Msgr. Peter J. Vaghi
Title of Series: "Sacraments: The Catholic Faith Celebrated"

Part 6: "The Healing Sacraments: Penance and Anointing of the Sick"

March 6th, 2008
First Thursday

It is not unusual to walk into a parish church anywhere in the world on a Sunday or Saturday vigil for Sunday and witness practically the entire congregation line up for Holy Communion. It is a beautiful sight to behold. In contrast, however, if you visit a parish church on Saturday afternoon or evening, or whenever the Sacrament of Penance is being offered, you will typically notice a small line before the confessional. This phenomenon has seemingly occurred since the renewal of the Vatican Council. What has happened to this wonderful healing sacrament, especially as a preparation for Holy Communion? St.Paul clearly teaches after all: "Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of profaning the body and blood of the Lord.” (1Cor 11:27)

A recent CARA study concludes that in the 1980’s 74 percent of Catholic adults participated at least once a year in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. That same study determined that the number has dropped to 26 percent in 2005.

We might ask ourselves why? Is no one any longer perceived to be unworthy to receive the body and blood of Jesus? Have we lost the sense of what worthiness means? Do we even know that we are required to receive Holy Communion worthily? Perhaps there is a bigger question: have we lost the sense of sin? Is sin even in our vocabularies?

Father John Baldovin, S.J. writing this past year for America magazine concludes: “On the one hand, we’re not obsessed with sin any longer. On the other hand, people don’t think of themselves as sinners, which is a big problem,” he admits. (America May 21, 2007, 14) In that same article, our own Archbishop Wuerl concludes: “Many are not all that open to recognizing personal responsibility.”

As a priest in my 23rd year of priesthood and a priest who has promoted this wonderful sacrament (and makes it a regular part of my life) throughout my life as a priest, I also have a view. Hence this meditation entitled: “The Healing Sacraments: Penance and Anointing of the Sick.”

Hopefully, this meditation will help us recoup the uniqueness and importance of this sacramental encounter with the healing Jesus. Hopefully, it will arm us with reasons to assist in our efforts at evangelization of others about the sacrament. You, in a special way, are those who will make this
sacramental encounter appealing in our generation and bring souls to God’s tender mercy. In effect, confession must be or become an integral part of our lives as Catholics. Not to is akin to Catholic lite.

Our Catholic teaching is clear that: “Individual and integral confession of grave sins followed by absolution remains the only ordinary means of reconciliation with God and with the Church.” CCC 1497

The sacrament must, moreover, be readily available in our parishes and with our priests. In addition, each of us must personally invite our fellow Catholics to receive this encounter of mercy if they have been away and then hopefully, once returned, in a regular way. The example of each one of us, priestly and lay, is of paramount importance. Non dat quod non habet. (One can not give what one does not have).

In the first order, it is the will of Jesus that His healing continue in the life of the Church. “The Lord Jesus Christ, physician of our souls and bodies...has willed that his Church continue, in the power of the Holy Spirit, his work of healing and salvation.” CCC 1421; USCCA 234 This authority was given to the apostles on that first Easter Sunday night by the Risen Lord: "...Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained.” Jn 20:22-23

In the words of Archbishop Wuerl: “...there is a comforting simplicity to confession. With sincere contrition we need only open our hearts to the priest, recount our failings and ask forgiveness. What follows is one of those moments in the life of the Church when the awesome power of Jesus Christ is most clearly and directly felt. In the name of the Church and Jesus Christ, the priest absolves the penitent from sin. At the heart of confession is the momentous action of absolution that only a priest can grant by invoking the authority of the Church and acting in the person of Jesus Christ.” Reflections on God’s Mercy and our Forgiveness, 3

This sacrament is a personal encounter with Jesus, the healing Jesus, the same Jesus (in the person of the priest) who spent a great part of His life on earth healing and forgiving. The Sacrament of Penance is extremely personal. Sins cannot be faxed, mailed or delivered by Fed Ex. A number of years ago in southern France, speaking to the French Bishops, our late Holy Father John Paul II --speaking of the Sacrament of Penance -- said “At a period in which private life is extolled and people wish to protect it against the pressures and the anonymity of large human groups, the act of confessing one’s sins and receiving from God a word of forgiveness addressed personally to each individual, is to proclaim that, in the human race, each one counts before God.”

