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A sacrament is a Christian practice that signifies or effectuates the [[grace]] of [[God]]. These practices are generally understood to have been instituted (or commanded) by Jesus Christ. In some churches the term is referred to as an ordinance. In the [[Roman Catholic Church]], [[Eastern Orthodoxy]], [[Lutheranism]] and some forms of [[Anglicanism]] it is taught that sacraments are not only symbolic but also a means by which God communicates his grace. Most other [[Protestant]] churches hold that sacraments are purely symbolic signs of an inward change. == Origin of the word ==The latin word ''sacramentum'' (holy sign) was used in secular latin for the military oath of allegiance. Its religious usage was introduced by [[Augustine of Hippo|Augustine]]. In his latin translation of the Bible, the [[Vulgata]], [[Jerome]] translated the Greek word mysterion partially with sacramentum, partially with mysterium.