Mass Annointing of the Sick at Mass?

[Bailey2]

Wow, you know, these filing up for anointing with oil sounds like a healing service rather than the Sacrament of the Sick en masse. We have never had such a thing here. As I said, it is separate and specific. Knowing me, I’d be in the pastor’s office asking the differences and then suggesting some public catechesis on it.

Fr.David, thank you for your response. From what I read here it seems those with “serious” mental (or emotional?) illness qualify but that it is the determination of serious that is the place of discernment. Obviously someone mildly depressed or anxious wouldn’t qualify (for the actual sacrament as opposed to healing service) since it is not life-threatening or seriously disabling.

In my experience, those afflicted tend to act with shame (ie. hide). It is nice to know (if I am understanding it correctly), that the Church recognizes it differently…though I understand it is a delicate issue since due to the pharmaceutically paid media “depression” and “anxiety,” even “OCD” means just about everything in the general population. Perhaps recognizing that the ones hiding (and their families), isolated from the community in a sort of fear/embarrassment, need to know about the Church’s stance on mental illness and provisions for healing. Hope I am OK in saying this. Thanks again.

 

[Bailey2]

Can people with physical disabilities, like Cerebral Palsy, justifiably receive Anointing of the Sick?

I hope so. They do in our Church. Further, the priest who officiates at these special services has cerebral palsy himself.

 

[FrDavid96]

What we need to keep in mind about Anointing of the Sick is that it is nearly impossible to list the reasons why individual persons would be eligible. Yes, we can certainly say that someone who is on his deathbed should be anointed, someone in a serious car accident should be anointed, and others who are obviously in some danger of dying should be anointed. Yet, it’s impossible really to provide a list of medical conditions and say “yes or no.”

Anointing anyone who happens to be in attendance at a particular Mass is not a sound approach to the Sacrament. In fact, this sort of thing does serious harm to the integrity of the Sacrament.

The unfortunate reality here is that when we see such indiscriminate anointings what we are observing is priests who fail in their responsibility as stewards of the Sacraments. Priests have a responsibility, before administering a Sacrament, to know whether or not the person requesting it is eligible. Priests who anoint everyone in church, and even worse those who go so far as to outright invite anyone who happens to be there, are damaging the sacramental life of the Church.

We have to free ourselves from the notion that “everybody gets something.” Anointing of the Sick should not be treated like palms on Palm Sunday–or other times when it is indeed appropriate that “everybody gets something.”

It is wrong to say that only the dying should be anointed, but it is equally wrong to say that anyone may be anointed.

 

[Bailey2]

What we need to keep in mind about Anointing of the Sick is that it is nearly impossible to list the reasons why individual persons would be eligible. Yes, we can certainly say that someone who is on his deathbed should be anointed, someone in a serious car accident should be anointed, and others who are obviously in some danger of dying should be anointed. Yet, it’s impossible really to provide a list of medical conditions and say “yes or no.”

Anointing anyone who happens to be in attendance at a particular Mass is not a sound approach to the Sacrament. In fact, this sort of thing does serious harm to the integrity of the Sacrament.

The unfortunate reality here is that when we see such indiscriminate anointings what we are observing is priests who fail in their responsibility as stewards of the Sacraments. Priests have a responsibility, before administering a Sacrament, to know whether or not the person requesting it is eligible. Priests who anoint everyone in church, and even worse those who go so far as to outright invite anyone who happens to be there, are damaging the sacramental life of the Church.

We have to free ourselves from the notion that “everybody gets something.” Anointing of the Sick should not be treated like palms on Palm Sunday–or other times when it is indeed appropriate that “everybody gets something.”

It is wrong to say that only the dying should be anointed, but it is equally wrong to say that anyone may be anointed.

Thank you! This is worded so well and really conveyed to me the sacredness of the sacrament. Have a good Christmas.