Final Output in Theology 1 : A Comprehensive Reflection Paper

“streetlight”

Just like a streetlight this subject guided me to a path that has led me to a way that has light,
the most significant learning I attained is learning the purpose and the process of the
sacraments because even if you got blessed with the sacraments it does not really matter if
you don’t understand the soul purpose of the sacrament that you got, Throughout the
history of religion, the significance of sacraments has remained unchanged. There are key
terms in relation to the language of sacraments. These words are rite, ritual, liturgy,
worship, grace, sign, symbol, and sacrament. Although these outward signs, symbols, and
tokens may differ among various religions, the role they play in worship is unanimous. Many
of these sacraments are held as sacred practices and viewed as necessary. Within the
practice of Roman Catholicism there are seven sacraments that can be made. These
sacraments are comprised of baptism, confirmation, confession, marriage, the appointment
of priests or holy orders, and the anointing of the sick.

The Sacraments of Initiation are vital to the life of a Christian as they are the foundation of a
Christians life. The Sacraments of Initiation welcome the members of the Christian
community into the life of Christ and give us purpose and a sense of belonging into our true
family.

Baptism is when we are officially welcomed into the life of the Church and cleansed of the
original sin. Through Baptism we are born anew and transformed into a child of the Lord.
Through Baptism we become permanent members of the church and we are needed to fulfil
the mission of Christ.

The second Sacrament of Initiation, Confirmation, our Baptismal promises are sealed and
completed, and we are spiritually nourished by the Holy spirit to follow in the footsteps of
Christ.

In the Eucharist we are taking the body and blood of Christ. Through this sacrament we are
being given spiritual food into which we use in our everyday lives to fulfil our moral
obligation to follow in the footsteps of Christ.

Each of the above-mentioned sacraments serve as a visible or outward sign of our “inward
grace.” The use of these sacraments in worship affords us the opportunity to give to God
that to which we owe him, in turn we are provided with the graces needed to live a truly
human life. The first of the sacraments- that of baptism, confirmation, and Holy
Communion- are those of greatest importance as our life as a Christian is dependent upon
them.
 In understanding the gist of the four modules, I realized that all the practices we have right
now and all that has been practiced before are all in the scriptures already, the idea of the
church as not just a mere building but it could also be our physical self, the revelation of
Christ in many ways, the sacred scriptures are a collection of books written over hundreds of
years. God himself is the author of the Sacred Scriptures, inspiring human authors under the
influence of the Holy Spirit to write the books and it guided us to the practice which is right
and just. The Scriptures, since they are inspired by the Holy Spirit, teach the truth. That is
not to say that there are not some seeming contradictions in the Bible. These contradictions
must be read in the light of the whole. Taken together, the whole of the Scriptures reveals
God speaking to mankind in every situation. The Holy Spirit continues to work in the church
today in teaching us how to understand, interpret, and apply the Scriptures through faith
and diligent study. As believers open the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit helps them to discern
God’s truth and will from the Word. As the church gathers around the Word, the Holy Spirit
leads God’s people into all truth. The Scriptures themselves are the primary standard for
understanding and interpreting the Bible. The person, teaching, and work of Jesus Christ
best clarify God’s written revelation.

We believe that the Bible is God’s message of salvation for all people. As believers, we
accept the Bible as the final authority for faith and practice. The Holy Spirit continues to
work in the church today in teaching us how to understand, interpret, and apply the
Scriptures through faith and diligent study. As believers open the Scriptures, the Holy Spirit
helps them to discern God’s truth and will from the Word. As the church gathers around the
Word, the Holy Spirit leads God’s people into all truth. The Scriptures themselves are the
primary standard for understanding and interpreting the Bible. The person, teaching, and
work of Jesus Christ best clarify God’s written revelation. We are called to read and obey the
Bible. Therefore, the church needs to provide faithful preaching and teaching of the
Scriptures. Individuals and families should practice Bible reading and study. As we read and
respond obediently to the counsel of God’s Word, our statements of belief have integrity.
We can think of many people in the Bible who had gotten themselves thrown into prison or
sentenced to death. But the interesting thing is that many of the stories of people dealing
with authority problems show us that these men and women were still submissive to
authority even when they found they could not obey authority. We are told in Romans 13:1-
6 to submit to authority. And we are told by Peter in Acts 5:29 that he knew it was right to
obey God rather than man’s laws that went against God. There is no conflict in these two
passages. We should obey God’s laws rather than man’s laws; however, we should also be
willing to submit to the punishment and consequences that may come our way as a
result.Most of the time there is no conflict between submission and obedience. We just like
to use examples of disobedience to authority in the Bible as an excuse to do things our own
way.
 In responding to God’s call, as a baptized and confirmed catholic there are a lot of
challenges that confront me. As I went through time, I’m not saying that it is a necessity to
really engage to recreational activities such us going out for the night and have some fun,
but it is one of the factors that hinder me to answer the call of God with conscience I would
admit it and I realized that those night can be used as steeping stones to a better version of
myself.

God really reveals to us in many ways even in the most unconventional ways if we only seek
and we will always find him in my life God has never failed to show himself in times where I
seek for him it magical to think that even in times its hard to see but eventually he is there
all the time this subject made me understand the technically of what being a man of God is
it made me realize that no matter what happens if you are in his side you will never lose. As
I aged from time to time I realized that as a person ther is no perfect we will always have
our bad sides it is normal even for us Catholics as a person we are all imperfect but we have
a perfect God and that is the only piece that can make us worthy just by his powers we are
perfect if we have him then we are complete and we don’t need anything else everything
then follows financial, physical, emotional, spiritual and in all aspects of conflict God is
always the answer all we need to do is accept him as our lord and savior and respect him for
his glory and power.