Why settle for plain old vanilla?

Twice this week I’ve been blessed to hear two different speakers on the radio talking about the 7 Sacraments.  

The first speaker was a priest who refers to them as “hatching, matching, and dispatching”. 

“Hatching” refers to the Sacraments of Initiation—Baptism, Eucharist, Reconciliation, and Confirmation—which bring us to Christ and nurture our faith.  

“Matching” is the Sacraments of Marriage and Holy Orders, which bring us closer to Christ by embracing the vocation He desires for us.

“Dispatching” is the Sacraments of Anointing of the Sick and Last Rites, which bring us closer to Christ by imparting the Grace we need to bear our distress in times of ill health or imminent death.

I just thought that was a simple way of explaining the Sacraments to someone who might be confused about their importance in our lives.

Then yesterday, I heard a woman compare the Sacraments to creme brûlée.  She came from a Christian tradition that doesn’t recognize the Sacraments as the presence of the Holy Trinity in our soul.  She said she was tempted a few times to leave the Catholic Church because of the scandals that just seem to be getting uglier and uglier, but she didn’t, because although other traditions out there can be “as sweet as vanilla” and pleasing to God, she’s tasted the “creme brûlée” that is the True Presence of Christ in the Sacraments, and doesn’t want to go back to “plain old vanilla”.  I concur.