''Ex opere operato'' is a

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

phrase meaning "from the work worked" that, in reference to

sacrament A sacrament is a Christian rite which is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence, number and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol ...

s, signifies that they derive their

efficacy Efficacy is the ability to perform a task to a satisfactory or expected degree. The word comes from the same roots as '' effectiveness'', and it has often been used synonymously, although in pharmacology a distinction is now often made betwee ...

not from the minister (which would mean that they derive it ''ex opere operantis'', meaning "from the work of the worker") or from the recipient, but from the sacrament considered independently of the merits of the minister or the recipient. According to the ''ex opere operato'' interpretation of the sacraments, any positive effect comes not from any human worthiness or faith, but from the sacrament as an instrument of

God In monotheistic belief systems, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. In polytheistic belief systems, a god is "a spirit or being believed to have created, or for controlling some part of the un ...

. "Affirming the ''ex opere operato'' efficacy means being sure of God's sovereign and gratuitous intervention in the sacraments." For example, in

confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant (religion), covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. The ceremony typically involves laying on o ...

the

Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit, otherwise known as the Holy Ghost, is a concept within the Abrahamic religions. In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is understood as the divine quality or force of God manifesting in the world, particularly in acts of prophecy, creati ...

is bestowed not through the attitude of the

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

nor of the person being confirmed, but freely by God through the instrumentality of the sacrament. However, in order to receive sacraments fruitfully, it is believed necessary for the recipient to have

faith Faith is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept. In the context of religion, faith is " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". According to the Merriam-Webster's Dictionary, faith has multiple definitions, inc ...

Antiquity

In Antiquity, the idea led to a

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

among the Donatist Christians. The Donatists held that "one of the three

s who had consecrated

Caecilian Caecilians (; ) are a group of limbless, vermiform (worm-shaped) or serpentine (snake-shaped) amphibians with small or sometimes nonexistent eyes. They mostly live hidden in soil or in streambeds, and this cryptic lifestyle renders caecilians ...

was a traditor", and therefore Caecilian's consecration was invalid. Furthermore, they held "that the validity of such an act depended on the worthiness of the bishop performing it" and Caecilian and his followers "responded that the validity of the sacraments and of other such acts cannot be made to depend on the worthiness of the one administering them, for in that case all Christians would be in constant doubt regarding the validity of their own baptism or of the Communion of which they had partaken."

In the Roman Catholic Church

According to the teaching of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, to receive the fruits of the sacraments requires that a person be properly disposed. This means the

of grace via the sacraments is not automatic. There must be, at least in the case of an adult, an openness to use the sufficient grace which is available in a

. When the recipient is properly disposed, "the sacraments are instrumental causes of grace."

Biblical basis of the sacraments

The sacraments work ex opere operato as manifestations of Jesus' actions and words during his life. Baptism and Confirmation are the manifestation of Jesus' baptism by

John the Baptist John the Baptist ( – ) was a Jewish preacher active in the area of the Jordan River in the early first century AD. He is also known as Saint John the Forerunner in Eastern Orthodoxy and Oriental Orthodoxy, John the Immerser in some Baptist ...

and anointing by the Holy Spirit,

Holy Orders In certain Christian denominations, holy orders are the ordination, ordained ministries of bishop, priest (presbyter), and deacon, and the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders. Churches recognizing these orders inclu ...

is the manifestation of Jesus' calling of the twelve Apostles, Matrimony is the manifestation of the Wedding at Cana, Anointing of the Sick is the manifestation of Jesus' miracles, Confession is the manifestation of Jesus' forgiveness of sins, and the Eucharist is the manifestation of the Last Supper and

Paschal Mystery The Paschal mystery is central to Catholic faith and theology relating to the Salvation history, history of salvation. According to the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, "The Paschal Mystery of Jesus, which comprises his Passion ...

Sacramentals

The teaching of the Roman Catholic Church regarding sacramentals is their efficacy comes ''ex opere operantis Ecclesiae'' (i.e., from what the doer, the Church, does), not ''ex opere operato'' (from what is done): i.e., as the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the or , was the 21st and most recent ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. The council met each autumn from 1962 to 1965 in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City for session ...

said, “they signify effects, particularly of a spiritual kind, which are obtained through the Church's intercession”. They “do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church's prayer they prepare us to receive grace and dispose us to cooperate with it”. Sacramentals dispose the soul to receive grace and may remit venial sins when used prayerfully.

