On September 11 this year at St. Paul’s Chapel, the Rev. Dr. Stuart Hoke and the Rev. James G. Callaway Jr conducted the Church’s Rite of Healing, a service in which people are prayed for and anointed with oil individually. Roughly 300 waited patiently in line – some for as long as forty minutes. Nathan Brockman asked Fr. Hoke for his thoughts on the ritual.
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| Fr. Hoke, left, and Fr. Callaway during the Rite of Healing at St. Paul's Chapel on September 11. |
NB:Why do you think people find anointing for healing so powerful?
SH:The words of the prayer that is said as people are anointed is an expression of the deepest desires of the heart to be touched. It’s an acceptable way to touch people spiritually, emotionally, and physically. In a situation of fear or grief, that’s what we yearn for.
What exactly is the prayer?
I say, ‘Nathan, I lay my hands upon you and anoint you with this oil in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. As you are outwardly anointed with the holy oil, so may our Heavenly Father grant you the inward anointing of his Holy Spirit.’ And as soon as you say ‘inward anointing,’ many people tear up. It’s as if the thought is, ‘God is bathing me from the inside.’
Watching people in line, it seems that everyone has the same fears, worries and concerns; that of course we are unique, but from a certain perspective, quite the same.
It’s a way of ceremonially saying “Yes” to something God is already doing. I mean, we’re not effecting, or triggering, God’s action, necessarily. We’re saying, “here’s what God is doing in your life: he’s forgiving your sins, restoring you to wholeness, delivering you from evil. We all do have the same sorts of fears and anxieties.
So in other words, in saying “Yes” to what is already happening, what God is already doing, the ritual is not necessarily one that asks for immediate intervention.
Well, in a way it is. It says, ‘let’s intersect time with Gospel promises.’ Just saying it helps us recall the power of those promises and make it available in the moment.
Is the ritual cited in Scripture?
Fifth Chapter of James. “Is there any sick among you? Call the leaders of the Church and let them pray over you and anoint you with oil.” So this also raises questions about healing. Well, God is always healing. Sometimes it’s immediate, and sometimes it might be at another time, or over time. But there’s a difference between healing, which is always going on, and curing, which sometimes happens instantaneously. We don’t promise cures. We do promise healing.
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| Waiting inside St. Paul's for anointing for healing. |
What does it feel like to pray with someone in this way?
Some people would speak very clearly about what they wanted: their memories cleansed, Aunt Susie healed, Uncle John, who has cancer, to be well. It’s a chance for intimacy with strangers, and all in the context of the kingdom. We step into the kingdom for awhile and do God’s work. It’s amazing. We’re all connected, and we just feel obviously connected in that setting. It’s a con-celebration of our humanity.
Does Trinity perform the rite regularly?
Trinity offers a service of public healing every Thursday after the noonday Eucharist as well as frequent private ministrations to the sick and shut-in.
When the liturgical and charismatic renewal movements of the 1960s and 70s restored the sacrament of healing to a routine aspect of the Church’s pastoral ministry, we began using it with regularity here. For centuries the rite of anointing with oil had been limited to extreme unction, or last rites. What an extraordinary gift it was, and is, to witness the Church reclaim Jesus’ ministry of healing in its fullness.
How common is anointing throughout the Church?
Quite amazingly this ministry is now very common, and rarely is there a priest or congregation in our Episcopal network that doesn’t offer it.
What kind of oil is used?
Palm oil is always used for healing, no doubt because of the curative properties traditionally associated with this very pure substance. And each year the oil is refreshed. At the annual Holy Week Eucharist when priests gather together at the Cathedral to renew their ordination vows, the Bishop concludes the service with a consecration of holy oil for use in the year ahead. The prayer of consecration articulates just what it is we believe about our participation in this powerful sacrament of touch:
“O Lord, holy Father, giver of health and salvation: send your Holy Spirit to sanctify this oil; that, as your holy apostles anointed many that were sick and healed them, so may those who in faith and repentance receive this holy unction be made whole; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.”
So I can just ask my priest to perform the anointing? It isn't tied to any particular point in the liturgical year?
Yes.
Posted on Trinity News September 21, 2004; updated September 24
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