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Anointing of the Sick

- Sacraments
  - Sacramental Life
    
    Sacraments of Initiation
    Sacraments of Vocations
    Sacraments of Healing
    
    Reconciliation
    Anointing of the Sick

The Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, formerly known as Last Rites or Extreme Unction, is a Sacrament of healing appropriate not only for physical but also for mental and spiritual sickness. If you or a loved one is facing major surgery, or coping with illness or advanced age, and want to receive Anointing of the Sick, please call the rectory if you would like a priest to come to your home.

Patients at local hospitals who wish to receive the Sacrament need only to notify the nurse caring for them or the hospital chaplain and they will arrange for the priest on duty to come and administer the Sacrament.

In the Anointing of the Sick, the focus is on the possibility of a spiritual and/or a physical healing. Human frailty is a part of the reality of life and through the grace of this sacrament we are strengthened when our minds or bodies grow weak. The prayers address the sick person as a whole, which includes all aspects of our human life. So while a physical or psychological ailment may be the most obvious cause of the person’s suffering, other aspects of the person’s health are also taken into consideration. Many times, the spiritual healing is far more dramatic than the physical. And sometimes this takes the form of an increased ability to accept the physical illness and its suffering.

Death is a reality of our human life, and we need not try to deny that fact when it becomes obvious or inevitable. In such cases, the Sacrament of Anointing prepares a person for death, which includes spiritual healing and the forgiveness of sins. We are encouraged to receive the Sacrament of Anointing before the end stages of life.

As always, the grace of the sacrament and the wisdom and abilities of human nature work together when we face serious illness. We don’t want to highlight one over the other. God works just as effectively through the medical professionals as he does through the sacraments.

We want to include the sacraments, however, as a clear statement of faith in God’s presence and care for the suffering. To ignore it would be tantamount to ignoring the doctor.
If you would like to receive the Sacrament of the Sick, please call the rectory at 781-665-0152 to schedule a day, time and place. Father Shawn is happy to celebrate the Sacrament either in church, the rectory or to visit you at your home. We encourage our parishioners to receive the Sacrament before major surgery or when seriously ill.

Saint Mary

of the Annunciation Parish

Anointing of the Sick