Bishop Richard has been a bishop for some years,
though as Bishop of the Forces he has not been a diocesan bishop. There is no ordination involved in Thursday’s
ceremony, just as there was no ordination involved when Pope Francis was
installed as Bishop of Rome over two years ago as he had already been a bishop
for many years in Buenos Aires. When a
bishop and a priest are ordained they are anointed with the Oil of Chrism. When people are confirmed they are also
anointed with Chrism. In these
Sacraments the anointing with Chrism is an essential component of the
celebration.
Normally one being baptised is also anointed with
the Oil of Chrism in the course of the ceremony but this is not essential as
one is baptised by the pouring of water – or immersion in water – accompanied
by the stipulated form of words. So most
of us have been anointed two times – at Baptism and at Confirmation.
There is another Sacrament which involves anointing
with oil. This Sacrament is sometimes called
‘Last Anointing’ but for the past fifty years – since the Second Vatican
Council – we are encouraged to refer to it as the Sacrament of the Sick. The oil used is known as the Oil of the
Sick. This Sacrament is perhaps the most
misunderstood of all the Sacraments. If
you mentioned ‘the Sacrament of the Sick’ to your fellow Catholics many of them
wouldn’t be quite sure what you were talking about! However, if you spoke of the Last Anointing
there would be a clearer recognition.
It used to be officially called ‘Last Anointing’ or
its Latin equivalent ‘Extreme Unction’ because of all the Sacraments involving
an anointing with oil this would normally be the last to be received. Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Orders can all
be received only once and very often the occasion for the reception of the
Sacrament of the Sick would only arise many years after these Sacramental
anointing – hence the use of the term
‘extreme unction’ or ‘last anointing’ or even ‘the last rites’. Calling the Sacrament ‘extreme unction’
reinforced the idea that one had to be extremely ill before receiving it. And many people still think this is the case.
What does Scripture say about it? The Letter of James – short though it is –
speaks volumes: ‘Are any among you suffering?
They should pray. Are any
cheerful? They should sing songs of
praise. Are any among you sick? They should call for the elders of the church
and have them pray over them, anointing them with oil in the name of the
Lord. The prayer of faith will save the
sick and the Lord will raise them up; anyone who has committed sin will be
forgiven. Therefore confess yours sins
to one another and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The prayers of the righteous is powerful and
effective’ (5:13-15) So James says that
anyone who is sick should call for an elder.
There is no question of only making that call when one is very ill. So often the call comes when the sick person
is extremely ill or even unconscious.
Sometimes the relations only send for the priest when their loved one is
already dead. They seem to think that it
would only alarm the sick person if they were to enquire about asking the
priest to come. We should learn to think
and speak positively about this Sacrament. In the prayers used in celebrating
this Sacrament there is no reference to serious illness. It is quite amazing
how engrained ideas become – especially if these ideas are misguided!
A number of priests in the Deanery take it in turns
to have them bleeper from Worthing Hospital so that when a call comes there is
someone to respond. Sometimes I am
called out – perhaps during the night – to attend to someone who is already
dead. I always go because that is what
the family wants but obviously someone who is dead cannot receive any
Sacrament. I go and pray with the family
for the deceased but it is a shame when one is called only at this stage. It is not what James had in mind.
