Sacraments of Healing:
Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick
Good morning Saints! I am once again
excited by the readings concerning the Sacraments of Healing. I rejoice for the
revision of the meaning of the Sacrament of Penance, written about in Sacrosanctum
Concilium, Chapter 3, Paragraph 73. As one of the Baptist faith, when we anoint
the sick, we do so with the belief of a person’s healing. If it is not in God’s
plan for that person to receive a healing, of his/her physical body, then his/her
Spiritual body will be made ready to receive God. Please understand that we do
not just go around “laying hands” on and anointing anyone who is sick. That person has to already have knowledge of
Jesus being his/her Lord and Savior, or be willing to accept the teachings, before
we go through the process of anointing and praying for one’s healing. The
reason for this is because you have to know who God is, and what His will is
for your life, in order to be healed. If you do not know God as a healer, who
wants what’s best for you, then how would you be able to accept the Sacrament
of Healing?
Case in point, I come from a family
riddled with just about every ailment there is. I see this as a generational
curse. Through Christ, I have successfully broken that curse over the heads of
my children. Before I had Knowledge and understanding of God and what these
curses were, I too suffered from migraines, ulcers, and un-Godly marriages to
name a few things. In 1992, the Lord graciously and lovingly granted my
supplication and healed me from my ulcers. I have not had any more problems
with ulcers since. In 2003 Father healed me of my migraines, and I have had no
more problems from them either, PRAISE God!! I’m not saying that the enemy has
not tried to attack me through my health anymore, but I now know that if God
has allowed it, He must have something for me to learn from it being in my life;
or to help others from my having experienced it.
I guess why the Catholic faith
believed at one time, and some still feel suffering is a good thing: that it brings
you closer to God. I too, believe that
it brings us closer to the Lord, but have issues with it being good (ha, ha). Oftentimes
the only time we communicate with God on a daily basis is when we are suffering
in some form or another. “The purpose of the sacrament of anointing, especially
in light of the rite's expectation that religious education, pastoral
visitations, and a variety of rituals suited to individual and communal
circumstances will be practiced, is not only to grace suffering believers with
gifts that enable them to renegotiate (transform) their lives in relation to
their illness. It is also to grace (transform) the community with greater faith
through their interaction with the sick and suffering, who become living
witnesses for them of a crucial dimension of the gospel, namely, that in the
raising up of the lowly God's reign is known” (Morrill, BB 489-490). Can anyone
think of a way for us to have a testimony without a test? Suffering sometimes
is God’s way of testing us, before he can bless us. It’s just like when we are
in school, before we can go to another level, we must first pass a test.
There is a song of reconciliation that comes to my mind I would like to share with you all. I pray you will be blessed!!
Dear Class,
ReplyDeleteStarting from a pre-V2 RCC upbringing in a small town (where everybody knows your business), the reading this week were quite refreshing. Previously, my trust in the healthy reception of sacramental reconciliation rested within the hopes that its administrative effects would shift from retributive to restorative. If this sounds like the semantics of justice, then you are hearing correctly and herein resides the source of my elation. From Vorgrimler we find that there are different forms of forgiveness all of which are predicated upon “one divine pardon” that is “God’s pardoning of guilt” (pg. 203). For me this refers to the Pauline teachings of Romans 6:23, “For the wage paid by death; the gift freely given by God is eternal life in Christ Jesus, our Lord.” In my experience this “death” is guilt, a lingering state of reproach that repels grace.
The author then shows this compassionate understanding in six forms:
1) Reconciliation through hearing the word of God.
2) Reconciliation through restitution
3) Reconciliation through productive love.
4) Reconciliation through conversational encounter
5) Reconciliation through dying with Jesus.
6) Reconciliation through the Church
My fellow disciples, it is most difficult to express the liberating effects that these words, these forms have on one who was raised with a sense of reconciliation through suffering from fear of the fires of eternal damnation. That the Church was moved by the Holy Spirit to accept the enlightened theology of Rahner and Poschmann laid the groundwork for an even more astonishing revelation: sin is not only individualistic, it can be cultural, national, international, corporate. Vorgrimler confirms this on page 218 saying, “attention has shifted from the microstructure of individual faults to the macrostructure, in which we encounter the truly burdensome facts of dehumanization, oppression, seduction, and exploitation, and the destruction of the human and natural world.” This rings true to me as I immerse ever deeper within the mystical epistles of St. Paul, but for now, I defer to you in asking how the cycle of repentance, contrition and absolution play out on this larger stage…if there is collective sin, is salvation collective as well?
In traversing such dark meditations I would like to share an ongoing inspiration courtesy, Richard Rohr, “God does not love us if we change. God loves us so that we can change.”
In Christ ~ Walter
Walter, I love the history, theology and the POTENTIAL of the sacrament of reconciliation. To me, the history reveals how humankind has struggled with sin and yearned for wholeness even within salvation history. The theology takes seriously this struggle and has GOOD NEWS for it, rooted in the Paschal Mystery, and in the loving invitation of reconciliation that it offers into the very heart of the Triune God.
DeleteThe potential of this sacrament is one of the most exciting areas of pastoral liturgy. Many of us are catechized to experience this sacrament as children -- But, how does the faith of a child grow into an adult faith, especially when it comes to sin, forgiveness, healing?
