“Is any among you sick? Let him call for the 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).

The sacrament of Anointing of the Sick has as its purpose the conferral of a special grace on the Christian experiencing the difficulties inherent in the condition of grave illness or old age. The proper time for receiving this holy anointing has certainly arrived when the believer begins to be in danger of death because of illness or old age. Each time a Christian falls seriously ill, he may receive the Anointing of the Sick, and also when, after he has received it, the illness worsens. The special grace of the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick has as its effects:

  • the uniting of the sick person to the passion of Christ, for his own good and that of the whole Church;
  • the strengthening, peace, and courage to endure in a Christian manner the sufferings of illness or old age;
  • the forgiveness of sins, if the sick person was not able to obtain it through the sacrament of Penance;
  • the restoration of health, if it is conducive to the salvation of his soul;
  • the preparation for passing over to eternal life.

(CCC 1526-1530, 1532)

REQUESTS:

To request visitation by a priest to administer the sacrament, call the parish office during working hours: +6082-578857.

You will need to furnish the following details:

  • Name of the sick person
  • Where the sick person is; eg. home address, hospital ward and bed number, etc.
    • Note that usually for visits to:
      • Sarawak General Hospital, contact St Joseph’s Parish, 082-423424, in view of their proximity to the hospital
      • Borneo Medical Centre, KPJ, Timberland, you may contact Blessed Sacrament (082-578857) or in case of emergency, St Joseph’s.
  • Contact number of the care-giver / the one looking after the sick person (It is preferable that the care-giver is the one who contacts the parish office.). Please ensure that the number is contactable. It is likely that the priest or minister will try to contact you. The care-giver must be alert to take the telephone calls.
  • You will need to check if the sick person is Catholic and if he or she has not already received the sacrament of anointing of the sick recently.
  • If the sick is able to receive Holy Communion, you may request that the Eucharist be brought along by the priest.

A priest of the parish may be brought by a family member to the sick person, or else he may contact the care-giver to arrange a suitable time to administer the sacrament.

Having passed from this world to the Father, Christ gives us in the Eucharist the pledge of glory with him. Participation in the Holy Sacrifice identifies us with his Heart, sustains our strength along the pilgrimage of this life, makes us long for eternal life, and unites us even now to the Church in heaven, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and all the saints. (CCC 1417-1419)

ANOINTING BEFORE SCHEDULED CHECK-IN FOR SURGERY IN HOSPITALS

It is appropriate for a person to request the sacrament of anointing of the sick before he or she would undergo surgery. In cases of scheduled check-in and surgery, it is best if the patient arrange to go to the parish office to receive the sacrament of anointing from the priest before going to the hospital.

HOLY COMMUNION FOR THE SICK

The parish provides Communion for the Sick either by priests or designated extra-ordinary ministers of Holy Communion. To make a request, please contact the parish office to furnish us relevant details. The same request form is used for both Communion for the Sick and for Anointing of the the Sick.

Download Sick Call/Communion for the Sick Request Form here