THE CATECHISM OF
THE
CATHOLIC CHURCH
Return to Table of Contents
1499 "By the sacred anointing of the sick and the prayer of the priests
the whole Church commends those who are ill to the suffering and glorified
Lord, that he may raise them up and save them. And indeed she exhorts them
to contribute to the good of the People of God by freely uniting
themselves to the Passion and death of Christ."[97]
Illness in human life
1500 Illness and suffering have always been among the gravest problems
confronted in human life. In illness, man experiences his powerlessness,
his limitations, and his finitude. Every illness can make us glimpse
death.
1501 Illness can lead to anguish, self-absorption, sometimes even despair
and revolt against God. It can also make a person more mature, helping him
discern in his life what is not essential so that he can turn toward that
which is. Very often illness provokes a search for God and a return to
him.
The sick person before God
1502 The man of the Old Testament lives his sickness in the presence of
God. It is before God that he laments his illness, and it is of God,
Master of life and death, that he implores healing.[98] Illness becomes a
way to conversion; God's forgiveness initiates the healing.[99] It is the
experience of Israel that illness is mysteriously linked to sin and evil,
and that faithfulness to God according to his law restores life: "For I am
the Lord, your healer."[100] The prophet intuits that suffering can also
have a redemptive meaning for the sins of others.[101] Finally Isaiah
announces that God will usher in a time for Zion when he will pardon every
offense and heal every illness.[102]
Christ the physician
1503 Christ's compassion toward the sick and his many healings of every
kind of infirmity are a resplendent sign that "God has visited his
people"[103] and that the Kingdom of God is close at hand. Jesus has the
power not only to heal, but also to forgive sins;[104] he has come to heal
the whole man, soul and body; he is the physician the sick have need
of.[105] His compassion toward all who suffer goes so far that he
identifies himself with them: "I was sick and you visited me."[106] His
preferential love for the sick has not ceased through the centuries to
draw the very special attention of Christians toward all those who suffer
in body and soul. It is the source of tireless efforts to comfort them.
1504 Often Jesus asks the sick to believe.[107] He makes use of signs to
heal: spittle and the laying on of hands,[108] mud and washing.[109] The
sick try to touch him, "for power came forth from him and healed them
all."[110] And so in the sacraments Christ continues to "touch" us in
order to heal us.
1505 Moved by so much suffering Christ not only allows himself to be
touched by the sick, but he makes their miseries his own: "He took our
infirmities and bore our diseases."[111] But he did not heal all the sick.
His healings were signs of the coming of the Kingdom of God. They
announced a more radical healing: the victory over sin and death through
his Passover. On the cross Christ took upon himself the whole weight of
evil and took away the "sin of the world,"[112] of which illness is only a
consequence. By his passion and death on the cross Christ has given a new
meaning to suffering: it can henceforth configure us to him and unite us
with his redemptive Passion.
"Heal the sick . . ."
1506 Christ invites his disciples to follow him by taking up their cross
in their turn.[113] By following him they acquire a new outlook on illness
and the sick. Jesus associates them with his own life of poverty and
service. He makes them share in his ministry of compassion and healing:
"So they went out and preached that men should repent. And they cast out
many demons, and anointed with oil many that were sick and healed
them."[114]
1507 The risen Lord renews this mission ("In my name . . . they will lay
their hands on the sick, and they will recover."[115]) and confirms it
through the signs that the Church performs by invoking his name.[116]
These signs demonstrate in a special way that Jesus is truly "God who
saves."[117]
1508 The Holy Spirit gives to some a special charism of healing[118] so as
to make manifest the power of the grace of the risen Lord. But even the
most intense prayers do not always obtain the healing of all illnesses.
