. However, from the work of St. Thomas, especially the chapters and part that talk about sacramental, it gives an in depth analysis that presents varied views and opinions that help the reader get and understand a lot regarding sacramental’s and the way it was used and meaning given to before, during and after Christ came and left.
Discussions and presentations about different perceptions and arguments, regarding sacraments and the significance bestowed on it, have been supported by bible verses along with other religious scriptures in arguing and putting different points and positions on the subject forward. The significance that sacrament has and whether it is necessary to determine and impact on salvation, or not is clearly argued and presented in a simplified manner that enables readers have a clear picture and understanding of the subject at large as noted from the following quote “sacraments is not merely bodily, but to a certain extent spiritual causality’’. Any position stated on the matter is critically argued pointing out spiritual and ‘‘earthly’’ arguments, which touch on the sacrament and the role that it played during early times before Christ and after Christ.
After Christ, sacrament is used mainly in the context of remembrance of the body Christ up to the contemporary times. Even so, before that, it served a different purpose that conveyed a different meaning as noted in ‘‘Passion of Christ is applied to men through the sacraments." Comparing and contrasting the different positions and arguments about sacraments, and supporting it with spiritual scriptures from the bible enables one to reflect and read the scripture to get a deep understanding at own time that is convenient, therefore, facilitating a good understanding of the discussion.
In conclusion, St. Thomas Aquinas work has contributed tremendously on the subject of religion and theology at large that has touched on a variety of matters touching on different topics that have proved to be crucial in the whole area and subject of religion and theology. His work has stood the test of time, something that has helped many people better understand issues and matters that are fundamental for successful completion of the course.
