Christ strengthens the sick
A Christian should unite his sufferings with those of Christ. In this he finds the meaning of his sufferings. This is especially difficult for a sick person, who cannot enjoy the benefits of the normal life of the Church community. The disease makes him weaker and all the more in need of help. How does Christ in the Church support the sick in this difficult situation? ?
The Church cares for the sick
For a healthy person a great help in religious life is his participation in the liturgical life of the Church. In the community of the faithful, it is nourished by the word of God, participates in the sacrifice of the Holy Mass., he is surrounded by like-minded people, whose religious feelings and impart to him. It is easier to pray together, live out your faith, hope and love, come closer to God. In sickness, the Christian is deprived of all of these.
However, the Church has been taking special care of the sick for centuries. The Blessed Sacrament has been kept in our churches for a long time. This custom was created with the sick in mind. When the healthy were nourished on the Body of the Lord during Holy Mass., for the sick, the Most Holy. The sacrament was delivered in a separate place and at the right moment in the houses. The Custom of Holy Communion. the sick still exists today. In many parishes there is a custom of periodic Holy Communion. sick, e.g.. on the occasion of Christmas, Easter etc.. An expression of the Church's concern for the sick is to allow the celebration of the Holy Mass. in the sick home.
The church during the Holy Mass. he also remembers about his sick, commending them to God in the Prayer of the Faithful (universal).
It doesn't stop there, but through the "Apostolate of the Sick" he wishes to bring the word of God closer to them, which they cannot hear in the churches. He also encourages the faithful to visit them at home and provide all kinds of help.
Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick
Every sick person is physically and mentally weakened. He may feel fear, bow, and even a loss of trust in God. Old people also experience it, who, due to their age, must take into account the danger of death.
Sick, which is in this condition, Christ strengthens in the sacrament of the anointing of the sick. The main rite of this sacrament is anointing.
The anointing in the sacraments signifies a certain human participation in the priesthood of Christ. In this sacrament, the rite of anointing signifies the special participation of the sick in the saving suffering of Christ, the High Priest.. In this sacrament, Christ calls the sick person to unite his sufferings with those of him.
Sick, anointed with the oil of the sick and strengthened by the prayer of the Church, unites with Christ, who in the garden of Gethsemane "began to grieve and feel fear" (Mt 26, 37) and he prayed, "My Father, if it's possible, let this cup pass from me. After all, not as I want, but like you " (Mt 26,39).
In this sacrament, the sick person is united with Christ, to whom "an angel appeared from heaven and strengthened him" (Luke 22, 43). And the sick person goes with Christ to Calvary itself. She does not separate herself from her Savior and dedicates herself to God : "Father, into your hands I entrust my spirit " (Luke 23, 46).
The anointing of the sick is generally administered after confession. If the sick person cannot confess, this sacrament forgives his sins, if the sick person regretted and desired this forgiveness.
The source of strength for the sick, that he might know his sufferings and be able to combine them with those of Christ, it is the paschal mystery, that is the death and resurrection of Christ. This mystery is made present in the Eucharist and therefore, after anointing, the sick are given Holy Communion..
On this way, which the sick person does with the suffering Christ, the whole Church accompanies him. The patient is surrounded by his immediate family, are-seated and other members of the parish. He is administered the sacrament by a priest as an assistant to the bishop, who every year on Holy Thursday blesses the oil of the sick. The glorified Church also accompanies the sick person on this journey : Virgin Mary, st. Joseph, Apostolic, martyrs and followers, whom the pilgrim Church calls to the sick bed.
The sick person offers suffering to the Church. How Christ offered his sufferings for others, so the sick person makes atonement for his sins and offers his sufferings for the sins of others, and thus contributes to the purification of the Church.
Christ instituted the sacrament of the anointing of the sick, and the Apostle James taught us in his epistle :
,,Someone among you is sick ? Let him bring in the priests of the Church, to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord. And prayer full of faith will save the sick and the Lord will raise him up, and if he had committed sins, they will be forgiven " (Jk 5, 14-15).
How will I answer God ?
The sacrament of anointing is a great gift of Christ. Idea, how often people fear this sacrament. How much does the sick and the whole Church lose?.
Do you have a complete understanding of this sacrament yourself ? What do you say, when you hear a wrong opinion, that the anointing of the sick is the sacrament of "inevitable death" ? How could you be involved in the care for the sick organized in your parish? ?
■ Think :
1. How the Church cares for her sick ?
2. What is the main rite of the Anointing of the Sick? ? - What does he mean ?
3. What should precede receiving the anointing of the sick ?
4. Why is Holy Communion administered after the anointing of the sick?. ?
5. What the Church is doing, and what he obtains in the anointing of the sick ?
■ Remember:
56. What Christ does in the sacrament of the anointing of the sick ?
In the sacrament of the anointing of the sick Christ includes the sick person in his Passion, from which the sick person can draw a saving power for himself and for others.
■ Task :
1. How delicately you would point the sick person and their family to the need for the Anointing of the Sick ?
2. Describe in detail the preparations for the priest's visit to the sick.