Thus St. Paul must learn from the Lord that "my grace is sufficient for
you, for my power is made perfect in weakness," and that the sufferings to
be endured can mean that "in my flesh I complete what is lacking in
Christ's afflictions for the sake of his Body, that is, the Church."[119]
1509 "Heal the sick!"[120] The Church has received this charge from the
Lord and strives to carry it out by taking care of the sick as well as by
accompanying them with her prayer of intercession. She believes in the
life-giving presence of Christ, the physician of souls and bodies. This
presence is particularly active through the sacraments, and in an
altogether special way through the Eucharist, the bread that gives eternal
life and that St. Paul suggests is connected with bodily health.[121]
1510 However, the apostolic Church has its own rite for the sick, attested
to by St. James: "Is any among you sick? Let him call for the elders
[presbyters] 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."[122] Tradition has recognized in this rite one of the seven
sacraments.[123]
A sacrament of the sick
1511 The Church believes and confesses that among the seven sacraments
there is one especially intended to strengthen those who are being tried
by illness, the Anointing of the Sick:
This sacred anointing of the sick was instituted by Christ our Lord as a
true and proper sacrament of the New Testament. It is alluded to indeed by
Mark, but is recommended to the faithful and promulgated by James the
apostle and brother of the Lord.[124]
1512 From ancient times in the liturgical traditions of both East and
West, we have testimonies to the practice of anointings of the sick with
blessed oil. Over the centuries the Anointing of the Sick was conferred
more and more exclusively on those at the point of death. Because of this
it received the name "Extreme Unction." Notwithstanding this evolution the
liturgy has never failed to beg the Lord that the sick person may recover
his health if it would be conducive to his salvation.[125]
1513 The Apostolic Constitution Sacram unctionem infirmorum,[126]
following upon the Second Vatican Council,[127] established that
henceforth, in the Roman Rite, the following be observed:
The sacrament of Anointing of the Sick is given to those who are seriously
ill by anointing them on the forehead and hands with duly blessed oil -
pressed from olives or from other plants - saying, only once: "Through
this holy anointing may the Lord in his love and mercy help you with the
grace of the Holy Spirit. May the Lord who frees you from sin save you and
raise you up."[128]
In case of grave illness . . .
1514 The Anointing of the Sick "is not a sacrament for those only who are
at the point of death. Hence, as soon as anyone of the faithful begins to
be in danger of death from sickness or old age, the fitting time for him
to receive this sacrament has certainly already arrived."[129]
1515 If a sick person who received this anointing recovers his health, he
can in the case of another grave illness receive this sacrament again. If
during the same illness the person's condition becomes more serious, the
sacrament may be repeated. It is fitting to receive the Anointing of the
Sick just prior to a serious operation. The same holds for the elderly
whose frailty becomes more pronounced.
" . . . let him call for the presbyters of the Church"
1516 Only priests (bishops and presbyters) are ministers of the Anointing
of the Sick.[130] It is the duty of pastors to instruct the faithful on
the benefits of this sacrament. The faithful should encourage the sick to
call for a priest to receive this sacrament. The sick should prepare
themselves to receive it with good dispositions, assisted by their pastor
and the whole ecclesial community, which is invited to surround the sick
in a special way through their prayers and fraternal attention.
1517 Like all the sacraments the Anointing of the Sick is a liturgical and
communal celebration,[131] whether it takes place in the family home, a
hospital or church, for a single sick person or a whole group of sick
persons. It is very fitting to celebrate it within the Eucharist, the
memorial of the Lord's Passover. If circumstances suggest it, the
celebration of the sacrament can be preceded by the sacrament of Penance
and followed by the sacrament of the Eucharist. As the sacrament of
Christ's Passover the Eucharist should always be the last sacrament of the
earthly journey, the "viaticum" for "passing over" to eternal life.
1518 Word and sacrament form an indivisible whole. The Liturgy of the
Word, preceded by an act of repentance, opens the celebration. The words
of Christ, the witness of the apostles, awaken the faith of the sick
person and of the community to ask the Lord for the strength of his
Spirit.
1519 The celebration of the sacrament includes the following principal
elements: the "priests of the Church"[132] - in silence - lay hands on the
sick; they pray over them in the faith of the Church[133] - this is the
epiclesis proper to this sacrament; they then anoint them with oil
blessed, if possible, by the bishop.
These liturgical actions indicate what grace this sacrament confers upon
the sick.
