HEALING
Symbol of the Holy Spirit
Anointing. The symbolism of anointing with oil also signifies the Holy Spirit, [Jn 2:20-27; 2 Cor 1:21] to the point of becoming a synonym for the Holy Spirit. In Christian initiation, anointing is the sacramental sign of Confirmation, called "chrismation" in the Churches of the East. Its full force can be grasped only in relation to the primary anointing accomplished by the Holy Spirit, that of Jesus. Christ (in Hebrew "messiah") means the one "anointed" by God's Spirit. There were several anointed ones of the Lord in the Old Covenant, pre-eminently King David. [Ex 30:22-32; 1 Sam 16:13] But Jesus is God's Anointed in a unique way: the humanity the Son assumed was entirely anointed by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit established him as "Christ." [Lk 4:18-19; Isa 61:1] The Virgin Mary conceived Christ by the Holy Spirit who, through the angel, proclaimed him the Christ at his birth, and prompted Simeon to come to the temple to see the Christ of the Lord. [Lk 2:11; 26-27] The Spirit filled Christ and the power of the Spirit went out from him in his acts of healing and of saving. [Lk 4:1; 6:19; 8:46] Finally, it was the Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead. [Rom 1:4; 8:11] Now, fully established as "Christ" in his humanity victorious over death, Jesus pours out the Holy Spirit abundantly until "the saints" constitute - in their union with the humanity of the Son of God - that perfect man "to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ": [Eph 4:13; Acts 2:36] "the whole Christ," in St. Augustine's expression. 695

The Anointing of the Sick
"By the sacred anointing of the sick and the prayer of the priests the whole Church commends those who are ill to the suffering and glorified Lord, that he may raise them up and save them. And indeed she exhorts them to contribute to the good of the People of God by freely uniting themselves to the Passion and death of Christ." [Lumen Gentium 11; Jas 5:14-16; rom 8:17; Col 1:24; 2 Tim 2:11-12; 1 Pet 4:13] 1499

Christ the Physician
Christ's compassion toward the sick and his many healings of every kind of infirmity are a resplendent sign that "God has visited his people" [Lk 7:16; Mt 4:24] and that the Kingdom of God is close at hand. Jesus has the power not only to heal, but also to forgive sins; [Mk 2:5-12] he has come to heal the whole man, soul and body; he is the physician the sick have need of. [Mt 2:17] His compassion toward all who suffer goes so far that he identifies himself with them: "I was sick and you visited me." [Mt 25:36] His preferential love for the sick has not ceased through the centuries to draw the very special attention of Christians toward all those who suffer in body and soul. It is the source of tireless efforts to comfort them. 1503

Moved by so much suffering Christ not only allows himself to be touched by the sick, but he makes their miseries his own: "He took our infirmities and bore our diseases." [Mt 8:17; Isa 53:4]] But he did not heal all the sick. His healings were signs of the coming of the Kingdom of God. They announced a more radical healing: the victory over sin and death through his Passover. On the cross Christ took upon himself the whole weight of evil and took away the "sin of the world," [Jn 1:29; Isa 53:4-6] of which illness is only a consequence. By his passion and death on the cross Christ has given a new meaning to suffering: it can henceforth configure us to him and unite us with his redemptive Passion. 1505

“Heal the sick . . . “
The Holy Spirit gives to some a special charism of healing [Rom 6:4] so as to make manifest the power of the grace of the risen Lord. But even the most intense prayers do not always obtain the healing of all illnesses. Thus St. Paul must learn from the Lord that "my grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness," and that the sufferings to be endured can mean that "in my flesh I complete what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his Body, that is, the Church." [2 Cor 12:9; Col 1:24] 1508

"Heal the sick!" [Mt 10:8] The Church has received this charge from the Lord and strives to carry it out by taking care of the sick as well as by accompanying them with her prayer of intercession. She believes in the life-giving presence of Christ, the physician of souls and bodies. This presence is particularly active through the sacraments, and in an altogether special way through the Eucharist, the bread that gives eternal life and that St. Paul suggests is connected with bodily health. [Jn 6:54, 58; 1 Cor 11:30] 1509

However, the apostolic Church has its own rite for the sick, attested to by St. James: "Isa any among you sick? Let him call for the elders [presbyters] 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 man, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven." [Jas 5:14-15] Tradition has recognized in this rite one of the seven sacraments. [Counil of Constantinople II (553):216; Council of Florence (1439): 1324-1325; Council of Trent (1551) 1695-1696; 1716-1717] 1510

“ . . . let him call for the presbyters of the Church”
Only priests (bishops and presbyters) are ministers of the Anointing of the Sick. [St. Basil. De Spiritu Sanctu, 15, 36: Pg 32, 132] 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. 1516

The celebration of the Anointing of the Sick consists essentially in the anointing of the forehead and hands of the sick person (in the Roman Rite) or of other parts of the body (in the Eastern rite), the anointing being accompanied by the liturgical prayer of the celebrant asking for the special grace of this sacrament. 1531