The Annointing of the Sick

 

Are there sick people among you? Let them send for the priests of the Church and let the priests pray over them anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick persons and the Lord will raise them up. If they have committed any sins, their sins will be forgiven them

(James 5: 14-15)

Priests (presbyters and bishops) are the ministers of the celebration of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. The celebration begins with the Liturgy of the Word which awakens the faith of the sick person and of the community to ask the Lord for the strength of his Spirit. The celebration continues with the Liturgy of the Anointing. It includes the following principal elements: the priest, in silence, lays hands on the sick person, prays over the sick person in the faith of the Church (this is the epiclesis proper to the sacrament), and with oil blessed by the bishop, first anoints the sick person's forehead using these words, Through this holy anointing may the Lord in his love and mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit, and then the hands, May the Lord who frees you from sin save you and raise you up.

The special grace of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick has as it effects: the uniting of the sick person to the passion of Christ, for his or her own good and that of the whole Church; the strengthening, peace and courage to endure in a Christian manner the sufferings of illness or old age; the forgiveness of sins, if the sick person was not able to obtain it through the sacrament of Penance; the restoration of health, if it is conducive to the salvation of his or her soul; the preparation for passing over to eternal life. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph 1532)

In this sacrament a priest anoints the sick with oil blessed specifically for that purpose. "The anointing of the sick can be administered to any member of the faithful who, having reached the use of reason, begins to be in danger by reason of illness or old age" (canon 1004; cf. CCC 1514). A new illness or a worsening of health enables a person to receive the sacrament a further time.  When, in the Western Church, the sacrament was conferred only on those in immediate danger of death, it came to be known as " Extreme Unction", i.e. "Final Anointing", administered as one of the Last Rites. The other Last Rites are Confession (if the dying person is physically unable to confess, at least absolution, conditional on the existence of contrition, is given), and the Eucharist, which when administered to the dying is known as " Viaticum", a word whose original meaning in Latin was "provision for a journey".

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If you or your loved one needs the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, please call Fr. Lupe at the Parish Office at 806-358-1351.