Sacramental
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A sacramental (Latin pl. sacramentalia) is a sacred sign, a ritual act or a ceremony, which, in a certain imitation of the sacraments, has a spiritual effect and is obtained through the intercession of the Church.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Sacramentals surround the sacraments like a wreath and extend them into the everyday life of Christians. Sacramentals are recognised by the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Church of the East, the Lutheran churches, the Old Catholic Church, the Anglican churches, and Independent Catholic churches.
In the Bible, prayer cloths and holy oil are mentioned in reference to praying for healing.<ref name="Payne1996"/><ref name="Pearson2004">Template:Cite book</ref> Holy water is a sacramental that the faithful use to recall their baptism; other common sacramentals include blessed candles (given to the faithful on Candlemas), blessed palms (blessed on the beginning of the procession on Palm Sunday), blessed ashes (bestowed on Ash Wednesday), a cross necklace (often taken to be blessed by a pastor before daily use), a headcovering (worn by women, especially during prayer and worship), blessed salt, and holy cards, as well as Christian art, especially a crucifix.<ref name="SaraivaMargry2016">Template:Cite book</ref><ref name="Myers2018">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Apart from those worn daily, such as a cross necklace or devotional scapular, sacramentals such as a family Bible, are often kept on home altars in Christian households.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Turpin1993">Template:Cite book</ref> Ichthys emblems are sacramentals applied to vehicles to signify that the owner is a Christian and to offer protection while driving.<ref name="Kosloski 2017">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Bates2008">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> When blessed in a betrothal ceremony, engagement rings become a sacramental.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
As an adjective, sacramental means "of or pertaining to sacraments".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Biblical basis
The Biblical basis for the use of sacramentals is that Jesus Christ used a form of sacramentals himself; for example, when he healed a blind man, he made a mud paste that he put over the eyes of the man, before telling him to wash in the Pool of Siloam.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Prayer cloths and holy oil are mentioned in reference to praying for healing, as in Template:Bibleverse and Template:Bibleverse.<ref name="Payne1996"/><ref name="Pearson2004"/>
Denominational usage
Catholic
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The Catholic Church defines sacramentals asTemplate:Quote
Sacramentals do not confer the grace of the Holy Spirit in the way that the sacraments do, but by the Church's prayer, they prepare one to receive grace and dispose a person to cooperate with it. "For well-disposed members of the faithful, the liturgy of the sacraments and sacramentals sanctifies almost every event of their lives with the divine grace which flows from the Paschal mystery of the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Christ. From this source all sacraments and sacramentals draw their power."<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church § 1670</ref>
The Catechism of the Catholic Church lists three types of sacramentals: blessings,<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church § 1671</ref> consecrations and dedications,Template:Sfn and exorcisms.Template:Sfn At the Second Vatican Council, the church called for the forms of each sacramental "to undergo a revision which takes into account the primary principle of enabling the faithful to participate intelligently, actively, and easily" and for new sacramentals to be adopted if a need for them "becomes apparent".<ref name=sc />Template:Rp In special circumstances and at the discretion of the ordinary, sacramentals may be administered by "qualified lay persons".<ref name=sc />Template:Rp
Rosary beads, scapulars, medals and religious images are more accurately termed devotional articles; prayers such as the rosary, the stations of the cross, litanies, and novenas are called popular devotions or "expressions of popular piety".Template:Sfn
The Latin Church allows the bestowing of certain sacramentals, such as blessings, "to catechumens and even to non-Catholics unless there is a prohibition of the Church to the contrary.<ref>Code of Canon Law 1170</ref>
Lutheran
In Lutheran churches, sacramentals such as palms and crosses, are used by the faithful.<ref name="Kavouras2021">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Anglican
A text of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America includes items such as the Anglican rosary, ashes, and palms among objects counted as sacramentals.<ref name="Armentrout2000">Template:Cite book</ref>
Pentecostal
Pentecostal theologian Mark Pearson states that the Bible speaks of sacramentals, sometimes referred to as points of contact, such as blessed prayer cloths (Template:Bibleverse) and holy oil (Template:Bibleverse).<ref name="Payne1996">Template:Cite book</ref> He states that God is the source of healing and that Pentecostal clergy "can confidently offer prayer, administer the various sacramentals, and lay hands on the sick".<ref name="Payne1996" />