This past week we celebrated All Souls Day, following close on the heels of our celebration of All Saints Day. On both of these days we remember those who have died. On All Saints Day we remember those who have been canonized as saints of the Church and ask for their prayers. On All Souls Day we pray for all the souls in Purgatory and we remember those who have “gone before us, marked with the sign of faith,” and whose souls we entrust to God and His mercy.
Our culture is not very comfortable with the idea of dying. As Christians, however, we are not meant to be afraid of death, for Christ has conquered the grave. One of the ways the Church honors the dead is with special rituals that accompany the process of sickness, death and burial. The burial of a loved one is not meant to be the end of the Church’s prayers for one of her faithful members. Praying for the living and the dead is a spiritual work of mercy. One of the ways we can continue to honor and pray for the dead is by visiting the graves of our own loved ones. The Church even has a special ritual for visiting a cemetery. It is simple but moving. Below you will find this simple ritual for use by yourself or your family when you visit the graves of your loved ones. May the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. ORDER FOR VISITING A CEMETERY +In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. My dear friends, we gather today to pray for our brothers and sisters whose bodies lie here in rest. They have passed from death to life in company with the Lord Jesus, who died and rose to new life, and are purified now of their faults. We pray that God may welcome them among all the saints of heaven. Brothers and sisters, listen to the words of St. Paul’s Letter to the Romans: None of us lives for oneself, and no one dies for oneself. For if we live, we live for the Lord, and if we die, we die for the Lord; so then, whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s. The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. With Christ there is mercy and fullness of redemption; let us pray as Jesus taught us: Our Father… Almighty God and Father, it is our certain faith that your Son, who died on the cross, was raised from the dead, the first fruits of all who have fallen asleep. Grant that through this mystery your servant, who has gone to his/her rest in Christ, may share in the joy of his resurrection. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord. And let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen. May their soul and the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen. In the First Reading for last Sunday’s Mass we heard the story of Naaman the Aramean. Naaman was afflicted with leprosy and with the assistance of Elisha the prophet and with God’s grace, he is healed of this terrible disease. He responds to this tremendous gift of healing by pledging to worship no other god other than the God of Israel and to make sacrifices to Him in thanksgiving.
In this brief passage from scripture we see the heart of what stewardship is – a recognition that everything we have that is good comes from the hands of God and from that gratitude to give generously to others and to God Himself. This understanding of true stewardship is integral to our understanding of ourselves as disciples of Christ, in their Pastoral Letter on stewardship, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops wrote, “Jesus not only calls people to Him but also forms them and sends them out in His service. He knows our personal histories, our strengths and weaknesses, our destinies; he has a purpose in mind for each one of us. Becoming a disciple of Jesus Christ leads naturally to the practice of stewardship. These linked realities; discipleship and stewardship, then make up the fabric of a Christian life in which each day is lived in an intimate, personal relationship with the Lord” (Stewardship a Disciple’s Response). St. Mary’s will be conducting its annual Fall Stewardship Appeal over the coming weeks and you will shortly be receiving, in the mail, information on stewardship and how you can take a part in supporting St. Mary’s financially. The letters should be arriving in the final days of October or early November and we hope to have pledge cards returned in the regular collection or by being mailed or dropped off to the Rectory by November 6th. As a thank you, we’ll be hosting Doughnut Sunday on November 13th. We are blessed to have a history here at St. Mary’s of parishioners with a deep sense of generosity who have willingly and lovingly given to help their parish be what it is today. Can I ask you to make sure to take a few moments when the letter arrives to read it through? Then, spend some time in prayer and examine what God has given you and decide from that realization what you may be able to give to support the parish over the course of the coming year. Unlike businesses which have products to sell, the parish relies solely on the good will and generosity of its parishioners to supports its ministries and operations - it relies on you! Thank you for all you do for St. Mary’s and the multitude of ways you support St. Mary’s with your time, talent and treasure! Having looked a couple of weeks ago at the Scriptural roots of the Sacrament of Marriage we are now going to turn to looking at the matter and the form of the sacrament itself. If you recall, each sacrament has both matter and form. The matter is that physical reality which is present and used by God to accomplish the sacrament and the form is the proper words and ritual of the celebration of that sacrament. We can use a simple example from baptism. In baptism, the matter is water poured over the head and the form is the words, “I baptize you in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” If one of the two elements (matter or form) is not present, then the sacrament is not conferred. So, for instance, in baptism, if the priest were to pour apple juice over a child’s head while praying the proper words, would the sacrament of baptism be conferred? No, because it’s lacking in the proper matter. If the priest were to use water and pour the water over the head of the child three times but say nothing, would the child be baptized? No, because the proper form would not be there. So, matter and form are essential for the sacrament.