Historically, we have also moved as a Church from experiencing the sacrament as "confession" to the fuller understanding of reconciliation. I appreciate this development because it contextualizes confession in its relational, communal setting. As liturgy, this is where it belongs.
This relational, communal reality of the sacrament also perhaps answers the question you pose about collective salvation. I think it is a both/and (just like so many other aspect of good RC theology). Christ redeemed all of creation, yet each of us has to enter into that reality.
Looking forward to exploring this more in class! Blessings,
DZSJ
Powerful reflections here and more ahead, I am sure. Sin and suffering are basic to our human experience and touch us on a level that is fundamental. Although sin and suffering are not the symbols themselves of the two sacraments of healing, they evoke in all of us memories, struggles, pain, hard questions. In some sense, they are just as evocative and basic as water, oil, fire, food, drink. Pastorally, it is good to know how common, moving and evocative of a theme sin and suffering are, and how in one way or another, we all yearn for healing, wholeness and reconciliation.
ReplyDeleteSimone, you raise so many important points about the anointing of the sick, and one I appreciate is your connection between bodily healing and spiritual wholeness. This is at the heart of this sacrament and your reflection testifies to this connection.
The value of suffering is a rich conversation to have - hope to say more on this in class.
Blessings,
DZSJ
Dr. Daniella,
ReplyDeleteThanks for your insightful reflections on the "relational communal setting" of the sacrament...moving from confession to reconciliation is a process which I have been blessed to experience and witness...to contemplate its unfolding impact upon a single soul outward through the soul of the church, to the soul that is the whole of the universe is to envision the hope of the Coming of the Christ. What a beautiful glimpse of the Gift.
In Christo ~ Walter
Simone, thanks for sharing your post and great clarification on how anointing of the sick takes place in your faith tradition. As I read Morrill’s piece and his experiences with healing within the community he came across a range of perspectives when he spent a year at Holy Cross. People’s perceptions on this sacrament and perhaps misunderstood as well. I am wondering that since suffering is difficult to understand in itself, that healing is a complicated task as well, especially since within the Church faith (on the part of the individual and even the greater community) is an essential component to the suffering and the healing. I was glad to hear about the grace of God’s healing touch on your life. In your wisdom you were able to treat these ailments and suffering you faced as an opportunity to grow closer to God. What a special and faithful way to respond to frustrating and humbling circumstances.
ReplyDeleteThe sacraments of anointing of the sick and reconciliation are wonderful signs of God’s power and grace. They are also so relevant, given the tragic events from the Boston Marathon last week. In following the events closely because of my ties with Boston, I witnessed both the pain experienced through loss of life and sense of security and trust. At the same time, it is clear that many people in the city have responded to the situation with a deepened sense of community, focusing on healing and understanding instead of retaliation. I trust the latter is the right path and it is helpful to have people that inspire us with the wisdom that comes of faith. Thus I will share two pieces that have helped me this week.
A colleague shared this with me, http://americamagazine.org/print/content/all-things/dear-dzhokhar, it comes from the perspective of a Jesuit scholastic in Rome who will soon be ordained. It is worth a read and invites some thought on reconciliation. My mother shared another prayer, which she found in 2013 A Book of Grace-Filled Days:
This prayer was found in the Ravensbruck concentration camp near the body of a dead child: "O Lord remember not only men and women of good will, but also those of ill will. But do not remember all the suffering they inflicted on us. Remember the fruits we have born thanks to this suffering: our comradeship, our humility, our courage, our generosity, the greatness of heart which has grown out of this; and when they come to judgment let all the fruits that we have born be their forgiveness."
Powerful words to consider as I enter into more reflection about these sacraments and how grateful I am they are part of my faith tradition!
Simone, I was struck by this passage that you reflected on in your blog about how anointing is not only about the individual being anointed but also transforms the community. “It is also to grace (transform) the community with greater faith through their interaction with the sick and suffering, who become living witnesses for them of a crucial dimension of the gospel, namely, that in the raising up of the lowly God's reign is known” (Morrill, BB 489-490). It makes sense that we are transformed through witnessing the vulnerability and weakness of individuals in need; it makes us more aware of the parts of ourselves that are weak or in need of healing. It is a beautiful thing.
ReplyDeleteI was struck in reading about the sacrament of Reconciliation that there are many forms Reconciliation can take on through which we can come to God’s forgiveness through our interactions with others and the petitions of the entire Church community. One of the actions that stood out to me is “Reconciliation through productive love. Wherever a person turns away from fixation on himself or herself and the sterility that results from that, wherever such a person undertakes a commitment, individually or socially, on behalf of others, that person’s sins are forgiven in this God-given practice of love, even if he or she does not think directly of God and God’s forgiving word” (Vorgrimler 203). This is very powerful to me that when we concentrate on others rather than ourselves, and we act on behalf of others in love, this has the ability to promote reconciliation. I think that is very powerful.
The sacrament of reconciliation is so powerful because it allows us to move forward in love with a clean slate. “The sacrament of reconciliation is the effective memory of God’s gracious judgment, in which the love of the Father through the Son and for the Son’s sake, in the Holy Spirit, removes all human guilt” (Vorgrimler 220). The Trinity acts in a communal way to establish a forgiveness of all our sins so that we can move forward in love.