In the twelfth century, theologian Peter Lombard listed seven
sacraments, all of which have been accepted by the Catholic and Orthodox
Christian churches of today.
While Catholics only recognize these
seven, the Orthodox Church - which refers to them as Mysteries - teaches
that anything that is done through the church and brings people closer
to God is sacramental.
Baptism and Confirmation
Both Catholics and the Orthodox use baptism to bring people into
the church. Typically, Orthodox Christians baptize people by immersing
them in water, while Catholics tend to just sprinkle them. Both groups
baptize people of any age, including infants, and believe that baptism
leads to people's sins being forgiven. Immediately after baptism, the
Orthodox perform Chrismation - what Catholics call confirmation - by
anointing the person with oil to complete their initiation into the
church. Catholics typically wait several years before performing
confirmation on children, until they are old enough to have some
understanding of the event.
Eucharist
After baptism and confirmation, Catholic and Orthodox Christians
can receive the Eucharist, or communion. This sacrament, which takes
place at the end of the worship service, involves the believers eating
bread and wine that both denominations teach has become Jesus' literal
body and blood through consecration. Although both groups restrict the
Eucharist to members of their own church, the Orthodox allow
non-Orthodox Christians to eat bread that has been blessed, but not
consecrated.
Ordination
The ordination ceremony, sometimes called "holy orders," takes
place when a person joins the priesthood. This has three levels: bishop,
priest and deacon. Both the Orthodox and Catholics limit priesthood to
men, although in 2004 the Greek Orthodox Church voted to allow women to
become deaconesses. Although Roman Catholics forbid married priests,
Orthodox Christians will ordain priests and deacons who are already
married.
Penance
Both the Orthodox and Catholics treat penance, or confession, as a
sacrament. Each group expects people to receive penance in order to
participate in Eucharist after committing any serious sin. Typically,
the person should examine his or her conscience and then confess any
sins to a priest or bishop, who may then offer some spiritual guidance
and urge the person to pray or fast as part of their penance.
Marriage
Although both Catholics and Orthodox Christians consider marriage a
sacrament, they have different perspectives about it. Catholics view
matrimony as a binding, unbreakable contract and forbid divorce under
any circumstances. However, they do sometimes allow annulment, in which
they declare the marriage was never valid. The Orthodox, on the other
hand, view marriage as a mystical union rather than a contract and allow
divorce under rare circumstances as an acknowledgment of people's
imperfections.
Holy Oil
Catholics see anointing with holy oil, or "extreme unction," as the
final sacrament to prepare people for death and judgment. The Orthodox
perform the sacrament more frequently and offer it for healing. Within
Orthodoxy, the anointing is preceded by confession and followed by
communion. Both groups reference the Biblical passage James 5:14-15
regarding this sacrament, which says that church leaders should pray
over and anoint anyone who is sick, and that person will be forgiven of
any sins they've committed.