The Sacraments are efficacious signs of grace, instituted by our Lord Jesus Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which God’s divine life is dispensed to us. The visible rites by which the Sacraments are celebrated signify and make present the graces proper to each Sacrament. They bear fruit in those who receive them with the required disposition. —Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1131
The official Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church are rooted in (1) the life and ministry of Jesus Christ and (2) the Tradition of the Catholic Church. As the Church grows in its understanding of what God has revealed through Jesus’ life and teachings, we recognize seven primary ways God’s grace is active in our lives.