What is unction and how is it carried out? Sacrament of Unction. What is unction in church and why is it necessary to undergo unction?
In addition to physical healing, the Sacrament of Anointing asks for the remission of the sick person’s sins - for most illnesses are the result of sin, while sin itself is a spiritual illness. According to the teachers of the Church, in the Sacrament of Anointing, forgotten sins are forgiven (but not deliberately concealed in confession!), for example, because of their insignificance, however, the totality of these sins, which are not forgiven to a person in the Sacrament of Repentance, can lay a heavy burden on the soul and become the cause not only of spiritual health disorders, but also, as a consequence, of physical diseases.
So, Blessing of Anointing is the Sacrament of Healing. The 19th-century Orthodox writer E. Poselyanin wrote: “It is not at all said that the disease must be fatal, or that the person should be in a helpless state. We must not forget that in Christianity, mental suffering is also recognized as a disease... So, if I suffer in spirit from death of loved ones, from grief, if I need some kind of gracious push to gather strength and remove the shackles of despair, I can resort to unction.”
The Sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing is called unction because, according to the charter of the Church, it is supposed to be performed by seven priests (a council of clergy). The number seven is a symbolic sign of the Church and its fullness; That is why the very following of the Sacrament consists of reading, after certain prayers, seven different passages from the Apostle and the Gospel, telling about repentance, healing, the need for faith and trust in God, compassion and mercy. After each such reading and prayer appeal to God for the remission of the sick person’s sins, he is anointed with consecrated oil (oil) mixed with wine - that is, anointing is also performed seven times. However, the Church allows the Sacrament to be performed by three, two, or even one priest - so that he performs it on behalf of the council of priests, says all the prayers, performs the readings, and anoints the sick person seven times.
Over whom and under what conditions is the Sacrament performed?
The Blessing of Anointing is performed on Orthodox believers over seven years of age who suffer from physical and mental illness. The latter can also be understood as a difficult spiritual state (despondency, sorrow, despair) - for its cause can be (and, as a rule, is) unrepentant sins, perhaps not even realized by the person himself. Consequently, the Sacrament can be performed not only on those suffering from severe bodily ailments or dying. In addition, few of those living in our time can consider themselves absolutely physically healthy, even in the absence of serious illnesses... The Blessing of Unction is not performed on patients who are in an unconscious state, as well as on violent mental patients.The Sacrament of Anointing can take place both in church and in other settings (in a hospital or at home). It is allowed to perform unction simultaneously on several people following one rite and using one oil. According to established tradition, general unction in many churches is performed during the days of Great Lent, primarily on the Worship of the Cross or Holy Week in the evening before Maundy Thursday or Great Saturday. There is no doubt that unction should begin in close connection with confession and communion of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. If Unction is performed at home on a sick or dying person, combined with confession and communion, then confession is performed first, then unction, and after it communion. To give the opportunity for such parting words to an Orthodox Christian before his death is the direct Christian duty of his family and friends. The sacrament can be repeated over the same person, but not during the same continuously ongoing illness.
A very common view among the people is that the Blessing of Anointing is a sacrament performed only before death. This is where some senseless superstitions come from, which directly contradict the teachings of the Orthodox Church: for example, that a person who has recovered after the Blessing of Anointing should not eat meat, should observe a weekly fast except Wednesday and Friday, also on Monday, should not live a married life, go to the bathhouse, etc. These fictions undermine faith in the gracious power of the Sacrament and cause great harm to spiritual life.
It should also be realized that the Blessing of Anointing, as a spiritual healing, does not eliminate the laws and forces of physical nature. It spiritually supports a person, provides him with gracious help to the extent that, according to God’s vision, is necessary for the salvation of the soul of the patient. Therefore, unction does not cancel the use of medicines.
Consequence of the Sacrament of Anointing
(In relation to its commission by one clergyman, as is usually the case in practice).In the temple (or in the patient’s room in front of the icons) a table is placed, covered with a clean tablecloth. A dish with wheat grains is placed on the table (if it is not available, it can be replaced with other grains: rye, millet, rice, etc.). In the middle of the dish, a vessel (or just a clean glass) is placed on the wheat to consecrate the oil. Seven sticks, wrapped at the ends with cotton wool (pods), and seven candles are vertically fixed in wheat. In separate vessels, clean oil (olive, vegetable, vaseline or similar oil) and a little red wine are placed on the table. The Gospel and the cross are placed on the table.
After censing, the exclamation of the clergyman, the reading of the opening prayers, Psalm 142, penitential troparions and the 50th psalm, the “canon of oil” is read, revealing in its troparions the spiritual significance and power of the Sacrament. Then the oil is prepared: the priest pours oil and wine into an empty vessel and mixes it; wine symbolizes the Blood of Christ, shed on the Cross for the salvation of people, and mixing oil and wine reminds us of the Gospel story about the Samaritan, who was merciful to his neighbor, wounded by robbers (Luke 10: 25-37). After this, seven candles set in wheat are lit; In addition, lighted candles are given to everyone present and to the one over whom the Sacrament is being performed. The priest, reading a prayer, consecrates the oil.
After the priest reads the first Apostolic reading from the Council Epistle of the Holy Apostle James on the establishment of the Sacrament of Anointing (James 5:10-16) and the first Gospel Conception about the Samaritan, the priest reads a prayer. After this, he performs a short litany with prayers for the sick person and, taking the pod in his hands, anoints the forehead, nostrils, cheeks, lips, chest and hands of the person being cathedral with oil in a cross shape. At the same time, the priest reads the secret prayer: “Holy Father, Physician of souls and bodies...”. After this, one of the seven candles burning in the vessel with wheat is extinguished.
Further, such a sequence (Apostle, Gospel, prayer, litany and anointing) is performed six more times, after each of which one of the candles in the wheat is extinguished.
After the completion of the seventh unction, the priest places the opened Gospel on the head of the congregation and says a prayer to the Lord: “... I do not lay my hand on the head of him who came to You in sins and asks You for forgiveness of sins, but Your strong and strong hand, even in the holy This Gospel..." At the same time, the anointed one should continuously but quietly repeat: “Lord, have mercy.” Then the one on whom the Sacrament was performed kisses the Gospel. After a short litany with two stichera, the priest performs the dismissal; the unctioned one applies himself to the cross and, having reverently bowed three times to the performers (or performer) of the Sacrament, says: “Bless, holy fathers (or holy father), and forgive me, a sinner (sinner).”
