Day 208: Completing the Earthly Pilgrimage (1520-1525)

• It’s Day 208!!

• THE EFFECTS OF THE CELEBRATION OF THIS SACRAMENT

• The effects are REMARKABLE

• IN FACT…

• Paragraph 1520 says, “A particular gift of the Holy Spirit.”

• At the end of one’s life or for healing

• Paragraph 1521 says, “Union with the passion of Christ.”

• We are even more united to the Passion, suffering, and death of Jesus

• Paragraph 1522 says, “An ecclesial grace.”

• God pours out the grace of the Church upon the person and brings them to the heart of the Church in some ways

• The Church, as the Body of Christ, continues to suffer for and with Christ

• Paragraph 1523 says, “A preparation for the final journey.”

• VIATICUM, THE LAST SACRAMENT OF THE CHRISTIAN

• Bread for the journey

• Food for the way

• This holy moment at the end of one’s life has the capacity to be life changing

• It could also be in dark moments of life of difficulty or sickness where all we can do is suffer

• Sometimes all it seems we can do is just be in the midst of it

• Jesus is also in the midst of it

• The Church is also in the midst of it

• Let’s pray!!

Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven, thank you for this moment. Thank you for this day. We know that so many of our brothers and sisters who are part of this podcast, they, on this day, are experiencing a great trial. They are experiencing suffering. They are experiencing sickness. Lord, on this day, many of those who are listening to this podcast may themselves be in danger of death at the moment of their deaths or facing death of someone they love. Because of that, we ask you, please, Lord God, be with us not only on our mountaintops, not only in our joys and our victories, be there in our failures, in our falls. Be there in our sufferings and our weakness. Lord God, be there in our sickness and use it. Use our valleys. Use our falls. Use our weakness so that you may be glorified, that you may be known, that you may be loved. And then we can do our small part to carry a particle of your cross, for the salvation of the world. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen”

• So there we have it!!

• There is so much beauty in these paragraphs

• As we face death and suffering, we are facing something profound

• Let’s listen to Fr. Mike’s story about Dr. Peter Kreeft…

• Death is horrible

• Death is obscene

• We are not made for death because God made us for life

• We don’t think about death very often in our culture

• Maybe you have a culture in your family or community that keeps death before its eyes always

• In the West, we don’t typically do that

• We put it off to the side

• AND YET…

• DEATH IS GUARANTEED!!

• The mortality rate for human beings continues to hover around 100%

• AND YET…

• How often do we NOT reflect on our own death?

• Paragraph 1520 says, “The first grace of this sacrament is one of strengthening, peace, and courage to overcome the difficulties that go with the condition of serious illness or the frailty of old age.”

• The Church is not saying that since suffering has been REDEEMED by Jesus, it is a piece of cake from now on

• Death is the gateway to the NEXT life so no big deal

• NO!!

• Death is scary

• Death is difficult

• Death is trying and troubling

• Paragraph 1520 continues, “This grace is a gift of the Holy Spirit, who renews trust and faith in God and strengthens against the temptations of the evil one, the temptation to discouragement and anguish in the face of death.”

• We don’t have to always be in the face of death to know whether or not our sickness makes us a BETTER person or a BITTER person

• We can look at how we respond to the common cold or a stuffy nose because those are minor inconveniences

• AND YET…

• At some point in our lives everything in our lives will either be slowly or quickly stripped away

• We NEED the grace to not become discouraged

• We NEED the grace to not give in to anguish in the face of death

• That is the temptation 

• WIll this suffering, sickness, or the end of my life leave me bitter?

• OR…

• Will it help me become better?

• THOSE ARE TRULY TRULY THE TWO OPTIONS!!

• A lot of times there can be a real healing

• We are praying for healing but we are also praying for a deeper healing

• That deeper healing can be the healing of the soul

• The healing and forgiveness of sins

• One of the effects of Anointing of the Sick is FORGIVENESS OF SINS

• We are not just praying for healing

• We are also praying for the strength and faith to be able to say, “Ok, God. Use this.”

• Paragraph 1521 says, “Union with the passion of Christ.”

• It gives us the grace to say, “God, configure my heart to the heart of your Son, Jesus. Use what I am going through in this moment. However small or great it is, use it for your glory. Use it for the salvation of the world.”

• Suffering is not a good

• Suffering is a mark of the brokenness of this world

• AND YET…

• Jesus Christ has transformed SUFFERING into POWER

• Jesus Christ has transformed suffering into something useful

• We can unite OUR suffering to Jesus Christ for the salvation of the world and the glory of the Father and the good of the Church

• We are not alone in the midst of our suffering

• None of us come to God alone

• We live in this community

• EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US is going through something right now

• We keep pressing PLAY

• Whatever inconvenience we have in our lives…

• Whatever suffering, sickness, or reality that we wish were otherwise that is happening in our lives right now…

• GOD CAN USE IT ALL!!

• GOD WANTS TO BE PART OF IT!!

• God doesn’t just want to be part of the good times or the moments of holiness

• GOD WANTS TO BE PART OF ALL OF OUR LIVES!!

• FROM THE VERY BEGINNING TO THE VERY END!!

• From the beginning, God wants to be there at our Baptism

• God wants to be there strengthening us through Confirmation and the Eucharist throughout our entire lives

• Paragraph 1523 says, “This last anointing fortifies the end of our earthly life like a solid rampart for the final struggles before entering the Father’s house.”

• What is a rampart?

• Those castle walls

• These castle walls keep out the enemy and keep us strong

• That strength comes from Jesus in the VIATICUM

• STRENGTH FOR THE JOURNEY

• FOOD FOR JOURNEY

• The last time we receive the Eucharist, there is something called THE APOSTOLIC PARDON

• The apostolic pardon is a prayer that priests have been delegated to pray with a person who is at the point of death

• It is a plenary indulgence

• Through the authority of the Church and the grace that Jesus Christ has given to the Church by the Power of the Holy Spirit, the priest can extend this apostolic pardon on all those people who are dying, as a rite of the Anointing of the Sick

• God’s grace in the sacrament of Reconciliation and Anointing of the Sick remove all eternal consequences of sin aka HELL

• BUT…

• The apostolic pardon even REMOVES TEMPORAL CONSEQUENCES OF SIN

• Yes, Purgatory is real and that purification of our hearts is real

• By the grace that Jesus Christ won for us in His life, death, and Resurrection and extends to the Church, through the Church every dying person or a person in danger of death can receive this apostolic pardon which also removes all temporal consequences due to sin

• If your loved one is in the hospital and the priest visits and gives Anointing of the Sick, ask for the apostolic pardon as well

• They might say, “Oh they’re not in danger of death yet.” or “This is just a surgery, so we’re not going to do that.”

• That’s fine

• There might be some prudential judgments happening there

• BUT…

• If your loved one is in danger of death, ask the priest if he can extend the apostolic pardon to your loved one who is dying

• IT IS AN INCREDIBLE GIFT!!

• To ask for and for the priest to be able to offer

• The grace of God is an incredible gift

• Fr. Mike is praying for YOU!!

• Please pray for Fr. Mike and for each other!!

• I cannot WAIT to see you tomorrow!!