Now, when we move into the Sacrament of Marriage, what are the matter and form? What are the essentials which must be present for the celebration of the sacrament? The matter necessary for marriage to take place is one baptized man and one baptized woman, and the consummation of that marriage. The form necessary for the marriage is the vows. In addition, the Church also requires the marriage to take place in a Catholic church in front of a Catholic minister with the Catholic ritual, unless these aspects of the form are dispensed by the bishop himself. This is a very important part – most particularly given our climate today and the debates which surround marriage. At the end of our examination of marriage we will return to this question, however, it’s very important to keep in mind that the matter of the Sacrament of Marriage has always been one baptized man and one baptized woman, and without that matter being present it is not possible for marriage to be conferred. Having examined the matter and form of the Sacrament of Marriage, we can now begin to look at the ritual itself. The marriage ritual has been newly translated into English, from the Latin, so if you have been to a wedding recently and didn’t hear this exact translation, that is why! The new translation is able to be used now and must be used starting in December. There are two options for the celebration of the Sacrament of Marriage – the one is a Celebration of Matrimony Outside of Mass and the second is the Celebration of Matrimony Inside of Mass. As the titles indicate, one takes place with Mass and the other does not. It is oftentimes advised that a wedding between a Catholic and a non-Catholic take place outside of Mass, however, in both celebrations the ritual is the same. The ritual for the celebration of marriage begins with an Instruction; it reminds the couple as to what is about to take place; it speaks of their “intention to enter into marriage.” It also reminds them of the sacramental nature of what they are about to do that, in the sacrament, they will receive a special grace from God, through which God “enriches and strengthens those he has already consecrated by Holy Baptism, that they may be faithful to each other for ever and assume all the responsibilities of marriage life.” This is important to note that marriage, as with every sacrament, brings with it a special grace which accomplishes certain things – in marriage, that grace both binds the couple together in the sight of God and it also carries with it particular gifts to help that couple to truly live out their marriage in fidelity, permanence and with great fruitfulness. It is this grace which they will need to rely on through the ups and downs of married life. In our next article, we will turn to the second part of the ritual which includes: The Questions Before the Consent, The Consent, The Reception of the Consent, and the Blessing and Giving of Rings. (This article is part of a series of articles on The Sacraments which will appear in the bulletin over the course of this year.) If you recall, last year I wrote a series of bulletin articles on the Sacraments – looking at each sacrament through the lens of the theological axiom “lex orandi, lex credendi” (the law of prayer is the law of belief). This is a method of understanding the sacraments by looking at the rituals by which they are celebrated. We also took a look at the scriptural roots of each sacrament, the matter and form of each sacrament, and finally looked at the effects of the sacraments. I mentioned at the end of the last academic year that we had already examined five of the seven sacraments and planned to complete that look by examining the Sacrament of Matrimony and the Sacrament of Holy Orders. In picking up where we left off last year we are now going to turn to the Sacrament of Matrimony. First we will examine it in light of its scriptural basis, then examine its matter and form before moving on to the marriage ritual itself and then addressing a couple of important topics related to marriage.
