Anointing the Sick During Easter Week

        Earlier this week we heard St. Peter say: “I have neither silver nor gold, but what I do have I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean, rise and walk.” In a way, this is what we are asking in this anointing of our sick and elderly brothers. It is a special kind of service, like the washing of one another’s feet at the Mandatum. We are bringing our faith, hope, and love to embrace our brothers, praying for their welfare; and our brothers are bringing their faith, hope, and love to us by becoming a sign of the Lord’s suffering among us.

          St. James urges those who are sick to summon the priests to pray over them and anoint them in the name of the Lord. The priests make this prayer in faith, trusting that the Lord still wants to heal as he did in his lifetime. However, all of us must hold fast to our faith that the Lord’s word never returns void, but achieves the end for which he sent it, in this case, the healing and strengthening of our brothers in body and soul.

          St. Peter displayed this faith when he said: “…(B)y faith in his name, this man whom you see and know, this name has made strong…” This is the faith that engenders hope. Peter referred to this in the words of Psalm 15: “I saw the Lord ever before me, with him at my right hand, I shall not be disturbed. Therefore, my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted; my flesh, too, will dwell in hope...” This is our prayer for our brothers: that their bodies and souls may exult in hope, dwell in hope, and rest in hope.

          Finally, our celebration of this sacrament expresses wonderfully our charity. It is an act of service. At the Mandatum we washed one another’s feet. In our celebration this evening, we serve our brothers with our prayers, our touch, our anointing, and our attentive accompaniment. We give neither silver nor gold, but what we have: faith, hope, and love in Our Lord Jesus that, he will raise up our brothers and console them again.

Photograph by Brother Brian. Father Abbot's homily, given during the communal anointing of our infirm brethren during Vespers on Easter Thursday.