The oil remaining after the Sacrament of Anointing can be burned in the temple in a special brazier, used to light lamps in front of icons, or taken with him by the one on whom the Sacrament was performed. In the latter case, priests often advise doing this: if the sick person recovers after unction, the oil is poured into a lamp in the temple or at home and thus burned. If, after unction, the patient dies, a bottle of oil is placed in his coffin and, after the priest has committed the body of the deceased to the earth (before closing the coffin), it is poured crosswise on the deceased. However, there is no clear opinion in church practice regarding the latter (this sometimes depends on local traditions), therefore, when burying a deceased person who has previously received the Sacrament of Anointing, one should consult with a priest about the use of oil.
Used materials
- Charitable Foundation of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker
- Fundamentals of Orthodoxy
Among the seven sacraments performed by the Russian Orthodox Church, there is one that often causes completely misinterpretations and is associated with a number of prejudices. It's called unction. What this is and why it is being done, we will try to find out by turning to its history and considering the order of ceremonies. This is where we will begin the story.
What is unction and how is it carried out?
The sacrament can be performed both in a church over a large number of parishioners, and at home, over one single person who, for health reasons, is unable to go out. The order of rites requires the participation of seven priests in it, but if there are fewer of them, even just one, the sacrament of unction is considered valid. Practice shows that even in urban conditions it is very rarely possible to gather a large number of priests.
How the unction takes place is indicated in detail by the very rite of this sacrament. Before it begins, preparatory prayers and a canon are read. Following this are excerpts from the New Testament. Next comes the litany. During its reading, the deacon pronounces aloud the names of everyone over whom the sacrament is performed. After the litany, the rite of consecration of oil (oil) and anointing is performed. At this time, the priest says a special ancient prayer, read only in these cases. At the end of the prayer, he places the Gospel on the heads of those present and reads the final prayer.
When one priest finishes his actions, another comes to replace him, and the whole cycle repeats again. The rite of the sacrament prescribes its sevenfold repetition, which requires the participation of seven priests, but, as mentioned above, a smaller number is allowed.
Historical information about the performance of the sacrament
Unction, or, as it is otherwise called, consecration of oil, has its roots in biblical times. To be convinced of this, it is enough to open the Gospel of Mark. It describes how Christ sends the holy apostles to proclaim the coming of the Kingdom of God, to call everyone to repentance and to heal physical and mental ailments.
For this purpose, His disciples anointed the suffering with oil, that is, oil. Such actions of theirs, which received blessing from Jesus Christ Himself, are a prototype of the current sacrament, which we call unction. There is not the slightest doubt that this is exactly the case. In addition, the holy Apostle James mentions anointing with oil in his epistle. He writes about the need to perform this action in the event of illness of one of the brethren. According to him, by the grace of God the sufferer receives healing from illness and remission of sins.
Unction is the path to healing the soul and body
The two New Testament episodes cited irrefutably demonstrate the fallacy of the widespread opinion regarding unction - that this sacrament is performed exclusively on the dying and is, as it were, a farewell to another world. The apostles performed it for healing, and the Apostle James in his letter recommends performing it precisely in order to get rid of illness. Therefore, there is no reason to confuse it with any death rituals.
The fallacy of this understanding is explained by the fact that in the medieval Western church this sacrament was really a parting word for the dying and was called “last anointing.” In the 15th-17th centuries it migrated to Russia and established itself here in a similar status. But already in the middle of the 19th century, Moscow Metropolitan Philaret took the most decisive actions in order to give it exactly the significance that it has now.
Dying Unction. What is it and why is it done?
The Holy Church, however, emphasizes the need for unction for people near death. This is an absolutely necessary action for them, because often in such a state a person is physically unable to confess and cleanse his soul before entering another world. In this case, unction allows you to do this even without the conscious participation of the dying person. But even if he is conscious, he needs to confess, receive communion and unction. Unction of a dying person is precisely the case when it is performed not in a temple, but at home or in a hospital.
The futility of the sacrament without sincere faith
We should also dwell on one more important misconception, which is held by many on whom unction is performed for the first time. Perhaps everyone knows that this sacrament has a beneficial effect on human health. But many, unfortunately, perceive it as a kind of magical action, the result of which depends solely on correctly performed ritual actions. This is a deeply erroneous opinion.
The oil with which anointing is performed is not a cure for all diseases, and it is not it that brings healing, but the all-merciful Lord. Our prayers are addressed to Him, and He has the power to send down healing. It is truly within our power to become worthy of this grace of God. This is why the sacraments are given. They help us, with the help of God's Grace, to cleanse ourselves of sins. Diseases are their creation. Therefore, to heal the body, you must first cleanse your soul and repent of your sins.
The difference between the remission of sins at confession and at unction
However, for this purpose, believers regularly confess. Then what task does unction perform in this regard? What is this, a form of deepened repentance or something else? No, it's something else. During confession, we receive remission of those sins that we have named. But in everyday life, we constantly, willingly or unwillingly, violate God’s commandments and often, when going to confession, we cannot remember most of them.
Even if you write down your sins, even then you will hardly be able to name them in full, since sometimes we sin without even realizing it. It is in order to be cleansed of all sins, conscious or not, named in confession or forgotten, that the sacrament of unction is given to us. Anointing with consecrated oil brings healing from sin to our souls.
Sincerity of repentance is a condition for remission of sins
It would be a mistake to believe that, by cleansing us from all sins, unction thereby makes it possible to break God’s commandments with impunity. To think: “Today I will sin, but at the Unction, everything will be forgiven,” is the greatest frivolity. Sins are forgiven only on condition of sincere repentance, and in this case it cannot be.
Preparation for the sacrament
There are several other questions that often arise among those who decide to undergo unction. For example, do you need to fast before it or can you not limit yourself to food? The answer is absolutely clear: no, you don’t need to fast. The only sacrament that is performed on an empty stomach is the Communion of the Holy Gifts. In addition, strength is needed to withstand the two hours during which the unction takes place.
How to prepare for it, what to bring with you to church, sometimes also raises questions. It is usually recommended to confess and take communion before unction, but if this is not done, it doesn’t matter, you can do it later. During unction, it is customary to hold lit candles in your hands, but you can buy them in a candle shop and do not need to bring them with you. But it is highly recommended to have the text of the rite with you, since in this case it is possible to better and more thoroughly understand the meaning of the prayers being read.
