Sacramental Preparation
The primary purpose of all the sacraments is to give worship to God and to build up the Body of Christ. While events in the life and faith of individuals might occasion the celebration of the sacraments, "celebration in the midst of the faith community, by the whole community is the normal and normative way of celebrating any sacrament."
The presence and participation of the assembly is integral to each sacrament. The faith of all is nourished and strengthened by the celebration of a sacrament even when the focus of the liturgical rite is on particular individuals. By the same token, the assembly ministers to those individuals who receive a sacrament in the midst. Because this celebration is the worship action of the entire church, the preparation for the celebration of the sacraments is the proper concern of the whole parish.
Each sacrament, as an encounter with Christ, not only strengthens and nourishes faith, it presupposes faith. Candidates are admitted to a sacrament in stages. The first stage involves a discernment process to determine whether the faith development and readiness level of a candidate support the desire to celebrate the sacrament. The parish community assists the candidate in preparing for the sacrament through the parish catechetical program.