1520 A particular gift of the Holy Spirit. The first grace of this
sacrament is one of strengthening, peace and courage to overcome the
difficulties that go with the condition of serious illness or the frailty
of old age. This grace is a gift of the Holy Spirit, who renews trust and
faith in God and strengthens against the temptations of the evil one, the
temptation to discouragement and anguish in the face of death.[134] This
assistance from the Lord by the power of his Spirit is meant to lead the
sick person to healing of the soul, but also of the body if such is God's
will.[135] Furthermore, "if he has committed sins, he will be
forgiven."[136]
1521 Union with the passion of Christ. By the grace of this sacrament the
sick person receives the strength and the gift of uniting himself more
closely to Christ's Passion: in a certain way he is consecrated to bear
fruit by configuration to the Savior's redemptive Passion. Suffering, a
consequence of original sin, acquires a new meaning; it becomes a
participation in the saving work of Jesus.
1522 An ecclesial grace. The sick who receive this sacrament, "by freely
uniting themselves to the passion and death of Christ," "contribute to the
good of the People of God."[137] By celebrating this sacrament the Church,
in the communion of saints, intercedes for the benefit of the sick person,
and he, for his part, though the grace of this sacrament, contributes to
the sanctification of the Church and to the good of all men for whom the
Church suffers and offers herself through Christ to God the Father.
1523 A preparation for the final journey. If the sacrament of anointing of
the sick is given to all who suffer from serious illness and infirmity,
even more rightly is it given to those at the point of departing this
life; so it is also called sacramentum exeuntium (the sacrament of those
departing).[138] The Anointing of the Sick completes our conformity to the
death and Resurrection of Christ, just as Baptism began it. It completes
the holy anointings that mark the whole Christian life: that of Baptism
which sealed the new life in us, and that of Confirmation which
strengthened us for the combat of this life. This last anointing fortifies
the end of our earthly life like a solid rampart for the final struggles
before entering the Father's house.[139]
1524 In addition to the Anointing of the Sick, the Church offers those who
are about to leave this life the Eucharist as viaticum. Communion in the
body and blood of Christ, received at this moment of "passing over" to the
Father, has a particular significance and importance. It is the seed of
eternal life and the power of resurrection, according to the words of the
Lord: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I
will raise him up at the last day."[140] The sacrament of Christ once dead
and now risen, the Eucharist is here the sacrament of passing over from
death to life, from this world to the Father.[141]
1525 Thus, just as the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation, and the
Eucharist form a unity called "the sacraments of Christian initiation," so
too it can be said that Penance, the Anointing of the Sick and the
Eucharist as viaticum constitute at the end of Christian life "the
sacraments that prepare for our heavenly homeland" or the sacraments that
complete the earthly pilgrimage.
IN BRIEF
1526 "Is any among you sick? Let him call for the presbyters 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" (Jas
5:14-15).
1527 The sacrament of Anointing of the Sick has as its purpose the
conferral of a special grace on the Christian experiencing the
difficulties inherent in the condition of grave illness or old age.
1528 The proper time for receiving this holy anointing has certainly
arrived when the believer begins to be in danger of death because of
illness or old age.
1529 Each time a Christian falls seriously ill, he may receive the
Anointing of the Sick, and also when, after he has received it, the
illness worsens.
1530 Only priests (presbyters and bishops) can give the sacrament of the
Anointing of the Sick, using oil blessed by the bishop, or if necessary by
the celebrating presbyter himself.
1531 The celebration of the Anointing of the Sick consists essentially in
the anointing of the forehead and hands of the sick person (in the Roman
Rite) or of other parts of the body (in the Eastern rite), the anointing
being accompanied by the liturgical prayer of the celebrant asking for the
special grace of this sacrament.
1532 The special grace of the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick has
as its effects:
- the uniting of the sick person to the passion of Christ, for his own
good and that of the whole Church;
- the strengthening, peace, and courage to endure in a Christian manner
the sufferings of illness or old age;
- the forgiveness of sins, if the sick person was not able to obtain it
through the sacrament of Penance;
- the restoration of health, if it is conducive to the salvation of his
soul;
- the preparation for passing over to eternal life.