To begin with, we see throughout scripture, numerous metaphors and comparisons used to describe God’s relationship with people – we may think of the Good Shepherd and the flock, or we may think of the Body of Christ with its various parts as some of the most familiar. One of the clearest metaphors that is used is the image of the bride and the groom. In the Old Testament, particularly in the prophets, we see the relationship between God and Israel compared to the relationship between a groom and a bride. We see in Jeremiah God directly referring to Himself as the husband of Israel, “for I am your husband” (Jeremiah 3:14, Douay-Rheims). We see this analogy playing a major role in the book of Hosea and perhaps one of the most haunting and memorable uses of this can be seen in Ezekiel Chapter 16. This use of this metaphor is carried on into the New Testament, however in the New Testament it is further refined and used to express the love and the relationship between Christ and the Church. We see St. John the Baptist discuss this and use the image of the groom to describe Christ’s relationship to the Church (John 3.29). We also see a reference by Christ Himself to His role as the Bridegroom in the Parable of the Ten Virgins (cf. Matthew 25.1-13). It is St. Paul who takes this metaphor and explains it theologically in his letter to the Ephesians where he speaks of the relationship between husband and wife and then directly points out that he is doing this in order to show us, “a great mystery” – one which he speaks “in reference to Christ and the Church.” (cf. Ephesians 5.22-33). So it is clear from scripture that in order to understand marriage we must understand how God and His people, how Christ and His Church are bound to one another. If a husband and wife are related to one another as Christ is to His Church then what do we see as the defining characteristics of that relationship? The Church points us to three – fidelity, permanence and fruitfulness, flowing from the bond of love. Just as Christ is bound to the Church faithfully, permanently and with a great fruitfulness, so too should a husband and wife be bound together, in love, faithfully, permanently and with great fruitfulness. This points out one of the fundamental ends of marriage, to reveal to the world the love that Christ has for His Church! The Nuptial Mass itself speaks of this great calling when it prays in one of the collects, “O God, who consecrated the bond of Marriage by so great a mystery that in the wedding covenant you foreshadow the Sacrament of Christ and his Church…” and in one of the Prefaces we hear, “the Sacrament of holy Matrimony” is “the abiding sign of your [God’s] own love.” Perhaps the clearest (and one of the most beautiful) references is found in one of the Nuptial Blessings, “O God, who, to reveal the great design you formed in your love, willed that the love of spouses for each other should foreshadow the covenant you graciously made with your people, so that, by fulfillment of the sacramental sign, the mystical marriage of Christ with his Church might become manifest in the union of husband and wife among your faithful.” What a beautiful and noble gift marriage is! (This article is part of a series of articles on The Sacraments which will appear in the bulletin over the course of this year.) It is hard to believe that it was fifteen years ago this weekend that our nation suffered the terrible terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Like many people who have memories of that day we remember exactly where we were when we heard the initial reports coming in of such a devastating tragedy. I was in the Seminary at the time and between Morning Prayer and the first class of the day some of the seminarians were watching the news in one of the living rooms and I remember coming out of my room with books in hand and seeing the beginning of the news coverage. At that time there was no real understanding of what exactly was going on – reports of a plane flying into a building, it seemed, at first, to be a tragic accident. By the time I got back upstairs from our first class of the day the awful reality had dawned, this was no accident, but a deliberate act of terror. We sat glued to the television until it was time for Mass and I remember the fervent prayers that were offered up that day, as well as the desire for the Lord to protect our nation. In an unfortunate twist of events the seminary phone system had gone down and before the common use of cell phones this was a huge difficulty since no one could contact his family directly or swiftly. And then there was the utter silence of the skies. Our seminary is located near Mitchell Airport and you would grow used to the sound of the planes taking off and landing, sometimes passing right over the seminary building, but that day and for a few days thereafter there were no planes and suddenly the silence felt pregnant and frightening.
Along with these memories, however, are other memories of how, in the midst of the tragedy people turned to each other for comfort and strength and, more importantly, they turned to God – packing churches, lighting candles, praying in the silence of their hearts. And even though it is fifteen years after the event, we should still turn to God for protection as we fight more outbreaks of terrorism and more innocent people fall victims to those who are angry and deluded by a false notion of God and religion. We should turn to God and pray for those who lost loved ones on that day. We should pray to God for the repose of the souls of those who were killed that day and were caught unaware by death. Below is a prayer that Pope Benedict XVI prayed at Ground Zero on April 20, 2008. Perhaps we can pray it this weekend ourselves: "O God of love, compassion, and healing, look on us, people of many different faiths and traditions, who gather today at this site, the scene of incredible violence and pain. We ask you in your goodness to give eternal light and peace to all who died here -- the heroic first responders: our firefighters, police officers, emergency service workers, and Port Authority personnel, along with all the innocent men and women who were victims of this tragedy simply because their work or service brought them here on September 11, 2001. We ask you, in your compassion to bring healing to those who, because of their presence here that day, suffer from injuries and illness. Heal, too, the pain of still-grieving families and all who lost loved ones in this tragedy. Give them strength to continue their lives with courage and hope. We are mindful as well of those who suffered death, injury, and loss on the same day at the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania. Our hearts are one with theirs as our prayer embraces their pain and suffering. God of peace, bring your peace to our violent world: peace in the hearts of all men and women and peace among the nations of the Earth. Turn to your way of love those whose hearts and minds are consumed with hatred. God of understanding, overwhelmed by the magnitude of this tragedy, we seek your light and guidance as we confront such terrible events. Grant that those whose lives were spared may live so that the lives lost here may not have been lost in vain. Comfort and console us, strengthen us in hope, and give us the wisdom and courage to work tirelessly for a world where true peace and love reign among nations and in the hearts of all." This weekend marks Labor Day weekend, the traditional end of summer activities and the beginning of a brand new school year. We have had a really beautiful summer with many sunny and warm days, though there is definitely a part of me that is longing for the cooler days and changing colors of autumn. School is back in session and I am happy to report that the school year at St. Mary’s has gotten off on the right foot!
