PACIFIC GROVE – On Wednesday, 15 March 2023, the parish of Saint Angela Merici, 362 Lighthouse Avenue, will celebrate the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick during a special Mass at 11:30am. (The regularly scheduled 8:30am Mass will not be celebrated.)
At 6:30pm, the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick will also be celebrated during a special evening prayer service.
According to the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2005), “any member of the faithful can receive this sacrament as soon as he or she begins to be in danger of death because of sickness or old age. The faithful who receive this sacrament can receive it several times if their illness becomes worse or another serious sickness afflicts them. The celebration of this sacrament should, if possible, be preceded by individual confession on the part of the sick person” (n. 316).
“The celebration of this sacrament consists essentially in an anointing with oil which may be blessed by the bishop. The anointing is on the forehead and on the hands of the sick person […] accompanied by the prayer of the priest who asks for the special grace of this sacrament” (n. 318).
“This sacrament confers a special grace which unites the sick person more intimately to the Passion of Christ for his good and for the good of all the Church. It gives comfort, peace, courage, and even the forgiveness of sins if the sick person is not able to make a confession. Sometimes, if it is the will of God, this sacrament even brings about the restoration of physical health. In any case this Anointing prepares the sick person for the journey to the Father’s House” (n. 319).
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