a) What is the Anointing of the Sick?
The Anointing of the Sick is the sacrament which gives health and strength to the soul, and sometimes to the body when God wills it so, when we are in danger of death due to sickness or old age. The effects of the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick are: union with the suffering of Christ in his Passion, for the good of the sick person and of the whole Church; consolation, peace, and strength to support in a Christian way the difficulties and sufferings of sickness or old age; forgiveness of sins, if the person is no longer able to confess them; recovery of the person’s bodily health, if it is good for his spiritual health and if God wills so; and preparation for the journey to eternal life.
Only a priest can administer Anointing of the Sick. Oil blessed by the bishop (or by the priest himself during the celebration of the sacrament) is used to anoint the forehead and the hands, along with the words, “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”.
b) Why should an Altar Server value the Anointing of the Sick?
We should remember that difficulties due to sickness or old age, or any other difficulty for that matter, help us become more mature if we see them as opportunities to renew our self-offering to God and abandonment to his will.
An Altar Server should be able to teach his relatives and friends the value of this sacrament, so that the old and the sick in our families may receive it, knowing that it is a means of getting closer to God and preparing oneself to go to heaven.