ENDNOTES
1 2 Cor 4:7; Col 3:3.
2 2 Cor 5:1.
3 Cf. Mk 2:1-12.
4 LG 11 # 2.
5 Cf. Mk 1:15; Lk 15:18.
6 OP 46 formula of absolution.
7 2 Cor 5:20.
8 MT 5:24.
9 1 Cor 6:11.
10 Gal 3:27.
11 1 Jn 1:8.
12 Cf. Lk 11:4; Mt 6:12.
13 Eph 1:4; 5:27.
14 Cf. Council of Trent (1546) DS 1515.
15 Cf. Council of Trent (1547): DS 1545; LG 40.
16 Mk 1:15.
17 Cf. Acts 2:38.
18 LG 8 # 3.
19 Ps 51:17; cf. Jn 6:44; 12:32; 1 Jn 4:10.
20 Cf. Lk 22:61; Jn 21:15-17.
21 Rev 2:5, 16.
22 St. Ambrose, ep. 41, 12: PL 16, 1116.
23 Cf. Joel 2:12-13; Isa 1:16-17; Mt 6:1-6; 16-18.
24 Cf. Council Of Trent (1551) DS 1676-1678; 1705; Cf. Roman Catechism,
II, V, 4.
25 Cf. Ezek 36:26-27.
26 Lam 5:21.
27 Cf. Jn 19:37; Zech 12:10.
28 St. Clement Of Rome, Ad Cor. 7, 4 PG 1, 224.
29 Cf. Jn 16:8-9.
30 Cf. Jn 15:26; Acts 2:36-38; John Paul II, DeV 27-48.
31 Cf. Tob 12:8; Mt 6:1-18.
32 1 Pet 4:8; Cf. Jas 5:20.
33 Cf. Am 5:24; Isa 1:17.
34 Cf. Lk 9:23.
35 Council Of Trent (1551) DS 1638.
36 Cf. SC 109-110; CIC, cann. 1249-1253; CCEO, Cann. 880-883.
37 Cf. Lk 15:11-24.
38 Cf. LG 11.
39 Cf. Mk 2:7.
40 Mk 2:5, 10; Lk 7:48.
41 Cf. Jn 20:21-23.
42 2 Cor 5:18.
43 2 Cor 5:20.
44 Cf. Lk 15; 19:9.
45 Mt 16:19; cf. Mt 18:18; 28:16-20.
46 LG 22 # 2.
47 Tertullian, De Paenit. 4, 2: PL 1,1343; cf. Council of Trent (1547): DS
1542.
48 OP 46: formula of absolution.
49 Roman Catechism II, V, 21; cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1673.
50 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1676.
51 Cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1677.
52 Cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1678; 1705.
53 Cf. Mt 5-7; Rom 12-15; 1 Cor 12-13; Gal 5; Eph 4-6; etc.
54 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1680 (ND 1626); cf. Ex 20:17; Mt 5:28.
55 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1680 (ND 1626); cf. St. Jerome, In Eccl.
10, 11: PL 23:1096.
56 Cf. CIC, Can. 989; Council of Trent (1551): DS 1683; DS 1708.
57 Cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1647; 1661; CIC, can. 916; CCEO, can.
711.
58 Cf. CIC, can. 914.
59 Cf. Council of Trent: DS 1680; CIC, can. 988 # 2.
60 Cf. Lk 6:36.
61 St. Augustine, In Jo. ev. 12, 13: PL 35, 1491.
62 Cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1712.
63 Rom 8:17; Rom 3:25; 1 Jn 2:1-2; cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1690.
64 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1691; cf. Phil 4:13; 1 Cor 1:31; 2 Cor
10:17; Gal 6:14; Lk 3:8.
