In our Holy Orthodox Church, there are seven 'main' sacraments: baptism, chrismation, the eucharist, confession, matrimony, holy orders, and last but not least, holy unction. It is this last one, unction, which I would like to speak about. Holy unction is the sacrament of healing and is administered to any Orthodox person who is suffering from a physical ailment. Instruction for this comes from the epistle of St James where he says, "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven" (5:14-15). Call to mind the miracles of healing by our Lord in the Gospels, and the subsequent healings that took place through the Apostles in the early church. God has always worked miracles of healing throughout history (there are many instancs of saints working various kinds of healings), and continues to do so today.
The ministry of healing continues in the Church today through the sacrament of holy unction which can be administered by a bishop or priest. If one is ill, please contact the parish priest to schedule a visit so he can administer this important sacrament. God loves the whole person, body and soul, and seeks to bring His wholeness and salvation to each one of us. Along with holy communion and confession, holy unction can be received whenever needed. Please afford yourself of this sacrament when it is needed.
"I anoint thee with oil, and I lay my hands upon thee, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit; beseeching the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all thy pain and sickness of body, mind, or spirit being put to flight, the blessing of health may be restored unto thee. Amen." (Prayer during administration of Holy Unction; Western Rite Service Book).
To God be the glory,
Fr Stephen
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1 comment:
Greetings Father,
Just found your new blog and wanted to let you know I'm subscribing to it on my reader feed. I do hope you'll have entries on the structures and distinctives of the WR liturgies and piety-- for instance, I've always wondered about statues in the West; are they venerated (kissing, censing, etc.)? I've also wondered about typical WR piety-- analogies to Eastern things like icon corners, the Jesus prayer, etc.
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