Having found out what unction is and how it is carried out, the following should be added in conclusion. Very often a situation arises when a person who wants to take part in it, for one reason or another, does not make it in time for the beginning of the sacrament. As stated above, it consists of seven repeating cycles. If he was late and came to the second or third, would such unction be valid for him? This question is always answered unequivocally: yes, it will. Even if a latecomer receives only one anointing, this is considered sufficient. However, it is always recommended to arrive on time.
“Don’t say, I can’t. This word is not Christian. Christian word: I can do anything. But not in itself, but in the Lord who strengthens us.”
Saint Theophan, Recluse of Vyshensky
Blessing of oil is a sacrament in which, when anointing the body with oil, the grace of God is invoked on the sick person, healing mental and physical infirmities (Catechism).
The Sacrament of the Blessing of Unction is also called “holy oil”, “anointing of oil” and “prayer oil” (from the Greek euhelaion), but more often “unction”, “unction of oil” - after the meeting, “council” of elders, whom the Apostle James commanded to gather to perform the sacrament Oil.
The Sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing is the main grace-filled remedy that the Orthodox Church gives to the sick and suffering for relief, healing of illness and for preparation for a Christian, peaceful and shameless death.
Unction of old Count Bezukhov War and Peace. artist A.V. Nikolaev.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE SACRAMENT
The beginning of anointing with oil as a sacrament was laid by the Lord Himself, according to whose commandment His disciples, healing the souls of people with the saving preaching of the Gospel, also healed the bodies of the sick with the anointing of oil: “I anointed many sick people with oil, and healed the woman” (Mark 6:13). And in the order of the sacrament it is said: “Thy holy anointing, O Lover of Mankind, was mercifully commanded by Thy apostle to perform Thy infirm servants.”
Initially, the sacrament was performed, like anointing, through the laying on of the hands of the performer (Mark 16:18; Acts 28:8-9). The memory of this way of performing the sacrament was also preserved in our Trebnik - in the prayer read after the sacrament was performed while laying the Gospel, like the hand of the Lord, on the head of the sick person. In the apostolic age, the laying on of hands for healing was replaced by anointing with oil, just as the laying on of hands to impart the Holy Spirit to the newly baptized was replaced by anointing, and the right to perform the sacrament was also granted to the elders. This practice of performing the sacrament in apostolic times is clearly presented in the letter of the Apostle James (5, 14-16).
After the apostles, many writers of the 1st-5th centuries testify to the celebration of the Sacrament of Anointing in the Church of Christ, namely: in the 2nd-3rd centuries - Dionysius the Areopagite, Tertullian and Origen; Thus, Origen, explaining the words of St. James: “Is anyone sick in you”, mentions the laying on of hands by the elder on the sick; in the 4th century John Chrysostom speaks about the sacrament, and in V the historian Sozomen speaks. The apostolic tradition of the Sacrament of Anointing was preserved not only among Orthodox and Catholics, but also among Nestorians and Monophysites, excommunicated from the Church in the 5th century.
NUMBER OF PERFORMERS OF THE SACRAMENT
According to the commandment of St. James, the sacrament of the Blessing of Unction is performed by a council of elders. Usually this council is composed of seven presbyters, and the sequence of the sacrament in our Breviary is adapted to this number. The number seven in this case, according to the blessed one. Simeon of Thessalonica, is related either to the number of gifts of the Holy Spirit mentioned by the prophet. Isaiah, or the number of walks of the priests around Jericho, or with the number of prayers and worship of Elisha at the resurrection of the boy of the Somanite widow (2 Kings.
4, 35), or with the number of prayers of the prophet. Elijah, with whom the sky was opened and rain poured down (1 Kings 18:43), or, finally, in accordance with the number of Naaman’s sevenfold immersion in the water of the Jordan, after which he was cleansed.
The historical basis of the septenary number can be believed in the custom of ancient Christians, in particular elders, to visit the sick to pray for them for seven days in a row, and this number, thus, constituted a full circle of grace-filled healing.
But the Church allows three or two presbyters to perform the Sacrament of Anointing. In extreme cases, one priest is allowed to perform the sacrament, provided, however, that he performs the sacrament on behalf of the council of priests and says all the prayers, as many as there are. The New Tablet says in this regard: “In extreme need, one priest who performs the Sacrament of Anointing does so with the power of the entire Church, of which he is a servant and of which he represents himself: for all the power of the Church is contained in one priest.”
ON WHOM IS THE SACRAMENT PERFORMED?
The Sacrament of Anointing is performed on the sick at home or in church. In ancient times, sick people who could get up from their beds and walk, with the help of others, were brought or brought to the temple in order to obtain consolation for the suffering soul in a sacred place and restore health to the body through the sacrament. Sometimes they themselves remained for several days in the church vestibule and spent days and nights there, awaiting the blessed help of anointing with sacred oil. There were cases when those who were healthy among those present, “to receive a spiritual blessing or to assuage some minor illness, began this spiritual healing.”
In ancient times, in Rus', we attached great importance to the sacrament, considering it one of the most effective remedies against any disease, especially against any type of possession.
The sacrament can be performed not only on the seriously ill, but also on those generally infirm and feeling exhausted (decrepit elders, etc.). But the sacrament, as a rule, is not performed on healthy people. During the Synodal period, only as an exception, on Maundy Thursday, according to the ancient church custom of the Greek and Russian Churches, the bishops performed the blessing of oil on the healthy in the Trinity-Sergius Lavra, in the Moscow Assumption Cathedral and other places; “on Holy Thursday,” says Saint Demetrius of Rostov, “at supper, Christ established the New Covenant of His Body and Blood: for this reason and for this mystery, it is not indecent to receive communion, even if it is for a healthy person who does not know the day and hour of his death.” On the other hand, when performing the consecration of oil on Maundy Thursday over healthy bodies, the words of St. James: “Is any of you sick” (James 5:14) - are taken in a broad sense, that is, here we mean not only those who are physically sick, but also those who suffer mentally - having sorrow, despondency, heaviness from sinful passions and etc. Bearing in mind such a broad understanding of the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing, in the Optina Hermitage and the Sergius Skete of the Kaluga Region it was performed for pilgrims two to three times a week.
The sick person receiving the sacrament must be prepared to receive it by confession, and after or before the consecration of oil, the sick person receives the Holy Mysteries. In case of mortal danger, the patient must be confessed and receive communion before the blessing of oil (Orthodox confession. 118 questions).
