Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick

  • Thread starter Thread starter TK421
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
T

TK421

Guest
Today at a parish at Mass, the priest was doing an Anointing of the Sick, and basically the entire congregation went up (as if receiving Communion) to receive the sacrament; young, old ,and what have you. I haven’t seen this before. What is it called?
 
Last edited:
TK421 said:
Today at a parish at Mass, the priest was doing an Anointing of the Sick, and basically the entire congregation went up (as if receiving Communion) to receive the sacrament; young, old ,and what have you. I haven’t seen this before. What is it called?
Click to expand...
In eastern Catholic churches Holy Unction is administered to all the congregation on the Wednesday of Holy Week. I’m not sure of any similar custom in the Latin rite.
 
Last edited:
TK421 said:
Today at a parish at Mass, the priest was doing an Anointing of the Sick, and basically the entire congregation went up (as if receiving Communion) to receive the sacrament; young, old ,and what have you. I haven’t seen this before. What is it called?
Click to expand...
That would contradict Canon Law.

CHAPTER III : THOSE TO BE ANOINTED

Can. 1004 §1 The anointing of the sick can be administered to any member of the faithful who, having reached the use of reason, begins to be in danger of death by reason of illness or old age.

§2 This sacrament can be repeated if the sick person, having recovered, again becomes seriously ill or if, in the same illness, the danger becomes more serious.
 
TK421 said:
basically the entire congregation went up (as if receiving Communion) to receive the sacrament
Click to expand...
Are you certain it was actually the sacrament of the anointing of the sick? With laying on of hands, imposition of oil on forehead and hands, and the praying of the words of the sacrament?

Is it possible that it was a healing Mass? Or a blessing with blessed oils?
 
Father said “Anointing of the Sick”. There was olive oil used on the forehead and the palm of the hand. There was a deacon there also but he only held the oil.
 
TK421 said:
Father said “Anointing of the Sick”. There was olive oil used on the forehead and the palm of the hand. There was a deacon there also but he only held the oil.
Click to expand...
Sure sounds like the sacrament. 😦

In their defense, people likely are just thinking “a blessing? heck yeah, I want a blessing!”… 🤷‍♂️
 
TK421 said:
Today at a parish at Mass, the priest was doing an Anointing of the Sick, and basically the entire congregation went up (as if receiving Communion) to receive the sacrament; young, old ,and what have you. I haven’t seen this before. What is it called?
Click to expand...
That is not supposed to to be done.

Anointing of one or more (even very many) sick people with the Anointing of the Sick can be done at the conclusion of Mass. It is the Anointing of the Sick, not anointing of the healthy and not anointing of anyone who comes forward.

So either all of those people are seriously ill or the priest is abusing the administration of the Sacrament.
 
@FrDavid96

That’s what I thought. I put my “What is happening?!” thoughts on the shelf until I got home to ask because maybe there was something I wasn’t aware of.

Should I say something? They do this every Friday once a month. It’s at a Newman Center parish.

The priest just said “Whoever would like to receive the Anointing of the Sick please come forward” and the entire congregation shuffled into line. Elderly. Middle Aged. College students. Everybody. I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone.
 
Last edited:
This would be called the Eastern discipline of the Holy Mystery of Unction.

IMO, it is improper to do this in a Roman Rite Church as it goes against Roman liturgical norms and traditions.

It is not intrinsically wrong, but it is improper in the context of a Roman Mass.
 
TK421 said:
Should I say something? They do this every Friday once a month. It’s at a Newman Center parish.

The priest just said “Whoever would like to receive the Anointing of the Sick please come forward” and the entire congregation shuffled into line. Elderly. Middle Aged. College students. Everybody. I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone.
Click to expand...
That would be non traditional and questionable usage even in an Eastern Rite Church.

In a Roman Church that’s beyond questionable; it’s straight up illicit liturgical abuse.

The Priest seems to be in error and needs correction and needs to conform himself to the traditions and canons of his Rite in Holy Mother Church.

He probably has good intentions (unless he’s not ignorant and is doing so in direct defiance of the Holy Canons), but this abuse needs to stop.
 
