C
cheddarsox
Guest
People often take sacramentals to a priest to be blessed. What affect does this have on the item, or for the person using this item?
Thanks,
cheddar
Thanks,
cheddar
- Status
J
John_Russell_Jr
Guest
This is from the code of canon law.
PART II
: THE OTHER ACTS OF DIVINE WORSHIP
TITLE I:
SACRAMENTALS (Cann. 1166 - 1172)
Can. 1166 Sacramentals are sacred signs by which effects, especially spiritual effects, are signified in some imitation of the sacraments and are obtained through the intercession of the Church.
Can. 1167 §1. The Apostolic See alone can establish new sacramentals, authentically interpret those already received, or abolish or change any of them.
§2. In confecting or administering sacramentals, the rites and formulas approved by the authority of the Church are to be observed carefully.http://forums.catholic-questions.org/images/icons/icon14.gif
Can. 1168 The minister of sacramentals is a cleric who has been provided with the requisite power. According to the norm of the liturgical books and to the judgment of the local ordinary lay persons who possess the appropriate qualities can also administer some sacramentals.
Can. 1169 §1. Those marked with the episcopal character and presbyters permitted by law or legitimate grant can perform consecrations and dedications validly.
§2. Any presbyter can impart blessings except those reserved to the Roman Pontiff or bishops.
§3. A deacon can impart only those blessings expressly permitted by law.
Can. 1170 Blessings, which are to be imparted first of all to Catholics, can also be given to catechumens and even to non-Catholics unless there is a prohibition of the Church to the contrary.
Can. 1171 Sacred objects, which are designated for divine worship by dedication or blessing, are to be treated reverently and are not to be employed for profane or inappropriate use even if they are owned by private persons.
Can. 1172 §1. No one can perform exorcisms legitimately upon the possessed unless he has obtained special and express permission from the local ordinary.
§2. The local ordinary is to give this permission only to a presbyter who has piety, knowledge, prudence, and integrity of life.
From me - The blessing is required by the rules in most cases. A blessed object has been made holy. And has many benefits for us eg driving away evil etc.
'I will post a story if I can find it.
PART II
: THE OTHER ACTS OF DIVINE WORSHIP
TITLE I:
SACRAMENTALS (Cann. 1166 - 1172)
Can. 1166 Sacramentals are sacred signs by which effects, especially spiritual effects, are signified in some imitation of the sacraments and are obtained through the intercession of the Church.
Can. 1167 §1. The Apostolic See alone can establish new sacramentals, authentically interpret those already received, or abolish or change any of them.
§2. In confecting or administering sacramentals, the rites and formulas approved by the authority of the Church are to be observed carefully.http://forums.catholic-questions.org/images/icons/icon14.gif
Can. 1168 The minister of sacramentals is a cleric who has been provided with the requisite power. According to the norm of the liturgical books and to the judgment of the local ordinary lay persons who possess the appropriate qualities can also administer some sacramentals.
Can. 1169 §1. Those marked with the episcopal character and presbyters permitted by law or legitimate grant can perform consecrations and dedications validly.
§2. Any presbyter can impart blessings except those reserved to the Roman Pontiff or bishops.
§3. A deacon can impart only those blessings expressly permitted by law.
Can. 1170 Blessings, which are to be imparted first of all to Catholics, can also be given to catechumens and even to non-Catholics unless there is a prohibition of the Church to the contrary.
Can. 1171 Sacred objects, which are designated for divine worship by dedication or blessing, are to be treated reverently and are not to be employed for profane or inappropriate use even if they are owned by private persons.
Can. 1172 §1. No one can perform exorcisms legitimately upon the possessed unless he has obtained special and express permission from the local ordinary.
§2. The local ordinary is to give this permission only to a presbyter who has piety, knowledge, prudence, and integrity of life.
From me - The blessing is required by the rules in most cases. A blessed object has been made holy. And has many benefits for us eg driving away evil etc.
'I will post a story if I can find it.
J
John_Russell_Jr
Guest
How the Miraculous Medal Changed My Life
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.
Below is from a talk Fr. Hardon has given various times.
One of the most memorable experiences that I ever had was with the Miraculous Medal! It changed my life. In the fall of 1948, the year after my ordination, I was in what we call the Tertianship. This is a third year of Novitiate before taking final vows.