PURPOSE AND SPIRITUAL SIGNIFICANCE OF THE SACRAMENT OF ANOINTING
The Blessing of Oil, as the name itself shows (Greek elaioa - oil; eleos - mercy), is the sacrament of oil, established for the purpose of delivering a person from illness and forgiveness of sins. This dual purpose finds its justification in the Christian view of the nature of bodily illness.
The source of bodily diseases, according to this view, lies in sin, and the first prediction about diseases in the human race appeared after the fall of the first people. When a paralytic was brought to the Savior for healing from an illness, He directly draws attention to the source of the illness and says: “Son, your sins are forgiven you” (Mark 2:3-11). Sin and bodily weakness are placed in exactly the same relationship in St. James, who, having spoken about the healing of the sick through anointing with oil and prayer, notes that at the same time the healed person’s sins are also forgiven (James 5:15).
It cannot be stated unconditionally that all diseases without exception are a direct consequence of sin; There are illnesses sent by the Providence of God for the purpose of testing or improving faith and hope in God, improvement in piety and virtuous life, etc.; such was, for example, the illness of Job, the illness of a blind man to whom the Savior said: “Neither he nor his parents sinned, but this was so that the works of God might be revealed in him” (John 9:3). However, most diseases are recognized in Christianity as a consequence of sin, as we see from many places in the Gospel (Matthew 9:2; John 5:14).
The idea of this connection between sin and illness is clearly evident in the Orthodox sacrament of Anointing. In the rite of blessing of oil, prayers are read both for the healing of the sick and for deliverance from sins, “from passions, from defilement of the flesh and spirit and all evil.”
In the prayers of the canon, the cause of illness is also indicated by the demonic influence on a person, the action of demons on the body, both direct and through sins.
This breadth of purpose (“healing of soul and body,” as well as preparation for eternity) distinguishes the consecration of oil of the Orthodox Church from the Catholic one. According to the teachings of Catholicism, the only purpose of the consecration of oil is to get rid of sins and prepare for a peaceful death, but not at all to heal from illness; therefore, it is performed among Catholics only on people who are hopelessly ill and close to death. Regarding the incorrectness of such a Catholic understanding of the sacrament, Bl. Simeon of Thessalonica, pointing out that Catholics “think contrary to the Savior and His Apostles,” incorrectly interpreting the relevant passages of Holy Scripture (James 5:14-15; cf. John 5:14; Mark 6:13). Such a misunderstanding of the sacrament is sometimes encountered among our believers, who believe that only the dying should be guided by this sacrament.
Here it is necessary to make a reservation, namely in the sense that the sacrament cannot also be understood as something that replaces the “tree of life” and must necessarily give recovery.
The patient may have different conditions:
When he has already matured spiritually for eternity, or when the continuation of his life is no longer useful to him from the point of view of his eternal salvation, and the Lord, by His inscrutable good Providence and omniscience, leads a person to the transition to eternity.
But there may be another state of the patient, when he has not yet matured spiritually, is still far from Christian spirituality. For such a person it is necessary to continue the sorrowful path of earthly life in the conditions of this existence, to suffer and fight here on earth with his sinfulness, which he was unable and did not have time to do. And in relation to such a patient, the prayer of the Church for his mental health and physical recovery is especially applicable and effective. And the illness itself should serve as a turning point for the soul, an impetus for an internal spiritual revolution through repentance. And according to the faith of the Church, mental recovery is closely related to physical recovery itself.
Illness can be sent by God and people of high spiritual life for their spiritual benefit, for their salvation and improvement.
The Blessing of Unction is usually preceded by confession. Thus, in a spiritual sense, consecration of oil is closely related to repentance. This does not mean that repentance in itself is an insufficient sacrament, but only a sick person due to weakness cannot fulfill all the conditions of true repentance. At the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing, a whole council of His servants stands before the Lord for the exhausted sick person and, with the prayer of faith on behalf of the entire Church, begs God to grant the sick person, along with bodily health, remission of sins.
At the same time, for the sake of the prayers of the Church, the sick person is absolved of special sins, the resolution of which he could not receive in the sacrament of Repentance, namely:
old sins, forgotten and unconfessed, provided, however, that the patient is in a general repentant mood;
sins of “bewilderment” and sins of ignorance;
sins that were the cause of the disease, but the sick person did not know about them;
sins that the patient, due to his grave weakness, is not able to tell his confessor at the moment or cannot now atone for with good deeds.
All these and similar sins, as the blessed one writes. Simeon of Thessalonica, by the grace of God the sick are released through the sacrament of Anointing.
rites of the Sacrament of Anointing
To perform the sacrament, a table is provided, and on it is a dish with wheat, a cross and the Gospel. Grains of wheat symbolically point to new life - after recovery, and after the general resurrection (John 12:24; 1 Cor. 15:36-38), and the cross and the Gospel - to the presence of Jesus Christ Himself.
An empty vessel is placed on top of the wheat (“idle kandilo,” i.e., an empty lamp), into which oil is poured, serving as a visible sign of the grace of healing (Mark 6:13), in combination with wine, in imitation of the medicine used mentioned in the Gospel parable of the Samaritan (Luke 10:34). Around the vessel, seven pods (“pods,” or sticks entwined with cotton paper or cotton wool) are placed in the wheat for anointing. Usually seven lighted candles are inserted here around the vessel, thereby depicting the sevenfold number of performers of the sacrament.
The following of the Holy Oil includes three parts: prayer singing, blessing of oil and anointing with oil itself.
First part(before the Great Litany) is a prayer song and is a reduction of Matins, performed on days of fasting and repentance.
Priests in phelonions stand near the table; they, like everyone present during the sacrament, have lit candles. The first of the priests, having sprinkled the table (and the oil on it), the icons and all the people, turning to the east or towards the icons, utters the exclamation: “Blessed is our God...”.
After the usual beginning - the Trisagion and the Lord's Prayer - the 142nd Psalm is read, which is an abbreviation of the Six Psalms, and the small litany that occurs at Matins is pronounced.
Then Alleluia is sung in the 6th tone (instead of “God is the Lord”), as in the time of repentance, and the penitential troparia: “Have mercy on us, Lord, have mercy on us.”
After this, the 50th Psalm is read and the canon is sung: “Sea of the Black Deep” - Arseny, Bishop of Corfu (IX century). The chorus to the troparions of the canon is not indicated in the Trebnik. In the ancient Trebniks of the Moscow edition the chorus is indicated:
“Merciful Lord, hear the prayer of Your servants who pray to You.”