Seeing as it is Labor Day weekend, I thought it would be worthwhile to include a few reflections on work. In 1955, Pope Pius XII instituted the Feast of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1st. St. Joseph becomes the model for all workers and in part of his decree for this new feast day, in the Acts of Pope Pius XII, we read: “As the mother of all men, a most provident mother, the Church is greatly concerned to protect and improve the conditions of workmen, and to establish and promote their associations, which Pope Pius XII wished to see put under the patronage of St. Joseph. For as the saintly Joseph acted as father to Christ, and Christ Himself was not displeased to be called a carpenter and the son of a carpenter, their relationship united Joseph with Jesus, from whom he drew in abundance that spirit by which man’s toil is ennobled and elevated.” Pope Pius XII also composed a prayer which would is perhaps something we can pray this Labor Day as well as, perhaps, every day that we head off to work: Prayer to St. Joseph Model of Workers Pope Pius XII O glorious Patriarch, Saint Joseph, humble and just artisan of Nazareth, thou hast given to all Christians and particularly to us an example of a perfect life through diligent labor and admirable union with Jesus and Mary. Assist us in our daily work in order that we, Catholic artisans, may also see in it an effective means of glorifying God, of sanctifying ourselves, and of being a useful member in the society in which we live. These should be the highest ideals for all our actions. O dearest Protector, obtain for us from the Lord humility and simplicity of heart, love for our work and kindness towards our fellow-laborers; conformity to God's will in the unavoidable trials of this life together with joy in bearing them; recognition of our specific social mission and a sense of responsibility; the spirit and discipline of prayer; docility and respectfulness towards superiors; the spirit of brotherhood towards our equals; charity and indulgence with our dependents. Accompany us in times of prosperity when the opportunity is given for an honest enjoyment of the fruits of our labors; sustain us in our hours of sadness, when Heaven seems to be shut in our regard, and even the very tools with which our hands toil appear to rebel against us. Grant that, in imitation of thee, we may keep our eyes fixed on our Mother, Mary, thy dearest Spouse, who as she spun silently in a corner of thy shop would let the sweetest smile course over her lips. Besides, may we never take our eyes off Jesus, Who was busily occupied with thee at the carpenter’s bench, in order that we in like manner may lead on earth a peaceful and a holy life, a prelude to the life of eternal happiness that awaits us in Heaven forever and ever. +Amen. I hope that you are enjoying the beautiful summer weather we have been having and enjoying some time for peace and relaxation, time with friends and time with the Lord Himself. I wanted to introduce you to a few new parish staff members who have begun to work at St. Mary’s this month.
The first is our new Cemetery Sexton, Mr. Kraig Klapperich. Kraig will be taking over the administration of our parish cemetery, from selling plots, coordinating burials and overseeing the maintenance of the cemetery itself. We are grateful to have him on board. While you may not see our parish cemetery too often or may not think about it until there is a pressing need, it is an important part of our parish’s life and so we are grateful to place it in his hands. It may be a good moment too to remind all of us to pray for the dead, which, hopefully, can be a regular intention in our prayers. Secondly, I’d like to welcome two new part-time parish receptionists, Mrs. Pam Mueller and Miss Elizabeth Lanser. Pam and Lizzie started earlier this month and between the two of them and our wonderful front desk volunteers, we will have the phones and doors staffed throughout the hours the office is opened. The two of them will provide some clerical support to the parish administrative staff. Pam will take over the scheduling of parish facilities and Lizzie will take on the task of managing my calendar. In addition both will be ready and available to help with Mass intentions, scheduling weddings and funerals, and all the other day to day things which unfold in the life of a parish. Finally, I’d like to bring you up to speed on the Archdiocesan 2020 Planning Process. You may recall that about a year ago I ran a series of bulletin articles where the planning process for the Archdiocese was laid out. As you can imagine, the planning process is a work in progress and is dictated by parish needs as well as priest availability. The 2020 Plan called for St. Mary’s and St. Joseph’s (Wauwatosa) to share one priest in the near future. While this is the plan on paper the reality is that this year there were enough priests to assign St. Joseph’s a new pastor, Fr. Dennis Weiland, so we welcome him as our neighbor! Last weekend I spoke at all the Masses regarding the wrap-up of our Debt Retirement Appeal. Seeing as this is the time of year when people are traveling for graduations, confirmations, picking up children from college, etc. I thought I would reprint that talk for those who may have been out of town.
