Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick:   What is it and who is it for?

In the Fall and again each Spring, Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish will be offering a Communal Celebration of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick.   There is still a great deal of misunderstanding regarding the meaning and use of what is probably the least understood of all the sacraments. In light of this, we offer this brief catechesis on this sacrament.   What follows is the first of several reflections on this sacrament.

Let’s face it.   Most of us of “a certain age” tend to think of this sacrament under its former title, “Extreme unction.”   And we all know what that means: “Send for the priest; the end is near!”   No wonder those about to receive this sacrament often blanche when they see the priest at their door.   Some have even sent the priest packing, apparently convinced that if they aren’t anointed they won’t die, at least not yet!

This sacrament has not always had such a bad press.   Jesus was known as a healer.   The sick used to flock to him and not just those with bodily illnesses.   Those ill in spirit, soul and mind also came to receive his healing touch.    And when Jesus sent out his disciples he directed them to heal as well: “They anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them" (Mark 6:7-13).    As we read in the Letter of James, the early Church continued the healing ministry of Jesus: "Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the Lord. The prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise them up; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven" (James 5: 14-15).

For various and sundry reasons, the practice of Jesus and the early Church of anointing those who were sick yielded in time to the almost exclusive practice of administering this sacrament only to those who were dying. The Catechism of the Catholic Church expresses this change in practice in these words: “o ver the centuries the Anointing of the Sick was conferred more and more exclusively on those at the point of death.” (# 1512)

The Fathers of the Second Vatican Council were determined to return this sacrament to its biblical foundations and, in that way, to make it more widely available to Christians suffering in body, spirit, soul or mind.   As the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy clearly states, the sacrament of anointing "is not a sacrament for those only who are at the point of death" but is intended for all those who are seriously ill. For this reason, it goes on, “as soon as anyone of the faithful begins to be in danger of death from sickness or old age, the fitting time for that person to receive this sacrament has certainly already arrived.” To reflect its wider use, the same Constitution changed its name from “Extreme Unction" to "The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick" (# 73).   Contained in that simple name change is a whole theology of faith and healing, of community and compassion.   In subsequent reflections we will look into some of that theology, recalling that good theology leads to good sacramental practice.

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