As you think about this sacrament, its very personal nature, the potential for genuine and deep healing, think of the life of the historical Jesus. Think, above all, of His miracles. This sacrament is the open door to miracles in our lives, too. This is a sacrament of miracles. It is the grace of conversion, that gradual and daily change of life that it offers.

When you pull back the velvet curtain or open the door to the reconciliation room, think of Jesus healing the paralytic at Capernaum in Mark 2 who was lowered through the ceiling to the feet of Jesus because his friends were unable to get to Jesus directly through the front door. Before He told him to “Pick up your mat and go home,” Jesus said to him “My son, your sins are forgiven.” That shows the priority given to the forgiveness of sins. The crowd had never seen anything quite like this before.

Or John 8, the woman caught in the very act of adultery! Such beautiful and healing and miraculous language by Jesus in the face of the scribes and Pharisees who wanted to stone her. “Neither do I condemn you. Go and from now on do not sin any more.”

Or think of the prodigal son from the gospel of St. Luke, perhaps a parable better described as the “merciful father.” The new Adult Catechism of the Catholic Church describes it in these words: “Christ’s parable of the prodigal son illustrates the sublime meaning of his earthly ministry, which is to forgive sins, reconcile people to God, and lead us to true happiness (cf. Lk 15:11-32).” USCCA 235

Even from the pulpit of the cross, a cross that is central -- in special fashion -- to our Lenten pilgrimage, the language of healing and forgiveness and mercy. Remember the penitent criminal hanging next to Jesus and remember Jesus’ words: “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” Such consoling words of healing and forgiveness from the gibbet of the cross as Jesus hung dying! Yes, Jesus, as it were, hearing confessions from the very cross itself, the cross from which our salvation was won.

For many of us, the real issue is the word “sin.” For sure it is not a politically correct word in recent
times. Many of us have lost the meaning of sin. Before talking about the sacrament that continues the healing mission of Jesus, a mission that is central to the Church’s task, perhaps a word about what needs healing. “The Sacrament of Penance must be seen within the context of conversion from sin and a turn to God.” USCCA 236

Not much emphasis, after all, has been placed on sin itself, the very mystery and reality of sin in Catholic preaching and teaching in the last 25 years.

In sharp contrast, the Catechism of the Catholic Church gives much attention both to original sin and to sin itself.

Lent is the time of year, par excellance, to focus on the mystery of sin in our lives -- that gnawing, debilitating and paralyzing sin, that ONE sin perhaps which eats away at us and deprives us of a full life with God. That need not be. Lent is that special time to correct that, to recoup the sense of sin in our lives and experience ever anew His mercy with the assurance that our sins are actually forgiven no matter how often we confess the same sin or set of sins.

The catechism teaches that “after that first sin, the world is virtually inundated by sin.” CCC 401 This should not surprise any of us -- if we think about it -- and yet it is much easier to live in denial with the fantasy that sin does not exist. It is much easier to dismiss the constant din of sirens that sound throughout the District of Columbia every night, the sound of guns, the cry for help of an innocent person, the expanding drug culture, the high divorce ratio, churches far short of capacity on Sunday. “After that first sin, the world is virtually inundated by sin.”

Our Church teaches the reality of sin and original sin. It teaches that as a result of original sin -- that first sin -- human nature is weakened in its powers, we are more inclined to sin, subject to ignorance, suffering and the domination of death. Original sin is not a sin “committed” but “contracted.” It is a state not an act. And each one of us without exception is a recipient of this transmission from our first parents.

It is a deprivation of original holiness and justice. Wounded human nature results. Genesis says -- after they disobeyed and ate the fruit from the tree of good and bad “then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized that they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made loincloths for themselves.” Gen 3:7 They were full of shame and guilt.

There is still a tree of the knowledge of good and bad in each of our lives. God continues to tell us “You shall not eat it or even touch it, lest you die.” These are God’s words to our first parents and to each of us. Death results when we disobey, when we sin.