In October of that year, a Vincentian priest came to speak to us young Jesuit priests. He encouraged us to obtain faculties, as they are called, to enroll people in the Confraternity of the Miraculous Medal. Among other things, he said, “Fathers, the Miraculous Medal works. Miracles have been performed by Our Lady through the Miraculous Medal.”
I was not impressed by what the Vincentian priest was telling. I was not the medal-wearing kind of person and I certainly did not have a Miraculous Medal. But I thought to myself, “It does not cost anything.” So I put my name down to get a four page leaflet from the Vincentians, with the then-Latin formula for blessing Miraculous Medals and enrolling people in the Confraternity of the Miraculous Medal. About two weeks later, I got the leaflet for blessing and enrollment, put it into my office book and forgot about it.
In February of the next year, I was sent to assist the chaplain of St. Alexis Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio. I was to be there helping the regular chaplain for two weeks.
Each morning I received a list of all the patients admitted into the hospital that day. There were so many Catholics admitted that I could not visit them all as soon as they came.
Among the patients admitted was a boy about nine years old. He had been sled-riding down hill, lost control of the sled and ran into a tree head-on. He fractured his skull and X-rays showed he had suffered severe brain damage.
When I finally got to visit his room at the hospital, he had been in a coma for ten days, no speech, no voluntary movements of the body. His condition was such that the only question was whether he would live. There was no question of recovering from what was diagnosed as permanent and inoperble brain damage.
After blessing the boy and consoling his parents, I was about to leave his hospital room. But then a thought came to me. “That Vincentian priest. He said, ‘The Miraculous Medal works.’ Now this will be a test of its alleged miraculous powers!”
I didn’t have a Miraculous Medal of my own. And everyone I asked at the hospital also did not have one. But I persisted, and finally one of the nursing sisters on night duty found a Miraculous Medal.
What I found out was that you don’t just bless the medal, you have to put it around a person’s neck on a chain or ribbon. So the sister-nurse found a blue ribbon for the medal, which made me feel silly. What was I doing with medals and blue ribbons.
However, I blessed the medal and had the father hold the leaflet for investing a person in the Confraternity of the Miraculous Medal. I proceeded to recite the words of investiture. No sooner did I finish the prayer of enrolling the boy in the Confraternity than he opened his eyes for the first time in two weeks. He saw his mother and said, “Ma, I want some ice cream.” He had been given only intravenous feeding.
This Experience Changed My Life
Then he proceeded to talk to his father and mother. After a few minutes of stunned silence, a doctor was called. The doctor examined the boy and told the parents they could give him something to eat.
The next day began a series of tests on the boy’s condition. X-rays showed the brain damage was gone.
Then still more tests. After three days, when all examinations showed there was complete restoration to health, the boy was released from the hospital.
This experience so changed my life that I have not been the same since. My faith in God, faith in His power to work miracles, was strengthened beyond description.
Since then, of course, I have been promoting devotion to Our Lady and the use of the Miraculous Medal. The wonders she performs, provided we believe, are extraordinary.
In teaching theology over the years, I have many semesters taught the theology of miracles. And I have an unpublished book manuscript on “The History and Theology of Miracles.” My hope is to publish the manuscript in the near future.
by Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.
Below is from a talk Fr. Hardon has given various times.
One of the most memorable experiences that I ever had was with the Miraculous Medal! It changed my life. In the fall of 1948, the year after my ordination, I was in what we call the Tertianship. This is a third year of Novitiate before taking final vows.
In October of that year, a Vincentian priest came to speak to us young Jesuit priests. He encouraged us to obtain faculties, as they are called, to enroll people in the Confraternity of the Miraculous Medal. Among other things, he said, “Fathers, the Miraculous Medal works. Miracles have been performed by Our Lady through the Miraculous Medal.”
I was not impressed by what the Vincentian priest was telling. I was not the medal-wearing kind of person and I certainly did not have a Miraculous Medal. But I thought to myself, “It does not cost anything.” So I put my name down to get a four page leaflet from the Vincentians, with the then-Latin formula for blessing Miraculous Medals and enrolling people in the Confraternity of the Miraculous Medal. About two weeks later, I got the leaflet for blessing and enrollment, put it into my office book and forgot about it.
In February of the next year, I was sent to assist the chaplain of St. Alexis Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio. I was to be there helping the regular chaplain for two weeks.
Each morning I received a list of all the patients admitted into the hospital that day. There were so many Catholics admitted that I could not visit them all as soon as they came.
