sm is
no longer consecrated, all the mysteries of religion have fled at the
touch of the parricide hands of ungodly men." Therefore a sacrament
requires of necessity that the minister should have the true faith.

Obj. 3: Further, those who have not the true faith seem to be
separated from the Church by excommunication: for it is written in
the second canonical epistle of John (10): "If any man come to you,
and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into the house, nor say
to him; God speed you": and (Titus 3:10): "A man that is a heretic,
after the first and second admonition avoid." But it seems that an
excommunicate cannot confer a sacrament of the Church: since he is
separated from the Church, to whose ministry the dispensation of the
sacraments belongs. Therefore a sacrament requires of necessity that
the minister should have the true faith.

_On the contrary,_ Augustine says against the Donatist Petilian:
"Remember that the evil lives of wicked men are not prejudicial to
God's sacraments, by rendering them either invalid or less holy."

_I answer that,_ As stated above (A. 5), since the minister works
instrumentally in the sacraments, he acts not by his own but by
Christ's power. Now just as charity belongs to a man's own power so
also does faith. Wherefore, just as the validity of a sacrament does
not require that the minister should have charity, and even sinners
can confer sacraments, as stated above (A. 5); so neither is it
necessary that he should have faith, and even an unbeliever can
confer a true sacrament, provided that the other essentials be there.

Reply Obj. 1: It may happen that a man's faith is defective in regard
to something else, and not in regard to the reality of the sacrament
which he confers: for instance, he may believe that it is unlawful to
swear in any case whatever, and yet he may believe that baptism is an
efficient cause of salvation. And thus such unbelief does not hinder
the intention of conferring the sacrament. But if his faith be
defective in regard to the very sacrament that he confers, although
he believe that no inward effect is caused by the thing done
outwardly, yet he does know that the Catholic Church intends to
confer a sacrament by that which is outwardly done. Wherefore, his
unbelief notwithstanding, he can intend to do what the Church does,
albeit he esteem it to be nothing. And such an intention suffices for
a sacrament: because as stated above (A. 8, ad 2) the mi