Please contact the Parish Office for your sacramental needs, including Anointing of the Sick, during office hours.
“Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the presbyters of the Church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith will save the sick man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven.”
– James 5:14-15
The common misunderstanding of this Sacrament of Anointing the Sick is that it is only applicable to those who are at the point of death. Often referred to as Extreme Unction or Last Rites, the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) has made it clear that there are two purposes or dimensions to it:
1. To strengthen those who are being tried by serious illness including those who are experiencing frailty or decline due to advanced age. It asks the Lord to heal that person if it would be conducive to his/her salvation. This anointing with a blessed oil can sometimes result in that person’s recovery. This sacrament can be repeated if the same person’s illness becomes more serious or his/her frailty becomes more pronounced. (CCC Article 5.II)
2. To prepare the dying for the final journey to eternal life. It completes the holy anointings that mark the Christian life began at Baptism. It fortifies and comforts that person giving him/her confidence for the final struggle. This sacrament is often accompanied by the Eucharist, now called viaticum (meaning, “provision for the journey”). (CCC Article 5.V)
This sacrament is oftentimes given to those who are going to undergo major surgeries at the hospital. Please call the Parish Office during office hours to arrange for this Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick if your loved one (or yourself) falls under the situations mentioned above. Those persons, if still able, are encouraged also to take the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Penance before this Anointing sacrament.
If you have a loved one near death, please do not wait until the last moment to call the priest for Anointing. He may not be immediately available, and your loved one may not receive the sacrament in time. At the very start of a serious illness is the time to call the priest for anointing.
In the same manner that the initiation Sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and Eucharist prepare one for the travails of journeying in the Christian life, so does the Sacraments of Penance, Anointing of the Sick and Eucharist prepare one for completing the earthly pilgrimage.