“Extreme Unction” part of The Seven Sacraments by Rogier van der Weyden (1445-1450)
The most important moment of your life is arguably the moment of death. Your eternal destiny is determined by the state of your soul at that moment. Our Lord instituted the Sacrament of Extreme Unction or Last Rites for those sick and dying. However, the Vatican 2 religion has changed the sacrament to nothing more than a blessing for the sick and changed both the matter and form of the sacrament. It appears to be no longer valid. This is absolutely tragic for those ignorant Catholics who need this invaluable sacrament.
The Catholic Encyclopedia offers a wonderful explanation of the doctrine, power, and effects of this awesome sacrament. [1] Also, the late Fr. Coomaraswamy MD wrote a nice piece on Extreme Unction from which I used to write this study.
From the very beginning since St. James’ explanation in Holy Writ, it has ever been the custom to employ pure unadulterated olive oil, sometimes with a mixture of balm, water, or wine depending on which Catholic rite that’s used. This oil is blessed by the Bishop at the magnificent Mass of Maundy Thursday in Holy Week, a Mass so sacred that the Bishop is traditionally attended and assisted by twelve priests, seven deacons, and seven sub-deacons in order to say it properly. The bishop blesses three oils: Oil of Catechumens (Oleum Catechumenorum O.C. or Oleum Sanctorum), Oil of the Infirm (Oleum Infirmorum O.I.), and Holy Chrism (Sacrum Chrisma S.C.). The prayer reads: Emitte, quaesumus Domine, Spiritum sanctum tuum Paraclitum de coelis in hanc pinguedinem olivae, quam de viridi ligno producere dignatus es and refectionem mentis et corporis…(“Send forth we pray, Your Holy Spirit, the Paraclete, from heaven into this rich substance of oil…”)
Pope Eugene IV’s 1439 Bull “Exultate Deo” of the Council of Florence declared that the matter for Extreme Unction is “olive oil.”
Fr. Nicholas Halligan, O.P. tells us on p. 344 in his 1963 book, Administration of the Sacraments, (which is an instruction for priests):
The valid matter of Extreme Unction is olive oil duly blessed for this purpose by a bishop or priest who has obtained the faculty to do so by the Apostolic See. Although for lawfulness it must be pure, an admixture of extraneous matter renders it invalid, if it is no longer olive oil. If the supply of blessed oil (O.I.) becomes too diminished, other olive oil may be added, even repeatedly, but in a less quantity. Although it is not certain that the oil of the infirm alone renders the administration of Extreme Unction valid, in practice and outside of necessity the proper oil of this sacrament is to be used. In a case of necessity and in the absence of the proper oil (O.I.), another sacred oil (S.C.) may be employed under the condition (si haec est materia valida), but the sacrament must be conditionally repeated with the proper oil.
The matter specified by Paul VI in his new Vatican 2 Rite of Anointing and Pastoral Care of the Sick (promulgated November 30, 1972) is the oil of any plant. The new blessing of the oil, which may come from any plant, no longer invokes the Holy Ghost. It reads, “May your blessing come upon all who are anointed with this oil, that they may be freed from pain and illness and made well again in body and mind and soul.” Interestingly, the blessing is also devoid of “forgiveness of sins” and emphasizes pain and illness only. One might interpret illness of soul as sinfulness, but it doesn’t actually say it.
It wasn’t enough for Paul VI to change the matter of the sacrament. He also changed the form as he did with all the other sacraments.
The traditional form of the sacrament reads, “PER ISTAM SANCTAM UNCTIONEM ET SUAM PIISSIMAM MISERICORDIAM, INDULGEAT TIBI DOMINUS QUIDQUID PER… DELIQUISTI” (“Through this Holy Unction or oil, and through the great goodness of His mercy, may God pardon thee whatever sins thou hast committed [by evil use of sight – smell, touch etc. – depending on which organ is anointed.”)
The new Vatican 2 rite of Paul VI reads, “PER ISTAM SANCTAM UNCTIONEM ET SUAM PIISSIMAM MISERICORDIAM ADIUVET TE DOMINUS GRATIA SPRITUS SANCTI, UT A PECCATIS LIBERATUM TE SOLVAT ADQUE PROPITIUS ALLEVIAT” (on the forehead – “Through this holy anointing may the Lord in his love and mercy help you with the grace of the Holy Spirit”, and on the hands – “May the Lord who frees you from sin save you and raise you up”)
Since Pope Leo XIII declared, “All know that the Sacraments of the New Law, as sensible and efficient signs of invisible grace, ought both to signify the grace which they effect, and effect the grace which they signify,” it’s reasonable to presume that “INDULGEAT TIBI DOMINUS” (God pardon thee), “QUIDQUID DELIQUISTI” (whatever sins) and “SANCTAM UNCTINEM” (Holy Unction)are the essential words.