That tree symbolically represents “the insurmountable limits” that we must freely recognize and respect with trust. Sin results when we trust ourselves at the expense of God. Sin results when we live as if God’s Word does not exist. Sin results when we ignore the limits -- the 10 commandments, the beatitudes, the moral teaching of the Church and resort to our own devices and the alleged “solutions” that the world proposes. Sin is a rejection of God who is the only true living tree of life. Sin is a preference by man and his human devices instead of a preference for God.

“Sin is before all else an offense against God, a rupture of communion with him. At the same time, it damages communion with the Church.” CCC 1440

Despite our weakened state and our proclivity to sin, as followers of Jesus, we live in hope. In the words of Benedict XVI in his new encyclical, citing St. Paul, “...in hope we were saved.” Spe Salvi 1 That is after all, our Christian inheritance. Death does not have the last word. St. Paul says it so well: “For if, by the transgression of one person, death came to reign through that one, how much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of justification come to reign in life through the one person Jesus Christ.” Rom 5: 17

Jesus died that our sins might be forgiven -- each and every sin. And the Sacrament of Penance is precisely where as Catholics we share in the healing and forgiving fruits of His death out of love for us. It is a Sacrament of conversion, confession and forgiveness.

The Catechism lists the various names used for this sacrament over the years -- each reflecting a different emphasis given tothat same sacrament. I believe that the change in name for this sacrament has in part been responsible for the misunderstanding of this sacrament. The healing sacrament has been called:

l.) The sacrament of conversion -- because it ritualizes the “turning around” to the Father of one who has sinned, a Father rich in mercy.

2.) The sacrament of Penance -- which places primary focus on the satisfaction or the penance one is given by the priest at the end of the celebration.

3.) The sacrament of confession or simply “confession” -- which underscores the actual disclosure or confession of sins to the priest which is an essential part of the sacrament.

4.) The sacrament of forgiveness -- since by the priest’s sacramental absolution, the penitent receives “pardon and peace,” an assurance that our sins are in fact forgiven and that we are ready for a new lease on life.

5.) The sacrament of Reconciliation -- because it imparts to the sinner the love of God who alone reconciles. The sacrament involves a horizontal reconciliation -- with one’s brothers and sisters AND a vertical reconciliation -- with God.

At the heart of each of these titles and the very basis of this sacrament, however, is the call to conversion. It is Jesus’ repeated call to conversion. The very first words of His public ministry were Mark 1:15, the words used on Ash Wednesday during the distribution of ashes -- “The reign of God is at hand. Reform your lives and believe in the gospel.” Throughout His whole public ministry, Jesus takes very seriously this call to repentance and reform. “This call is an essential part of the proclamation of the kingdom.” CCC 1427

Reform comes from the greek word metanoia which means repent, conversion and change of heart. Repentance, conversion is a graced event. The first conversion is at Baptism and the second conversion is that daily on-going process of turning to the Lord and away from sin greatly aided by the regular reception of the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The catechism makes clear that it “is not just a human work. It is the movement of a ‘contrite heart’ drawn and moved by grace to respond to the merciful love of God who loved us first.” CCC1428

The catechism states: “Interior repentance is a radical reorientation of our whole life, a return, a conversion to God with all our heart, an end of sin, a turning away from evil, with repugnance toward the
evil actions we have committed. At the same time, it entails the desire and resolution to change one’s life, with hope in God’s mercy and trust in the help of his grace.” CCC 1431

“The human heart is heavy and hardened. God must give man a new heart...God gives us the strength to begin anew.” CCC 1432 Repentance is ultimately the Lord’s work in our lives but it requires our own cooperation.

How often at a penance service do we sing “Grant to us O Lord a heart renewed” or how often do we pray Psalm 51: “A pure heart create for me, O God, put a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from your presence, nor deprive me of your holy spirit.”