Time goes by rather quickly and it seems hard to believe that it was three years ago this month that we launched our Debt Retirement Appeal with the hopes of retiring a significant amount of the debt left on our Atrium and School Entrance building projects as well as providing funding for some important and needed capital improvements. The Appeal resulted in approximately $2 Million in pledges. The Appeal draws to a close this month and I am happy to share that the Appeal was an overall success and the vast majority of the pledges have been fulfilled – to all who pledged and gave, thank you. It’s interesting to note too, as our attention turns to summer, that next month will be the first time since 2007 that St. Mary’s does not have an active capital campaign unfolding. In 2007 there was the launching of the Trust in the Lord Campaign to finance the Atrium and School Entrance projects, then followed the Faith in Our Future Campaign which took place throughout the Archdiocese and as that drew to a close we launched our Debt Retirement Appeal. Over these years we have made approximately $6.4 Million worth of improvements and needed repairs and have been able, thanks to your generosity, to have paid for 90% of them over these years. As we move into the future, we do not see, at this point, the need to move towards another appeal, but will instead service the remaining debt through our normal parish operations. This is only possible because of your previous generosity to the various campaigns which have unfolded, but also because of your generous contributions on a weekly basis to the parish. A few specific notes, if you had pledged to the Debt Retirement Appeal three years ago and have not yet had the opportunity to fulfill your pledge, if it is at all possible to do so that would be a great gift to the entire parish community and would help us service the remainder of the debt. If you are new to St. Mary’s or were not able to pledge or give to our Appeal you may want to consider giving and your generosity would be greatly appreciated. Finally, as I mentioned before, so many things rely on the regular weekly offerings, so we are deeply grateful for your continued generosity and to continue to reflect on the various gifts that God has given us and how some of those gifts can be used on behalf of the entire parish. As our parish fiscal year draws to a close I am happy to share that the parish is on sound financial footing both in regular operations as well as in regards to the status of the debt. The parish has grown and we have seen, especially last year, an explosion of young children in the parish – in 2015 alone we had 78 baptisms. Our school has a solid enrollment and has a waiting list for kindergarten and the ministry of the parish continues to unfold on a day to day basis. Thank you again for your generosity to the Debt Retirement Appeal and thank you for your regular weekly offerings – St. Mary’s is well positioned for the future and to continue to serve the Lord as is our call and that is made possible because of your generosity and the goodness of God. Thank you. It’s hard to believe that the school year is drawing to a close and, at least when I write this article, the weather has finally turned warm and sunny! A blessed Memorial Day to all of you, a very special thank you to all of our veterans, and as I take my normal bulletin article hiatus over the summer months I hope and pray that this summer is a time of joy, rest and peace! As we draw our look at the Anointing of the Sick to a close, we want to step back and examine a few things that surround the Anointing of the Sick which are sometimes, but not always, present in its administration and also examine the question of when the best time to be anointed is.