Sometimes a slightly modified refrain from the Breviary of Peter Mogila is used:
“Much merciful Lord, hear us sinners who pray to You.”
In the South Russian Trebniks there is another refrain:
“Hear us, Lord, hear us, Master, hear us, Holy One.”
(This refrain, following the instructions of the Lvov Trebnik of 1695, is also sung in Kyiv with each anointing of the sick.)
After the 3rd, 6th and 9th songs of the canon there is a small litany.
After the canon, “It is worthy to eat” is sung, the exapostilary is read, and then the stichera are sung. In the canon and stichera, the sick person asks the Lord for healing from ailments and diseases of the soul and body.
After the stichera the following is read: The Trisagion according to Our Father - and the troparion is sung: “The only one who is swift in intercession is Christ.” Then follows the second part of the rite of the sacrament - the consecration of the oil.
Second part. The deacon (or first priest) pronounces the litany: “Let us pray to the Lord in peace,” in which petitions are attached for the blessing of the oil by the power and action and influx of the Holy Spirit.
After the litany, the first of the priests reads the “Prayer over the candil with oil,” in which he asks God to consecrate the oil and make it healing for the anointed one. The rest of the priests also read this prayer quietly, just as during the invocation of the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of the Eucharist during the cathedral service.
During the reading of this prayer (“the prayer from the priests is a great prayer”), troparia are sung - to Christ the Savior, the Apostle James, St. Nicholas, Demetrius the Myrrh-Streaming, the healer Panteleimon, the holy unmercenaries, the Apostle John the Theologian and the Most Holy Theotokos. Next comes the third part - the performance of the Sacrament of Anointing itself.
The third part The Blessings of Anointings consist of seven readings from the Gospel, seven prayers and seven anointings with holy oil, with the same final prayer being said.
Let us imagine this seven-fold repeated part of the sequence of the sacrament in the form of a diagram.
Deacon: Let's remember.
Another priest: Peace to all.
Chorus: And to your spirit.
Deacon: Wisdom, let's hear it.
Reader (and choir): Prokeimenon.
Deacon: Wisdom.
Reader: Apostle's title.
Deacon: Let's remember.
Priest (after reading the Apostle): Peace be with you.
Reader: And to your spirit.
Chorus: Alleluia (three times).
Priest: Wisdom, forgive us, let us hear the Holy Gospel, peace to all.
Chorus: And to your spirit.
Priest: From... The Holy Gospel reading.
Chorus: Glory to You, Lord...
After the Gospel, the litany is the same all seven times: “Have mercy on us, O God...”.
And after the exclamation, each time the next priest reads a special prayer in the hearing of everyone for the granting of healing and forgiveness of sins to the sick person.
Then the sick person is anointed with oil while reading the (final) prayer:
“Holy Father, Physician of souls and bodies...” (Anointing occurs after the words: “Heal Thy servant...”). Since the anointing is performed while reading this prayer, the priest needs to know it by heart.
This final prayer is said seven times at each of the seven anointings.
When reading this prayer, “the priest takes up a pod, and having soaked (it) in the holy oil, he anoints the sick person in the shape of a cross - on the forehead, on the nostrils, on the cheeks, on the lips, on the peres, on the hands on both countries” (Trebnik), vol. e. anoints those parts of the body through which sin most conveniently enters the human soul. After each anointing, according to the instructions of the ancient Trebniks, it is necessary to wipe off the parts of the body anointed with holy oil with paper or cotton wool.
This order, according to the number of performers of the sacrament, is repeated seven times, and each time other prokemenas, the Apostle, the Gospel and a prayer adapted to them are read after the special litany. (After each anointing, it is customary to extinguish one of the seven candles stuck in the wheat.)
After the seventh anointing, the Gospel is placed on the head of the sick person, in writing downwards, as if by the hand of the Lord Himself. The priests support the Gospel (with their left hands), and the leading priest at this time (without laying on hands) reads a prayer of permission for all to hear, which says:
“Holy King... I do not lay my sinful hand on the head of him who came to You in sins... but Your strong and strong hand, even in this Holy Gospel, which my fellow servants hold on the head of Your servant...”
Thus, other priests also take part in this prayer, read by the leading priest, and in the sacred rite.
Usually, while reading a prayer, the patient repeats: “Lord, have mercy.” The Gospel taken from the patient's head is given to him to kiss.
Then the deacon pronounces the abbreviated special litany: “Have mercy on us, O God,” and troparia are sung to the holy unmercenaries and the Most Holy Theotokos.
And there is a dismissal, during which the holy Apostle James is remembered, who bequeathed the blessing of oil on the sick (see Breviary).
At the end of the rite, the one who has received the sacrament asks for blessings and forgiveness from the priests.
REDUCED RITE OF THE SACRAMENT OF ANOINTING IN THE CASE OF THE DANGER OF IMMEDIATE DEATH OF THE SICK
If a priest is called to perform the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing on a sick person who is in mortal danger, then he must first confess the sick person and immediately after confession, administer the Holy Mysteries to him, and only after that perform the Blessing of Anointing on him. For a dangerously ill person, a priest can shorten the rite of blessing of oil, “but for the sake of the prayers of God, the grace given by this mystery is deprived, repose” (Trebnik of Peter the Mogila).
In this case, according to the instructions of the Trebnik of Peter Mohyla, the priest, after the usual beginning, leaving the psalms, canon and troparia, begins the sacrament with a peaceful litany, then reads:
prayer over oil,
Apostle and Gospel
first prayer (abbreviated) after the Gospel
and anoints the sick according to custom
with the recitation of the closing prayer.
The sacrament is considered complete if the priest, after consecrating the oil, manages to read the final prayer over the sick person at least once and perform anointing with holy oil.
If the patient does not die after the first anointing, then he must make up for what was lost first (psalms, canon, troparia, etc.), and then read the second Apostle, the second Gospel, prayers and the second anointing and complete the rite of the sacrament.
If the sick person dies during the sacrament, the priest must immediately stop performing the consecration of oil.
The oil remaining from the anointing cannot be used for any other anointing, but must be burned (usually in a temple in lamps or in a censer), or, if the patient dies, it is poured crosswise on him by the priest during burial. The pods and grains are also burned in a kiln or censer.
On the performance of the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing on Easter and Bright Week, instructions are given in Bulgakov, “Handbook for Priests and Church Ministers.”