“Christ instituted the sacrament of Penance for all sinful members of his Church: above all for those who, since Baptism, have fallen into grave sin, and have thus lost their baptismal grace and wounded ecclesial communion. It is to them that the sacrament of Penance offers a new possibility to convert and recover the grace of justification. The Fathers of the Church present this sacrament as ‘the second plank [of salvation] after the shipwreck which is the loss of grace.’” CCC 1446

“The Sacrament of Penance is an experience of the gift of God’s boundless mercy. Not only does it free us from our sins but it also challenges us to have the same kind of compassion and forgiveness for those who sin against us.” USCCA 242 In the words of the Our Father, we remember “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” To the extent that we forgive others, our merciful Father will forgive us our sins.

Although there have been changes in name, discipline and the manner of celebration of this sacrament over the centuries (and even since the conclusion of the Vatican Council II), the same fundamental structure exists. “It comprises two equally essential elements: on the one hand, the acts of the man who undergoes conversion through the action of the Holy Spirit: namely, contrition, confession, and satisfaction; on the other, God’s action through the intervention of the Church.” CCC 1448

There are four essential elements to this sacrament:

l.) Contrition -- sorrow for one’s sins with a determination to avoid sin in the future. This is not a matter of feelings. It is a matter of will.

2.) Confession (disclosure) of one’s sins -- with the admission of our sins, we take responsibility for them. The penitent opens himself/herself again to God and the Church in the person of the priest in order to make a new future possible. Before confessing one’s sins, there is need for an examination of conscience that requires a certain on-going formation of conscience. The number and types of sins should be stated. “All mortal sins of which penitents after a diligent self-examination are conscious must be recounted by them in confession...”CCC 1456 “Without being strictly necessary, confession of everyday faults (venial sins) is nevertheless strongly recommended by the Church.” CCC 1458 The catechism is also clear on the following point: “‘after having attained the age of discretion, each of the faithful is bound by an obligation faithfully to confess serious sins at least once a year.’ Anyone who is aware of having committed a mortal sin must not receive Holy Communion, even if he experiences deep contrition, without having first received sacramental absolution, unless he has a grave reason for receiving Communion and there is no possibility of going to confession. Children must go to the sacrament of Penance before receiving Holy Communion for the first time.” CCC 1457

3.) Absolution -- given by the priest “he sets us free from our sins, using the power that Christ entrusted to the Church and by which he pardons the sins of the penitent.” USCCA 240 With absolution, there is an assurance that our sins are forgiven.

4.) Satisfaction (Penance) -- something the penitent is called to do by the confessor to atone for his or her sins. It is also referred to as penance. It is intended to assist in the healing and not be punitive. There is often a communitarian dimension since so many of our sins affect others also and harm must be repaired. “Just as when we get physically out of shape, we need to take up some exercise, so also when the soul is morally out of shape, there is the challenge to adopt spiritual exercises that will restore it.” USCCA 240

I wish to invite those of you who have not received the healing grace of the Sacrament of Reconciliation in a long time to come, to open the door to this sacrament of Jesus’ healing mercy. Come in and be not afraid! For those of you who receive the sacrament regularly, I encourage you to continue and to talk about it with others. Encourage them. Bring them with you to the sacrament. It is a wonderful spiritual work of mercy, of genuine act of charity to bring someone back to this sacrament -- particularly a family member. Before concluding our meditation, a word about the other healing sacrament, the Sacrament of Anointing of the Sick. The fruits of Jesus’ passion and death continue through signs and words in our day, above all in the Eucharist, but also in that special anointing sacrament of the sick. It is the sacrament that unites us -- in special fashion -- with the passion of Christ. It is a sacrament that must be rediscovered in our day. It is up to each of us to call the priest if a person is seriously ill or near death or suffering the difficulties of old age.

Only a priest or bishop may administer this sacrament using blessed oil by the bishop at the Chrism Mass. The anointing includes the forehead and hands of the sick person. The hoped-for effect is that the person will be physically healed if it is God’s will. But importantly, “the gifts of this Sacrament include uniting the sick person with Christ’s Passion, for the person’s well-being and that of the Church; strength to endure patiently the sufferings of illness and old age; the forgiveness of sins if the person was unable to receive the Sacrament of Penance; and preparation for the passage to eternal life.” USCCA 257-58

A blessed continuation of Lent 2008!