Lesson 3 –
Are the Sacraments Necessary for Salvation?

Aquinas responded to such questions by affirming how necessary it is for us to accept all of Christ’s means of salvation.

It would be against Christ to refuse one of His gifts. However, should we not utilize a sacrament through no fault of our own, salvation is still possible, but it’s rendered more difficult.

Course Reading

Summa Theologiae III q. 61, a. 1 | St. Thomas Aquinas

Summa Theologiae III q. 61, a. 2 | St. Thomas Aquinas

God and the World, pp. 397-398 | Joseph Ratzinger and Peter Seewald

Excerpt from the Summa Theologiae III q. 61, a. 1, ad. 2:

God's grace is a sufficient cause of man's salvation. But God gives grace to man in a way which is suitable to him. Hence it is that man needs the sacraments that he may obtain grace.

Course Listening

The Moral Grammar of the Human Person as a Body-Soul Unity | Prof. Paul Gondreau

Is the Human Person Naturally Religious? | Fr. Thomas Joseph White, O.P.