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SACRAMENTS: Sacrament of the
Sick
Last revised:
March 13, 2008 10:01 AM
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Healing On All Levels
In
the religious understanding of the time, an illness or disability was thought
to result from sin of the person or his parents. Jesus told the crowd that however
they wanted to explain the man's paralysis, He had the power to heal on all levels.
And He did just that. Where do you most need healing? Ask and it will be given
to you.
©2002 Parish Communications. |
On this Page:
Eucharistic
Ministers for the Homebound | Visiting the Sick in Hospitals
Sacrament of Anointing the Sick | The Pyx:
Communion at Home
Eucharistic
Ministers for the Homebound
The Parish
Nurses would like to make themselves available to the homebound parishioners.
If you are serving a homebound parishioner and feel that they may benefit from
a call or visit from the Parish Nurse, please call Contact Kathy Breslin through
the Parish Office at 268-2244.
| Visiting the Sick in Hospitals
We are happy to visit our hospitalized parishioners. To make
that happen we need a family member or friend to contact the parish. That is the
only way we know that someone is in the hospital. Many years ago when I was first
ordained, I would go to St. John Hospital in Detroit every Friday afternoon. At
the Information Desk I could put together a list of parishioners and then proceed
to visit them. It has not worked like that in many years. Even in Catholic Hospitals
HIPPA and other privacy regulations prevent this kind of information sharing.
The only way we have of knowing if a loved one is in the hospital is if someone
notifies the parish office. It is also helpful, when calling about someone
who is ill, to help us understand their condition. For example, are they in need
of the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, the Eucharist, or both? If requesting
the Eucharist, are they able to swallow or take food by mouth? I have been embarrassed
more than once when called upon to anoint a dying person. Believing they could
not swallow or take food, I failed to bring the Blessed Sacrament only to find
that they could receive the Body and Blood of Christ. I suppose one might suggest
that I automatically bring the Blessed Sacrament with me. This however, tends
to lead to a rather casual attitude toward the Eucharist. The Body and Blood of
Christ is not like an umbrella or flash light that one carries along, "just
in case." So a little bit of information such as this can be helpful in avoiding
awkward misunderstandings. From Randy's Rummage by
Fr. Randy Phillips in The Flame, September 2, 2007 |
Sacrament
of Anointing of the Sick Please notify the parish office when there
is a serious illness in your family. We encourage families not to wait until death
is imminent. Anointing is intended for critical moments at the onset of illness,
the progression of a serious disease, or a notable weakening in the physical condition
of an elderly person. Please contact Fr. Randy Phillips at the Parish Office
at 586-268-2244.
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Those who would be "proper recipients" for this sacrament
are those who are seriously impaired with sickness or old age. The sacrament is
not limited to the elderly. If there are children in our community who are in
need of anointing and who can appreciate the sacrament, then we would certainly
invite them to be anointed as well. Contact the Parish Office for more details at (586) 268-2244. |
There remains confusion over the celebration of the Sacrament of
Anointing of the Sick. Who may be anointed? According to Church teaching the sacrament
should be administered only to those who are SERIOUSLY ILL. “Serious”
does not mean in danger of death. In fact, Canon Law says elderly people can be
anointed if they have become notably weak even though no serious illness is present.
This does not mean that all elderly persons are eligible for this sacrament. Many
seniors are in good health and do not consider themselves ill or failing.
The church does not define or describe what exactly constitutes “serious
illness.” The individual based on his circumstances and conscience must make
this determination. However, it is clear that the sacrament is NOT FOR EVERYONE.
When healthy persons or those who have a minor illness receive the sacrament,
the symbolic value and meaning of the sacrament is compromised and cheapened.
Sure, all of us have our brokenness and our wounds. These in themselves, however,
do not qualify us to receive the anointing of the sick. Anointing is intended
for critical moments at the onset of illness, the progression of a serious disease,
or a notable weakening in the physical condition of an elderly person.
Another area of confusion pertains to emotional or mental illness. According to
church teaching, someone suffering emotional illness may receive this sacrament.
However, such illness also requires on going treatment by professionals. The sacrament
must be safeguarded from being used in a superstitious manner. A different approach
is taken with those recovering from addictions, such as alcoholism. While not
forbidding the sacrament in such cases, the preferred avenue for spiritual help
an addiction situation is the sacrament of reconciliation, not anointing. This
is because the recovery is not acute or in a crisis stage.
Finally, at
what age can the sacrament be received? While we tend to associate illness with
age, we need to remember that disease has no such prejudice. However, Canon Law
states that those to be anointed must have reached the age of reason. The law
presumes the use of reason is attained by age seven. This upholds the close relation
the anointing of the sick enjoys with the sacrament of reconciliation. Just as
attaining the age of reason is necessary prior to receiving reconciliation, so
likewise the sacrament of the sick. Both sacraments involve coming face to face
with our weakness and frailty. Both reconciliation and anointing are sacraments
of healing and liberation.
Rev. Randall R.
Phillips
© 2004 Liturgical Publications Inc, St. Blase Parish, Sterling
Heights |
| The Pyx: Communion
at Home Each week in "The
Flame" we list our members who are ill. Please use this list in your
prayer during the week. We also encourage family members to bring the Eucharist
to their infirm loved one at home.  | The
proper container for carrying the Blessed Sacrament is a pyx (pronounced
the same as "picks"). These are available in the sacristy or just ask
one of the ushers for assistance. We also have communion ministers who bring the
Eucharist to the sick in those cases where a family member is not able to do so.
|
I do my best to visit or at least call parishioners
who are hospitalized. Please remember that we do not know someone is in the hospital
unless you inform us. Hospitals, even Catholic hospitals, due to legal and privacy
laws, cannot make that information available to a parish or a priest. From
Randy's Rummage by Fr. Randy Phillips in The Flame, June 18, 2006 |
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