HISTORY OF THE RITE OF THE SACRAMENT OF ANOINTING
The consecration of oil received its form and composition gradually, like all other types of church services. At first, in the first centuries, it was not complicated, consisting of several psalms and several prayers during the consecration of oil and when anointing the body with oil. This was probably supplemented by readings from the Apostle and the Gospel and, in conclusion, a prayer with the laying on of hands on the head of the sick person, anointed with oil.
In the IV and V centuries. The works of Saints Basil the Great and John Chrysostom on the organization of divine services also touched upon the sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing. At least there is no doubt that one of the prayers now read when anointing the sick with holy oil: “We thank You, Lord our God,” belongs to Basil the Great (6th), and the other: “Lord our God” (5th). general account) - belongs to John Chrysostom.
In the following of Gregory the Great, six prayers are given.
Around the 7th century, the reading of seven prayers, or the singing of seven penitential psalms, befitting the sacrament, began to come into use. And in general, at this time, the influence of the septenary number on the construction of the rite of consecration of oil becomes noticeable. In the 9th century, a canon was compiled by Arsenius, Bishop of Corfu, and there were already seven prayers said during anointing, although some of them are shorter than those currently existing.
Of the prayers existing in the current succession of holy oil, the most ancient are:
Our first prayer after the consecration of the oil is “Lord, by mercy and bounty...”;
third prayer when anointing the sick: “Master Almighty, Holy King...”
and, finally, the final prayer: “HOLY FATHER, HEALER OF SOUL AND BODY...”, found for the first time in the rite of the 9th century. According to Simeon of Thessalonica, back in the 15th century. it was read secretly during the blessing of oil. The reading of this prayer during all seven anointings became part of church practice in later times - in the 14th-16th centuries.
Some modern people perceive Unction as a medical procedure; there is no thought about its spiritual aspect. The consequences here can be very sad, Archpriest Andrei Nikolaidi is sure.
Blessing of Anointing, or Unction, is a Sacrament in which, by anointing certain parts of the body with consecrated oil, that is, vegetable oil, the sick person is asked for the grace of healing from ailments, from physical and spiritual illnesses.
In addition to physical healing, the Sacrament also asks for remission of sins, for most illnesses are the result of sin, while sin itself is a spiritual illness. According to the explanation of the teachers of the Church, during the Blessing of Anointing, sins that are forgotten (but not deliberately hidden in confession!) are forgiven, for example, due to their insignificance for a person. However, the totality of these sins can place a heavy burden on the soul and cause not only a disorder of spiritual health, but also, as a consequence, physical illnesses.
The Blessing of Anointing is called Unction because, according to the Charter of the Church, it is supposed to be performed by seven priests (a council of clergy). The number seven is a symbolic sign of the Church and its fullness; That is why the very following of the Sacrament consists of reading, after certain prayers, seven different passages from the Apostle and the Gospel, telling about repentance, healing, the need for faith and trust in God, compassion and mercy. After each such reading and prayer appeal to God for the remission of the sins of the patient, he is anointed with consecrated oil (oil) mixed with wine, that is, anointing is also performed seven times. However, the Church allows the Sacrament to be performed by three, two, or even one priest, so that he performs it on behalf of the council of priests, says all the prayers, readings, and anoints the sick person seven times.
The Blessing of Anointing is performed on Orthodox believers suffering from physical and mental illness. The latter can also be understood as a difficult spiritual state (despondency, sorrow, despair), because its cause can be (and, as a rule, is) unrepentant sins, perhaps not even realized by a person. Consequently, the Sacrament can be performed not only on those suffering from severe bodily ailments or dying. In addition, few of our contemporaries can consider themselves absolutely physically healthy even in the absence of serious illnesses... The Blessing of Unction is not performed on patients who are in an unconscious state, as well as on violent mental patients.
The sacrament can take place both in the temple and in other conditions. According to established tradition, general Unction in many churches is performed during the days of Great Lent.
The Sacrament of Anointing, like other Sacraments, is of evangelical origin; it was established by Christ Himself. As we learn from the 6th chapter of the Gospel of Mark, “having called the twelve, Christ began to send them out two by two, giving them authority over unclean spirits. They went and preached repentance, cast out many demons, and anointed and healed many sick people.” According to this testimony, even before the Savior’s suffering at Calvary, such a sacred rite existed; it helped the sick both physically and spiritually. About the Sacrament of the Blessing of Anointing, the Epistle of the Holy Apostle James says: “Is any of you sick, let him call the elders 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 heal the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they will be forgiven him” (James 5:14–15).
It is probably no coincidence that the Sacrament uses vegetable oil, or, in Slavic language, oil. The fact is that even in ancient times, oil was used as one of the medicines for anointing and lubricating wounds, and therefore in the minds of ancient people it was closely associated with healing. Moreover, in the Greek language, which in the 1st century was used as the language of interethnic communication, the words oil and mercy are consonant, and therefore oil becomes a symbol, a sign of the mercies of God poured out on the suffering person at the moment of this Sacrament.
Should you take unction often? As a rule, the Sacrament of Unction is resorted to once a year, but, of course, the person himself must come to the realization that he needs healing. Not only in physical healing (even a physically healthy person can undergo unction), but above all in spiritual healing, he needs cleansing of his unconscious sins. I would like to note that after a person has received unction in church, it is highly advisable for him to confess and partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ in the near future.
How does this Sacrament take place? According to the rite, it should be performed by seven priests, although there may be fewer of them - it is not always possible to gather so many even in the capital’s churches. But even with a smaller number of priests (even with just one), the Sacrament will still be valid.
The liturgical rite of the Sacrament of Unction has been known in its current form only since the 15th century. The order (that is, the order of performing the Sacrament) has changed over the centuries, becoming more extensive, more fixed.
The modern rite of Unction is lengthy and complex. First, preparatory prayers and the canon are read, and then the rite itself is performed. Excerpts from the Apostolic Epistles included in the New Testament and from the Gospel are read, then a litany is pronounced (a prayerful appeal to God, pronounced by the clergyman on behalf of those praying) with the names of those who receive the Sacrament remembered. Then a prayer is read for the consecration of the oil and the anointing itself is performed. During anointing, the priest reads the prayer “Holy Father, physician of souls and bodies...” Then the second priest begins to participate in the Sacrament, and a similar cycle is performed again. This is repeated seven times. At the end of the rite, the Gospel is placed on the heads of those who have begun the Sacrament with the reading of a special final prayer.