In the Lutheran Churches

The

Lutheran Church Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...

es see as

s: baptism, eucharist, as well as confession and absolution. Lutherans teach that through the sacrament of

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

, the soul is cleansed of

original sin Original sin () in Christian theology refers to the condition of sinfulness that all humans share, which is inherited from Adam and Eve due to the Fall of man, Fall, involving the loss of original righteousness and the distortion of the Image ...

and bestowed salvific grace. The Lutheran Churches affirm the

real presence of Christ in the Eucharist The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist, sometimes shortened Real Presence'','' is the Christian doctrine that Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically, but in a true, real and substantial way. T ...

and hold that the

Mass Mass is an Intrinsic and extrinsic properties, intrinsic property of a physical body, body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the physical quantity, quantity of matter in a body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physi ...

is a sacrifice of thanksgiving and praise. In the Lutheran sacrament of confession and absolution, the priest pronounces forgiveness on the penitent '' in persona Christi'' and through these words, the believer receives "grace and forgiveness". The Lutheran doctrine is distinguished from the Roman Catholic doctrine: The Lutheran doctrine is distinguished from Reformed (Continental Reformed, Presbyterian, Congregationalist and Anglican) doctrine:

In the Continental Reformed, Anglican, Congregataionalist, and Presbyterian traditions

Anglicanism Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

, the impiety of the minister does not invalidate the sacrament, but faith and repentance is required by the receiver. Article XXVI of the Thirty-Nine Articles (''Of the unworthiness of ministers which hinders not the effect of the Sacrament'') states that the ministration of the Word (scripture) and sacraments is not done in the name of the priest or minister and that the efficacy of Christ's sacraments is not taken away by the wickedness of the clergy in them who by faith worthily and rightly receive the sacraments. This is because sacraments have their efficacy due to Christ’s promise to his church. Likewise, the

Westminster Confession The Westminster Confession of Faith, or simply the Westminster Confession, is a Reformed confession of faith. Drawn up by the 1646 Westminster Assembly as part of the Westminster Standards to be a confession of the Church of England, it beca ...

, states in Chapter 27, Art. 3: “The grace which is exhibited in or by the sacraments rightly used, is not conferred by any power in them; neither doth the efficacy of a sacrament depend upon the piety or intention of him that doth administer it: but upon the work of the Spirit, and the word of institution, which contains, together with a precept authorizing the use thereof, a promise of benefit to worthy receivers.” However, it is important to note that Reformed confessions (such as the Westminster Confession) reject the ex opera operato effect of sacraments, since grace is received through faith. Sacraments are means to strengthen faith, not instruments to bestow Divine grace.

, Chapter 29, Art. 7: "Worthy receivers, outwardly partaking of the visible elements in this sacrament, do then also inwardly by faith, really and indeed, yet not carnally and corporally, but spiritually, receive and feed upon Christ crucified, and all benefits of his death: the body and blood of Christ being then not corporally or carnally in, with, or under the bread and wine; yet as really, but spiritually, present to the faith of believers in that ordinance, as the elements themselves are, to their outward senses." The Heidelberg Catechism (1563) defines sacraments as signs and seals of Gods promise. It relates grace, faith and sacrament in this way: "Q & A 66 Q. What are sacraments?A. Sacraments are visible, holy signs and seals. They were instituted by God so that by our use of them he might make us understand more clearly the promise of the gospel, and seal that promise. And this is God’s gospel promise: to grant us forgiveness of sins and eternal life by grace because of Christ’s one sacrifice accomplished on the cross. Q & A 67 Q. Are both the word and the sacraments then intended to focus our faith on the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross as the only ground of our salvation? A. Yes! In the gospel the Holy Spirit teaches us and by the holy sacraments confirms that our entire salvation rests on Christ’s one sacrifice for us on the cross."

Antiquity

In the Roman Catholic Church

Biblical basis of the sacraments

Sacramentals

In the Lutheran Churches

In the Continental Reformed, Anglican, Congregataionalist, and Presbyterian traditions

See also

References

Further reading