The new form omits all these essential words, which leads to a different meaning.
Paul VI specifically forbade the use of the traditional rite after Jan. 1, 1974 in his Apostolic Constitution. [2]
Traditionally, the sacrament is executed very reverently, as the priest carries Our Lord in his pyx and only speaks when necessary. Lighted candles and bells are used accompanied by an acolyte. Catholics keep silent, kneel, and pray as the priest passes by. On arrival, the priest will pray, hear confession if possible, and administer the Viaticum. He will pronounce an exorcism over the patient and invoked the Holy Trinity, Our Lady, Angels and Archangels, saints, etc., and anoint the patient with the holy oils with the prescribed prayers, who will then return as quickly as possible to the sacristy.
Not so in the new rite.
Priests are no longer required to wear priestly vestments, no longer are reverent or silent. Rarely if ever are candles and bells or acolytes used. The Confiteor is omitted along with other traditional prayers. “Catholics” no longer are silent nor do they kneel before Our Lord and priest. On arrival, hands are laid and the anointing is limited to forehead and hands. Afterwards, all run down for coffee and donuts in under 15 minutes, much like any weekend novus ordo mass.
In the traditional rite, the priest will administer the sacrament conditionally to a person who had already died within a period of three hours. The reason is that we don’t know precisely when the soul leaves the body.
In the new rite, the instruction says that, “when a priest is called to attend those who are already dead, he should not administer the Sacrament of anointing. Instead, he should pray for them, asking that God forgive their sins and graciously receive them into the Kingdom.”
It should be noted that the Church has never had any objection to blessing the sick. The Roman ritual contains three such blessings. One of those blessings uses a relic of the true Cross in honor of St. Benedict and St. Maurice. These three blessings prove that Extreme Unction is not just another blessing as in the new rite.
I’ve personally heard Fr. Malachi Martin repeatedly say in public interviews that the new rite is a joke and confers nothing. It came sort of as a shock to me at the time. Now that I’ve held to the position of sedevacantism for the past 2 decades and looking back, I’m surprised the Vatican 2 religion even has an “anointing of the sick” for the dying. They act as if everyone goes to heaven anyway, except maybe the really, really bad people, like the Hitler’s and Stalin’s.
In the 1970’s, Hutton Gibson gave the following explanation of Paul VI’s “sacrament”:
According to the new rite “the priest takes the oil and anoints the sick person on the forehead” (new, perhaps for professional wrestlers who head-butt) “and the hands” (and that’s all) “saying: ‘Through this holy anointing and his great love for you, may the Lord fill you with the power of His Holy Spirit’ (This approximates the new “ordinations”.) ‘Amen. In his goodness may He ease your suffering and extend his saving grace to you, freed from all the power of sin. Amen.’ There follow the prayer best suited to the person’s condition,”* (Now I lay me down to sleep?) the Lord’s Prayer recited by all, and the blessing. Try as I will, I can determine no specific intent or form in this new “celebration.” [3]
I have from a reliable source that the late Most Rev. Bishop Richard Ackerman C.S.Sp., S.T.D. (notable Vatican 2 conservative and Bishop of Covington, KY and part founder of the Sisters of St. Joseph the Worker who live and work in my hometown Versailles, Ky) refused the new rite and requested that Fr. Joseph Greenwell, a SSPV sedevacantist priest, to administer the traditional rite. The bishop obviously knew how ineffective the new rite is and wanted no part of it.
Lastly, my own priest Fr. Michael Oswalt has told us some actual miracles he’s witnessed from the administration of Extreme Unction. For instance, after Father gave the sacrament to a person about to die, the patient immediately got up and remained physically healthy.
The bottom line is that the new rite is highly doubtful, which means Catholics are forbidden to take part in it. The traditional rite is not only the rite used from time immemorial; it has proven itself effective with miracles.
What’s more, the Catholic Church can’t give doubtful sacraments, which proves the Vatican 2 religion is not the Catholic Church. The Vatican 2 religion is an evil counterfeit religion that’s not interested in saving souls, since it already holds in practice that nearly everyone is saved. Its administration of the “sacrament” is merely a theatrical performance that has little to no meaning.
Footnotes:
[1] CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Extreme Unction (newadvent.org)
EXTREME UNCTION (the-pope.com)
[2] The Sacrament Of Anointing Of The Sick – Papal Encyclicals
[3] Hutton Gibson – Is the Pope Catholic – PDFCOFFEE.COM
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