I would like to note that sometimes people have rather strange ideas about Unction. For example, that only seriously ill people who are on the verge of death should resort to it. This is a relic of the non-Orthodox perception of the Sacrament as the “last anointing,” which does not correspond to Holy Scripture. After all, the apostles anointed with oil precisely for the sake of healing.
But one also cannot expect immediate recovery after Unction. Alas, sometimes in the minds of people this Sacrament turns into something self-sufficient, external, almost magical. Some modern people perceive Unction as a medical procedure, there is no thought about its spiritual aspect... The consequences here can be very sad - without receiving the expected physical recovery, a person is offended: “How is it possible, I defended a long service, did everything that was required, but there is no result!” As a result, people may grow cold towards the faith and towards the Church.
Healing is a free gift from an All-Good, loving God, and not the inevitable result of some external action. All those approaching the Sacrament of Unction should remember this. We must think about our life, about our sins, and strive to cleanse ourselves of them. The Sacrament of Unction is partly akin to the Sacrament of Repentance.
Separately, it is necessary to say about the unction of people who are near death. Sometimes many are afraid of this Sacrament, believing that it will lead to an imminent death. But the duration of human life depends only on the will of a loving God, and the Lord often prolongs the life of a dying person precisely for the purpose that he can adequately prepare for the transition to Eternity - to confess, take communion and receive unction. Often, a priest called to a dying person immediately performs these three Sacraments, sequentially. Unction for a dying person is absolutely necessary, because he is often simply physically unable to confess - but the Sacrament of Anointing will free him from the burden of those sins that he would like to, but did not have time to, was unable to repent of in the Sacrament of Repentance.
And, of course, it should be noted that those approaching the Sacrament of Unction must remember that all the Sacraments are inextricably linked with the Sacrament of Communion, with the Eucharist, which the Holy Fathers call “the seal of all the Sacraments.” If we receive a document, the seal confirms its validity. So, when approaching any Sacrament, we must seal it with the Sacraments of Confession and Communion. In other words, after unction, you must definitely confess and, having prepared, partake of the Holy Mysteries.
Archpriest Andrei Nikolaidi
The spiritual meaning of the Sacrament of Anointing
The Sacrament of Anointing, or Unction, is most often celebrated during Great Lent, but can also be performed on any other day of the church year. During Unction, an Orthodox Christian is anointed seven times by priests (ideally there should be seven, but the Sacrament is often served by one) with consecrated oil mixed with red wine. At the same time, the Gospel is read many times, prayers are heard for the sick. All this is done for the sake of healing the soul and body of a Christian. Thus, in the Blessing of Oil, during conciliar church prayer and when a person is anointed with consecrated oil and wine, the grace of God descends on a sick Christian, capable of healing both his physical and spiritual illnesses.
Sometimes you hear that in the Sacrament of the Blessing of Unction a person is forgiven of forgotten sins; however, it should be borne in mind that this is rather a popular idea of the meaning of the Sacrament, and not a teaching rooted in liturgical science. Here it should be remembered that the Blessing of Anointing is directly connected with the Sacrament of Repentance (as well as with the Sacrament of the Eucharist), having a clearly repentant character, for it leads a person to healing from the sin that dominates him.
The Sacrament of Unction is not a simple blessing before death, as it was sometimes understood in Orthodoxy and as until recently it was officially considered in the Catholic Church (where this Sacrament was called the “last anointing”).
The Sacrament of Anointing serves to restore and revive a person to life. It is called upon to heal people from both physical and spiritual dying: to protect both from the death of the body and from the death of the soul. This Sacrament is also called upon to free a person from his sinful state, thereby saving him all from the same death, for the cause of both physical and spiritual dying is sins.
In the Sacrament of Unction, a joint priestly prayer is performed, addressed to the Lord, the Mother of God and all the saints. However, ultimately, conciliar prayer for a Christian is not limited to the intercession of only seven priests on his behalf before God. The priests ask the entire Heavenly Church to intercede for the person before Christ - and the entire Church rises collectively to God in its prayer for this Christian, asking the Lord for his healing.
Any seriously ill person participating in this Sacrament is, of course, aware that he will not necessarily receive physical healing in the Unction. But even in this case, if the sick person has accepted the grace of the Sacrament with dignity, with faith and humility, he acquires, thanks to the Blessing of Unction, a special ability: to accept his illness in a new, steadfast and grateful way. Both illness and suffering then become for him one of the grace-filled conditions of his Salvation. And this happens because a person, suffering - and suffering in Christ - is truly cleansed and sanctified.
When performing the Sacrament of Anointing, the Divine will for a person is determined: whether he should be healed or die. And then a person must only accept this Divine will.
Theological foundations of the Sacrament of Anointing: first of all, an excerpt from the Gospel of Mark, which says that the apostles sent by the Savior into the world “preached repentance, cast out many demons and anointed many sick people with oil and healed them” (Mark 6:12-13 ). Probably, we are not talking about the Sacrament of Anointing directly in this passage: here is only its prototype. Following this is a fragment from the Gospel of Matthew, in which the Savior commands the apostles: “... Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers” (Matthew 10:8). It is these words of Christ that are precisely realized in the Sacrament of Unction, intended for the healing of a person. The most important New Testament basis for the Sacrament of Anointing is found in the Epistle of the Apostle James, in its fifth chapter. This passage is also read during the Sacrament of Unction itself. It goes like this: “Is any of you sick, let him call the elders 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 heal the sick one, and the Lord will raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they will forgive him. Confess one another in their faults, and pray for one another, that you may be healed: the fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much" (James 5:14-16). It is in this New Testament fragment that the method of performing the Sacrament, its conciliar character, and its inextricable connection with Repentance, with the possibility of freeing oneself from the burden of sin “pressing” on a person, are indicated.
Finally, regarding the symbolic meaning of the substances used in the Sacrament of Anointing. In the Sacrament of Unction, oil is a symbol of church prayer and at the same time a symbol of Divine mercy pouring out on the sick. Wine and oil are also symbols of the grace that heals the sick. As is known, both of these substances were used in medicine in ancient times - it was believed that wine disinfected wounds, and oil had an analgesic effect. The Sacrament of Unction also uses grain poured into a vessel: into which it is customary to insert seven burning candles. These grains serve as a symbol of new life, and a symbol that has a dual meaning, a dual spiritual interpretation - depending on what fate befalls the sick person in the future. If he recovers, then the grains for him mean that sprouting new life to which he is reborn. If he dies, then these grains become a symbol of the pledge of future new life in his future resurrection from the dead.
