Valid and Licit

While a bit of a dry topic, it can be helpful for Catholics to know some basic information about how the Church handles legal matters, especially in regards to the administration of the Sacraments.

Canon law distinguishes between the valid and the licit (lawful) administration of the Sacraments. A Sacrament is administered validly when it is administered in such a way as to effectively confer the graces which Christ intends to confer through the sacramental sign. Validity, then, has to do with the actual conferral of grace through the administration and reception of a particular Sacrament.

Liceity goes beyond validity, though the licit administration assumes a Sacrament’s prior validity. (If the Sacrament is invalid, then it cannot be licit.) A Sacrament is administered licitly when the liturgical conditions established by Christ and the Church for the Sacrament’s administration are faithfully observed. The proper conditions for administering the Sacraments are given in the Code of Canon Law. It is possible for a Sacrament to be administered validly but not licitly, as when a layperson confers Baptism in the absence of urgent necessity.

The proper administration of a Sacrament requires that its conferral be at once licit and valid. The word licit means lawful, or legitimate. A Sacrament is administered licitly when the liturgical rites set forth by the Church for its conferral are faithfully observed, that is, when it is performed according to the laws of the Church. It is illicit (illegal) when those celebrating the Sacraments break such laws in the liturgy.

The validity of a Sacrament refers to its effectiveness. In a validly administered Sacrament, the grace that is signified is actually conferred through the required conditions of proper matter, form (the prescribed words), and circumstances. “Proper matter” is the material symbol (such as water, oil, bread, wine, or physical gestures like imposition of hands). In order to administer it validly, the minister of a Sacrament must have the intention of doing what the Church desires.

A Sacrament can only be conferred licitly if it is conferred validly. For example, a priest may have every intention of confecting the Holy Eucharist at Mass, but if improper matter such as grape juice is used instead of wine, the Sacrament is not valid. In that example, the juice does not become the Blood of Christ as it is considered “invalid matter” and remains purely juice.