Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick
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"Are any among you sick? They should call for the priests 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; and anyone who has committed sins will be forgiven." - James 5.14-15

The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick is not restricted, as was the former custom, to those in immediate danger of death, but the sacrament may not be given indiscriminately. The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick may and SHOULD BE GIVEN to those faithful whose health is seriously impaired. Elderly people may be anointed if they have become notably weakened even though no serious illness is present. Those preparing for serious surgery may be anointed. The sacrament MAY BE REPEATED for those who recover and become seriously ill again, or for a person with a chronic illness or an elderly person who is notably weakened.

The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick should not be given to anyone in need of healing in a more metaphorical rather than a medical sense. Any person whose health is not seriously impaired should continue to seek the Lord’s healing grace in other ways – e.g. through reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation (Confession) and the Sacrament of the Eucharist (Holy Communion). The Sacrament of Anointing is not administered to those who are not baptized, or those who persist in manifest grave sin, or to those already dead.

From the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

A sacrament of the sick

1511 The Church believes and confesses that among the seven sacraments there is one especially intended to strengthen those who are being tried by illness, the Anointing of the Sick:

This sacred anointing of the sick was instituted by Christ our Lord as a true and proper sacrament of the New Testament. It is alluded to indeed by Mark, but is recommended to the faithful and promulgated by James the apostle and brother of the Lord.¹²⁴

1512 From ancient times in the liturgical traditions of both East and West, we have testimonies to the practice of anointings of the sick with blessed oil. Over the centuries the Anointing of the Sick was conferred more and more exclusively on those at the point of death. Because of this it received the name "Extreme Unction." Notwithstanding this evolution the liturgy has never failed to beg the Lord that the sick person may recover his health if it would be conducive to his salvation.¹²⁵

1513 The Apostolic Constitution Sacram unctionem infirmorum,¹²⁶ following upon the Second Vatican Council,¹²⁷ established that henceforth, in the Roman Rite, the following be observed:

The sacrament of Anointing of the Sick is given to those who are seriously ill by anointing them on the forehead and hands with duly blessed oil - pressed from olives or from other plants - saying, only once: "Through this holy anointing may the Lord in his love and mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit. May the Lord who frees you from sin save you and raise you up."¹²⁸

II. Who Receives and Who Administers This Sacrament?

In case of grave illness . . .

1514 The Anointing of the Sick "is not a sacrament for those only who are at the point of death. Hence, as soon as anyone of the faithful begins to be in danger of death from sickness or old age, the fitting time for him to receive this sacrament has certainly already arrived."¹²⁹

1515 If a sick person who received this anointing recovers his health, he can in the case of another grave illness receive this sacrament again. If during the same illness the person's condition becomes more serious, the sacrament may be repeated. It is fitting to receive the Anointing of the Sick just prior to a serious operation. the same holds for the elderly whose frailty becomes more pronounced.

" . . . let him call for the presbyters of the Church"

1516 Only priests (bishops and presbyters) are ministers of the Anointing of the Sick.¹³⁰ It is the duty of pastors to instruct the faithful on the benefits of this sacrament. the faithful should encourage the sick to call for a priest to receive this sacrament. the sick should prepare themselves to receive it with good dispositions, assisted by their pastor and the whole ecclesial community, which is invited to surround the sick in a special way through their prayers and fraternal attention.

124 Council of Trent (1551): DS 1695; cf. ⇒ Mk 6:13; ⇒ Jas 5:14-15.

125 Cf. Council of Trent (1551) DS 1696.

126 Paul VI, apostolic constitution, Sacram unctionem infirmorum, November 30, 1972.

127 Cf. SC 73.

128 Cf. ⇒ CIC, Can. 847 # 1.

129 SC 73; cf. ⇒ CIC, Cann. 1004 # 1; ⇒ 1005; ⇒ 1007; CCEO, Can. 738.

130 Cf. Council of Trent (1551): DS 1697; 1719; ⇒ CIC, Can. 1003; CCEO, Can. 739 # 1.