On Nov. 23, Catholics from different parts of the Diocese gathered at St. Joseph Parish in Summit Hill, Carbon County, to welcome Bishop Alfred Schlert for the 11 a.m. Mass and the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. This was the last of five Anointing of the Sick Masses the Bishop held for the Jubilee Year of Hope.
“I’m not feeling well,” explained Elizabeth Orsulak of Lansford, who receives the Sacrament regularly. Father Eric Gruber, Pastor of St. Joseph Parish, holds Anointing of the Sick once a month. “I come here and I feel as though I’m being helped. The good Lord is taking care of me.”
Orsulak was overjoyed to welcome the Bishop and expressed her gratitude for the Sacrament: “I think it’s really nice that we have it because I feel as though God’s given me the strength, more strength to go on with my illness.”
The occasion brought Mary Grassi, from the Lehigh Valley to Summit Hill. “I’m looking for spiritual health and some comfort because of my diagnosis,” she said.
Grassi had never attended an Anointing of the Sick Mass before, but decided to attend after hearing about it from a friend. “It makes you feel very good because it makes you feel close to Christ,” she said, encouraging others to seek out the Sacrament. “Look outside of yourself, have hope, and [receive] the comfort of God when you come into church.”
“Don’t expect miracles, but as part of our faith we believe that we will be helped one way or another,” reminded Stephen Teeno of Coaldale. “At our age, we can use all the help we can get health wise. It’s very important. Father here does it once a month, but to have the Bishop come is a special event.”
Adrienne Vasiliou of Summit Hill asserts her joy in receiving the Sacrament. “It makes me feel that [God] cares about me and loves me, and I guess that’s what’s most important.”
Vasiliou pointed out people in society seem desperate and in search of something that will bring them hope. “The times are rough all around the world. This is a time when we need to realize and understand that we are loved and that God is there to help us through everything, the good and the bad. That’s what the healing prayers do at this Mass, whenever we [receive] the Anointing. It’s like extra help,” she said.
During his homily, the Bishop described the Sacrament as a gift that is given to “anyone who is seriously ill, either physically or mentally, or to anyone advanced in age or facing a medical procedure.” But he continued to explain that the Sacrament is available to all of us. It offers grace and “brings hope and peace” by uniting us to Christ’s suffering on the Cross.
The Bishop described the beauty in receiving the Sacrament in the context of Mass among a community because it is typically performed in private, in a hospital setting, or at a person’s home. He also urged those receiving the Anointing of the Sick to seek out the Sacrament of Confession if they had not done so recently to receive “the full grace of the Anointing.”
The faithful filled the aisles as they walked up to the Bishop and the other priests for the Anointing. With the Oil of the Sick, each person was marked with the Sign of the Cross on their forehead and on the palms of their hands while prayers of healing were recited.
Father Gruber expressed his deep appreciation for the Bishop and the rest of the pastoral participants, including Deacon Joe Cannon and Chancellor Father Keith Mathur.
Photos by Norm Steinruck.
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