The first aspect that we want to examine is what is called Viaticum – Viaticum, is the administration of the Holy Eucharist for the final time before someone dies or is in danger of death. The name itself is rooted in the Latin with the sense that Christ, present in the Eucharist, journeys with the person as they make the passage through death. There is a short prayer added to the giving of the Eucharist as Viaticum, “May the Lord Jesus Christ protect you and lead you to eternal life.” When we think about it, whether we are heading out on a vacation or simply walking through life there is a joy that comes from having companions and what greater companion could we want or need than Christ Himself walking with us through death? The second aspect we will need to consider is the Apostolic Pardon. The Apostolic Pardon is meant to be given towards the end of life by the priest and there are two options, one of which is “By the power which the Apostolic See has given me, I grant you a full pardon and remission of all your sins, in the name of the Father (+) and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” The Apostolic Pardon is not the same as sacramental absolution (for the forgiveness of sins which takes place in the Sacrament of Reconciliation), but instead forgives the temporal punishment due to sin (i.e. a plenary indulgence). In other words, provided we die in the state of grace and yet have not done adequate penance for our past sin, this inadequate penance is forgiven through the Apostolic Pardon, which is a great gift. The final aspect of the Anointing of the Sick to consider is ‘when do I call for a priest?’ For many years the sense was that a priest should be called as near to the moment of death as possible, there is nothing wrong with this, however, it is appropriate to anoint someone in a number of circumstances – such as before a surgery, or due to a declining physical condition which may not necessarily be leading to death, or a chronic illness. While we may think of the Anointing of the Sick as “last rites” that is not necessarily the case and given how quickly one’s health can turn, it would probably be better to not wait until the “final moments.” There is another aspect of that and that is that due to the declining number of priests it is not always possible to get a hold of a priest in the case of an emergency and so if it looks as if someone is in their final illness it would be appropriate to contact a priest as soon as possible so that a time can be arranged for him to come and administer the Sacrament. This can also be helpful so that Viaticum can be administered as well, since it’s not unusual for people in their final days to slip into a coma and are unable to receive the Eucharist. The Anointing of the Sick is a beautiful and powerful sacrament and shows and makes present the love and strength of God in the midst of the terrible reality of sickness. (This article is part of a series of articles on The Sacraments which will appear in the bulletin over the course of this year.) We are continuing to look at the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick and now it’s time to turn to the ritual itself to see what it contains. While there are a number of rituals that can be used given various circumstances, we are going to look at the ritual for an Anointing Outside of Mass, which gives us the most complete picture of the ritual.
The first part of the ritual is the usual Sign of the Cross and greeting and an optional Sprinkling Rite followed by the Instruction on the Sacrament, in the Introduction we see two things emphasized – the first is the healing nature of Christ, of how the sick were drawn to Him and His power to heal, the second we hear is a quotation from the Letter of St. James which urges the sick to call upon the priest for an anointing which will lead to the Lord “raising them up” (whether to good health or, as the case may be, to eternal life). Following the Introduction it is appropriate for the sick person to make a good confession, or if that does not take place at that time, then a Penitential Act takes place, urging the sick person to seek forgiveness for one’s sins and then follows a short reading from scripture. Following these introductory rites we move into the Liturgy of the Anointing. This part of the ritual begins with a short litany, asking God’s help for the sick person and calling upon His mercy. Following the litany the priest will then lay his hands on the head of the sick person – we have talked about the ancient gesture of the “laying on of hands” in prior articles and so we won’t repeat that discussion here, but will point out once again that it is associated with calling down the Holy Spirit and asking God to make His power manifest in a specific way, in this case, for healing. There is then a brief prayer of thanksgiving over the blessed oil, giving praise to God for His power and the way He uses that power for our sanctification, then there is the anointing itself. In the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick, the priest will anoint both the forehead of the sick person as well as the palms of the hands. While he anoints the forehead with the Oil of the Sick in the sign of the cross, he prays, “Through this holy anointing may the Lord in his love and mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit.” As he anoints the palms of the hands he prays, “may the Lord who frees you from sin save you and raise you up.” Note that these anointings and the words that are prayed constitute the matter and form of the sacrament – the matter is the anointing with the oil and the form are the words that are prayed with the anointing. Following the anointing itself a prayer is prayed, then the Our Father and, if appropriate, the Eucharist is received, followed by a Prayer after Communion and a final blessing. As I noted earlier in this article there are numerous variations on this basic ritual to take into account various situations, so, for instance, there is a shorter ritual designed to be used in hospitals or institutions where there may be a number of people to be anointed or when time is of the essence, there is a ritual for anointing within a Mass and then there are special prayers for use when someone is dying and rituals which include emergency situations, or Christian Initiation for the dying (including baptism, confirmation and reception of the Eucharist). In our next article we are going to look at a few specific things surrounding Anointing of the Sick, including when one should be anointed. (This article is part of a series of articles on The Sacraments which will appear in the bulletin over the course of this year.) |
Fr. PeterArchives
June 2023
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