65 Cf. In 20:23; 2 Cor 5:18.
66 Cf. LG 26 # 3.
67 Cf. CIC cann. 844; 967-969; 972; CCEO, can. 722 ## 3-4.
68 Cf. CIC, cann. 1331; 1354-1357; CCEO, can. 1431; 1434; 1420.
69 Cf. CIC, can. 976; CCEO, can. 725.
70 Cf. CIC, can. 486; CCEO, can. 735; PO 13.
71 Cf. PO 13.
72 Cf. CIC, can. 1388 # 1; CCEO, can. 1456.
73 Roman Catechism, II, V, 18.
74 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1674.
75 Cf. Lk 15:32.
76 Cf. 1 Cor 12:26.
77 Cf. LG 48-50.
78 John Paul II, RP 31, 5.
79 Cf. 1 Cor 5:11; Gal 5:19-21; Rev 22:15.
80 Jn 5:24.
81 Paul VI, apostolic constitution, Indulgentiarum doctrina, Norm 1.
82 Indulgentiarum doctrina, Norm 2; Cf. Norm 3.
83 Cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1712-1713; (1563): 1820.
84 Eph 4:22, 24.
85 Indulgentiarum doctrina, 5.
86 Indulgentiarum doctrina, 5.
87 Indulgentiarum doctrina, 5.
88 Indulgentiarum doctrina, 5.
89 Cf. Indulgentiarum doctrina, 5.
90 Cf. SC 26-27.
91 Cf. CIC, can. 962 #1.
92 Cf. CIC, can. 961 # 2.
93 Cf. CIC, can. 961 # 1.
94 OP 31.
95 Mk 2:5.
96 Cf. Mk 2:17.
97 LG 11; cf. Jas 5:14-16; Rom 8:17; Col 1:24; 2 Tim 2:11-12; 1 Pet 4:13.
98 Cf. Pss 6:3; 38; Isa 38.
99 Cf. Pss 32:5; 38:5; 39:9, 12; 107:20; cf. Mk 2:5-12.
100 Ex 15:26.
101 Cf. Isa 53:11.
102 Cf. Isa 33:24.
103 Lk 7:16; cf. Mt 4:24.
104 Cf. Mk 2:5-12.
105 Cf. Mk 2:17.
106 Mt 25:36.
107 Cf. Mk 5:34, 36; 9:23.
108 Cf. Mk 7:32-36; 8:22-25.
109 Cf. Jn 9:6-7.
110 Lk 6:19; cf. Mk 1:41; 3:10; 6:56.
111 Mt 8:17; cf. Isa 53:4.
112 Jn 1:29; cf. Isa 53:4-6.
113 Cf. Mt 10:38.
114 Mk 6:12-13.
115 Mk 16:17-18.
116 Cf. Acts 9:34; 14:3.
117 Cf. Mt 1:21; Acts 4:12.
118 Cf. 1 Cor 12:9, 28, 30.
119 2 Cor 12:9; Col 1:24.
120 Mt 10:8.
121 Cf. Jn 6:54, 58; 1 Cor 11:30.
122 Jas 5:14-15.
123 Cf. Council of Constantinople II (553) DS 216; Council Of Florence
(1439) 1324- 1325; Council Of Trent (1551) 1695-1696; 1716-1717.
124 Council Of Trent (1551): DS 1695; cf. Mk 6:13; Jas 5:14-15.
125 Cf. Council Of Trent (1551) DS 1696.
126 Paul VI, apostolic constitution, Sacram unctionem infirmorum, November
30, 1972.
127 Cf. SC 73.
128 Cf. CIC, Can. 847 # 1.
129 SC 73; cf. CIC, Cann. 1004 # 1; 1005; 1007; CCEO, Can. 738.
130 Cf. Council Of Trent (1551): DS 1697; 1719; CIC, Can. 1003; CCEO, Can.
739 # 1.
131 Cf. SC 27.
132 Jas 5:14.
133 Cf. Jas 5:15.
134 Cf. Heb 2:15.
135 Cf. Council of Florence (1439): DS 1325.
136 Jas 515; cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1717.
137 LG 11 # 2.
138 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1698.
139 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1694.
140 Jn 6:54.
141 Cf. Jn 13:1.
|
