“Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders 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. Therefore confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. (James 5:14-16)
Anointing of the Sick, formerly known as Extreme Unction or Last Rites is the Sacrament which, through the anointing and prayer of the priest, gives health and strength to the soul, and sometimes to the body, when we are in danger of death from sickness. We should receive the Anointing of the Sick when we are in danger of death from sickness, or from a wound or accident. We should not wait until we are in extreme danger before we receive this anointing, but if possible we should receive it while we have the use of our senses. The graces of Anointing of the Sick are:
Union of the sick person to the Passion of Christ for his own good and the good of the Church; Strength, peace, and courage to endure in a Christian manner the sufferings of illness or old age;
Forgiveness of sins and the penalty for sin if the person is sorry for his sins and unable to receive the Sacrament of Penance;
Restoration of sanctifying grace if sorrow for mortal sin is present;
Restoration of health if it is good for the salvation of the person’s soul;
Preparation for passage to eternal life;
Reduction or removal of all temporal punishment due to sin when the ill person is properly disposed;
We should receive the Sacrament of Anointing in the state of grace, and with lively faith and resignation to the will of God. For more information, see the Catechism 1499-1532.
The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick is offered communally each year during the Fall, and by appointment with a parish priest. Please contact the parish office at 262-248-8524 or parish@sfdslg.org.