Last edited:
TK421 said:
@FrDavid96

That’s what I thought. I put my “What is happening?!” thoughts on the shelf until I got home to ask because maybe there was something I wasn’t aware of.

Should I say something? They do this every Friday once a month. It’s at a Newman Center parish.

The priest just said “Whoever would like to receive the Anointing of the Sick please come forward” and the entire congregation shuffled into line. Elderly. Middle Aged. College students. Everybody. I felt like I was in the Twilight Zone.
Click to expand...
I don’t know what to say or do.

I think the only possible resolution to this problem would be if the Holy See were to put some considerable effort into communicating to the bishops that the Sacrament of the Sick is for the sick, not “just anyone.”

Even then, given that the attempts to end abuses by St John Paul II and Pope Benedict had very little effect in the end, I’m not sure what even COULD be done by Rome.

I doubt anything will be done in the near future.
 
@Spyridon

At my RCIA parish back in PA, I remember an anointing happened once and the priest just casually explained in like 10-15 seconds the purpose of the sacrament, and then a group of people went forward. Simple.

Yesterday as the congregation went up, people were putting hands on each others’ shoulders. They seemed pretty into it. I get the sense people will emotionally/mentally shut-down if the common sense explanation is put forward, i.e. “Anointing of the Sick” is for sick people/elderly.
 
Last edited:
TK421 said:
Anointing of the Sick” is for sick people/elderly.
Click to expand...
It’s not even just that.

Anointing of the Sick is aka Holy Unction in Eastern Catholic Churches and there are times when it is used for the whole congregation during Holy Week.

The problem is the Priest is not respecting his liturgical patrimony and the Canons which he is bound to obey - in the Roman Rite, it IS only for the sick. And he, being a Roman Rite priest, should abide by the Canons of his Rite and the Liturgical norms of the Church he is presiding over.
 
Last edited:
I’ve now seen several of these types of threads.
The previous parish I worked in had one of these annually. Always on the Feast day of our Patron.
I’m pretty sure the Archbishop knows about it.
The parish 10 miles down the road does this once a month on First Friday at the noon Mass.
How is it that some find this completely wrong, and in other places it’s common?
Just wondering.

My current parish never does it at a sort of “blanket” event. But the Pastor does anoint people preparing for surgery, individually at times.
 
Last edited:
Father,
If I, as a member of the Latin Church, happened to attend Forgiveness Vespers at a Byzantine Catholic Church during Holy Week, could I licitly receive this sacrament without being sick?
 
Hi FrDavid. It’s me again. I see you’re llockedinto this discussion again. Don’t worry I have no comments for now but as you can see there a lot of people who see this as just a very special blessing . Some priests don’t have a problem with administering it. That is until someone throws the book at them which is something I would not want to do.
Some people see it as a blessing and some see it as a curse.
 
What Spyridon said is incorrect. The conditions required are matters of basic sacramental theology, and thus the law is the same in both the Latin Church and the Eastern Churches. See my above post for the relevant law.

I don’t know enough about the Eastern Churches to say whether he is simply mistaking a sacramental for the Sacrament of Anointing, or whether he is describing a liturgical abuse similar to what the OP described. If it’s the former, then your participation as a Latin Catholic would very likely be just fine. Though if it’s the latter then of course no one should participate, as the mass simulation of a Sacrament is a grievous sacrilege.
 
Arkansan said:
40.png
TK421:
What is it called?
Click to expand...
Sacrilege

CIC 1004 §1. The anointing of the sick can be administered to a member of the faithful who, having reached the use of reason, begins to be in danger due to sickness or old age.

CCEO 737 - §1. By the sacramental anointing of the sick with prayers of a priest, the Christian faithful who are gravely ill and sincerely contrite receive grace, by which, strengthened by the hope of eternal reward and absolved from sins, they are disposed to correct their lives and are helped in patiently enduring their infirmity and suffering.
Click to expand...
Curious: For purposes of the Canon, what is “old age” now - with people living significantly longer? Two generations ago, 70’s would likely have been considered “old age,” but now?
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top