Among the patients admitted was a boy about nine years old. He had been sled-riding down hill, lost control of the sled and ran into a tree head-on. He fractured his skull and X-rays showed he had suffered severe brain damage.
When I finally got to visit his room at the hospital, he had been in a coma for ten days, no speech, no voluntary movements of the body. His condition was such that the only question was whether he would live. There was no question of recovering from what was diagnosed as permanent and inoperble brain damage.
After blessing the boy and consoling his parents, I was about to leave his hospital room. But then a thought came to me. “That Vincentian priest. He said, ‘The Miraculous Medal works.’ Now this will be a test of its alleged miraculous powers!”
I didn’t have a Miraculous Medal of my own. And everyone I asked at the hospital also did not have one. But I persisted, and finally one of the nursing sisters on night duty found a Miraculous Medal.
What I found out was that you don’t just bless the medal, you have to put it around a person’s neck on a chain or ribbon. So the sister-nurse found a blue ribbon for the medal, which made me feel silly. What was I doing with medals and blue ribbons.
However, I blessed the medal and had the father hold the leaflet for investing a person in the Confraternity of the Miraculous Medal. I proceeded to recite the words of investiture. No sooner did I finish the prayer of enrolling the boy in the Confraternity than he opened his eyes for the first time in two weeks. He saw his mother and said, “Ma, I want some ice cream.” He had been given only intravenous feeding.
This Experience Changed My Life
Then he proceeded to talk to his father and mother. After a few minutes of stunned silence, a doctor was called. The doctor examined the boy and told the parents they could give him something to eat.
The next day began a series of tests on the boy’s condition. X-rays showed the brain damage was gone.
Then still more tests. After three days, when all examinations showed there was complete restoration to health, the boy was released from the hospital.
This experience so changed my life that I have not been the same since. My faith in God, faith in His power to work miracles, was strengthened beyond description.
Since then, of course, I have been promoting devotion to Our Lady and the use of the Miraculous Medal. The wonders she performs, provided we believe, are extraordinary.
In teaching theology over the years, I have many semesters taught the theology of miracles. And I have an unpublished book manuscript on “The History and Theology of Miracles.” My hope is to publish the manuscript in the near future.
C
cheddarsox
Guest
Thanks for those responses!
When I was in High school, a nun who taught our religion class had a rosary. A nun had visited their convent over the summer, who had been to Madrugorge (sic, sorry) She had a rosary that had been picked up and handled by the Virgin. She let the nuns at the convent touch their rosaries to hers. Then our sister allowed us to touch our rosaries to hers (which had touched the one touched by the Virgin). That is not the same as a blessing from a priest.
Do you think any sort of holiness was passed on in this manner, or just the benefit of our knowing what had taken place?
cheddar
When I was in High school, a nun who taught our religion class had a rosary. A nun had visited their convent over the summer, who had been to Madrugorge (sic, sorry) She had a rosary that had been picked up and handled by the Virgin. She let the nuns at the convent touch their rosaries to hers. Then our sister allowed us to touch our rosaries to hers (which had touched the one touched by the Virgin). That is not the same as a blessing from a priest.
Do you think any sort of holiness was passed on in this manner, or just the benefit of our knowing what had taken place?
cheddar
J
John_Russell_Jr
Guest
Hi Cheddar,
I don’t want to disappoint you but consecutive bishops have said they believe there is nothing supernatural happenning at Medjugorie. And time has shown the seers to be not so virtuous. The whole long pattern of events has unfolded in such a way that the Church will never approve the apparitions.
If you have some time read a good history on this link members.lycos.co.uk/jloughnan/meddates.htm Try to follow the apparitions and messages of our Lady that the Church has approved. I hope you are not scandalised when you read the article. Just because you get a few bad apples does not mean the whole apple tree is no good. Same with us members of the Church. God bless you.
C
cheddarsox
Guest
Thanks John,
I don’t know the whole story, but I had heard that Madregorge had been sort of debunked. That is OK. I hope in the end, it did more good than harm. I know when it first began many people were strongly affected and recieved a renewal of faith.
I no longer have that rosary anyway…too many moves…so many things lost and left behind.
cheddar
I don’t know the whole story, but I had heard that Madregorge had been sort of debunked. That is OK. I hope in the end, it did more good than harm. I know when it first began many people were strongly affected and recieved a renewal of faith.
I no longer have that rosary anyway…too many moves…so many things lost and left behind.
cheddar
- Status