History and rite of the Sacrament of Anointing
In the first centuries of the existence of the Christian Church, the rite of the Sacrament of Anointing was very brief: several psalms were sung, prayers were read during the consecration of the oil and when anointing the sick with it.
Until the 6th century, Unction was performed in houses, then - mainly in churches, and from the 14th century - both in houses and in churches, as is the case today. The sacrament could be performed on a person repeatedly - throughout his life, for various reasons and reasons. In ancient times, there were different types of rites: either connected with the services of the daily circle and the Liturgy, or performed independently of these services. So, in Rus' in the 14th century they used one type of rank and another, depending on the circumstances.
The Apostle James indicates that several priests perform the anointing with oil, but does not name their number. In the ancient Church, the Sacrament was most often performed by three priests - in the image of the Divine Trinity. But even then the Sacrament of Unction could be performed by one priest. From the 7th to 8th centuries, seven priests began to perform the Blessing of Anointing.
From ancient times, the Blessing of Oil was also applied to those who repent - based on the words of the Apostle James that in this Sacrament the remission of sins is granted. The oldest mention of this use of oil is found in Origen, a third-century Church teacher. At first, oil was taught only to those Christians undergoing penitential discipline who were under threat of death, so that through cleansing from sins they would be given the right to partake of the Holy Mysteries of Christ. Then this Sacrament began to be applied generally to any penitents - for the sake of their reconciliation with the Church, so that, having completed their penitential discipline, they would receive the right to begin the Eucharistic Chalice.
Today in the Church there are days of general Blessing of Anointing, intended for both the sick and the healthy: such a practice has existed in Rus' since approximately the 16th century. Most often, the Blessing of Anointing in ancient times was performed on Holy Saturday, but more widely - also during the days of Great Lent.
As they say in the Trebnik, the oil for consecration is poured into the “candilo of prayer oil,” that is, into the lamp. The reverent feeling that Christians have felt since ancient times in relation to the oil of lamps burning near revered icons is well known. For the Sacrament of Unction, oil was taken from the lamps that burned near the icons of the Savior, the Mother of God, at the Cross, in the altar altar with seven candlesticks.
Today in the Russian Orthodox Church oil and wine are used to perform the Sacrament of Unction.
The origins of the sevenfold anointing of the sick lie in the following. The fact is that in ancient times, when a person was sick and it was necessary to perform the Sacrament of Unction on him, priests came to him for seven days and anointed him with consecrated oil: this is probably where the practice of sevenfold anointing arose.
Now a brief diagram of the rite of the Sacrament of Anointing. It begins with the exclamation “Blessed is our God...”, followed by the “common beginning”: “The Trisagion” to “Our Father” and so on... Then the 143rd psalm sounds, which expresses man’s awareness of his spiritual weakness and contains a petition to the Lord to hear the sinner’s prayer. Then the small litany is pronounced, “Alleluia” sounds, and after this the penitential troparia are sung. Next is the repentant 50th Psalm. Then the "canon" begins. The canon was compiled in the ninth century by Saint Arsenios, Bishop of Kerkyra (Corfu). Then the stichera are sung, followed by the troparion “Swift in intercession is the only Christ...”.
Following the troparion, a “peaceful” litany is pronounced with special petitions related to the spiritual meaning of the Sacrament. It is followed by a prayer for the consecration of the oil: “Lord, by Thy mercy and bounty, heal the contrition of our souls and bodies...”. In this prayer, the Church asks God to consecrate the oil, so that through it the one who is anointed will be given healing, so that a person will be freed from passions, from the defilement of the flesh and spirit, and so that the Most Holy Trinity will be glorified in it. Then troparia are sung to Christ, various saints (the Apostle James, Saint Nicholas, the Great Martyrs Demetrius and Panteleimon, the holy unmercenaries and wonderworkers, the Apostle John the Theologian) and, in conclusion, to the Mother of God.
Further, the rites become cyclical: the same pattern is repeated seven times. The Prokeimenon, the Apostle, “Hallelujah”, the Gospel (for each of the seven times its own special Gospel readings), the abbreviated special litany “Have mercy on us, O God...”, the priestly prayer (changed each time), and then the all-time repeating prayer sound. anointing This unchanging prayer of anointing begins with the words: “Holy Father, physician of souls and bodies...”. In it we find the names of many Christian saints: we turn to the entirety of the heavenly Church and ask her for conciliar intercession for the sick before God.
During the celebration of the Sacrament of Anointing, various passages from the Apostle and the Gospel are read seven times. Here are texts related to the theme of oil: for example, an excerpt from the epistle of the Apostle James, as well as the parables of the Good Samaritan and the wise and foolish virgins. Here are New Testament texts testifying to the miracles performed by Christ in healing the sick. Here are passages that teach humility, patience, and love, which are so necessary for people in illness. These fragments also speak of the love for a suffering person that the Church should show to him - in her single conciliar prayer for the sick, for the sinner.
After the seventh anointing, all seven priests place the Gospel on the head of the sick person with the letters facing down; the eldest of them, the primate, does not lay his hand on the Gospel, but only reads a special prayer: “To the Holy King, most gracious and merciful Lord Jesus Christ...”. Here, in the text of the prayer, there is also an explanation of why the primate does not lay his hand on the Gospel: “... I do not lay my sinful hand on the head of him who has come to You in sins, and who asks You for forgiveness of sins; but Your strong and strong hand , even in this holy Gospel, my co-servants hold Thy servant (such and such) at their head, and I pray with them, and ask for Thy merciful and unforgettable love for mankind, O God..." and so on. The meaning of this custom and these words is this: The Lord performs the Sacraments. A person is healed not by the hand of a priest, but by the power of God, revealed by His coming into the world, His miracles and attested in the Gospel Revelation, in the Gospel that now lies on the head of the sick person.
Then follows an abbreviated “subtle” litany, stichera are sung to the holy unmercenaries and healers, and finally, dismissal is said. It mentions the Apostle James, whose message contains the theological justification for the Sacrament of Anointing.
At the end of the rite, the patient bows to the clergy three times - of course, if he is able to do so, and says: “Bless, holy fathers, and forgive me, a sinner.” This is how this Sacrament ends.
Prepared based on materials from the book by P.Yu. Malkova "Introduction to the Liturgical Tradition. The Sacraments of the Orthodox Church", lectures on the Liturgical Tradition by Archpriest. Vladimir Vorobyov.
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