The Last Anointing

For many people, dying is surrounded by fear. In our time, death is often kept apart from daily life: few die at home among their family, and many reach adulthood without ever having seen someone who has died.

When we die, we leave behind everything that has no eternal value – even the things that have supported and sustained us in life.
What, then, should we consider when approaching death, and what is the meaning of the services surrounding dying in The Christian Community?

Why hold rituals around dying?

Just as birth is a sacred moment requiring human assistance, so too is death. For such assistance to be meaningful, it needs both knowledge and devotion.

A midwife who accompanies a birth must understand what happens in the body and what awaits the newborn in the radically different conditions of life on earth. In a similar way, accompanying someone who is dying calls for understanding of the soul’s condition and of its path beyond the body, together with the challenges it will meet in the new conditions after death.

The sacramental acts surrounding dying are more than customs or comforts; they offer real spiritual help, directly supporting this transition. They are performed by the priest, who is empowered for such service through Ordination.

The services accompanying dying

The pastoral care of The Christian Community around death may include:

• The Sacramental Consultation, or new confession (see Sacramental Consultation)

• Communion (see The Act of Consecration of Man)

• The Last Anointing

After death:

• The Departing Blessing – marking the closing of the coffin after the wake

• The Funeral Service

• The Act of Consecration of Man for One Who Has Died

Confession and Communion – affirming and letting go in one

Letting go of life can be difficult if we feel that something remains unfinished, or if we have not been able to express our gratitude for life. There may be knots of pain or misunderstanding still to loosen.

In such moments, the Sacramental Consultation – confession in its renewed form – can bring decisive help. Its purpose is not that others judge our life, nor that responsibility be taken from us, but that we find the strength to see our life more clearly. What is incomplete can be accepted and released more easily when we begin to discern the hidden hand of an artist within it.

The Communion that follows deepens this process. What has been recognised and released is gathered up in the consecrated bread and wine, becoming healing nourishment for the soul. This service is not usually held in full at the bedside; rather, the priest brings communion from the morning’s Act of Consecration of Man and offers it to the one who is dying, together with those who pray beside them.

The Last Anointing as help in deciding

There is an art to saying farewell. When we part from someone for a long time, we often embrace them; letting go becomes easier when we have reconnected.

All sacraments unite us with the body and the earth. The Last Anointing connects us to the concrete reality of our earthly destiny. This inward ‘embrace’ can bring clarity: Do I wish to go, or do I wish to remain connected with earthly life? It can happen that the condition of the dying person improves after the Last Anointing.

If recovery occurs, the Anointing can be celebrated again.

Performing the Last Anointing

At the sickbed, the priest speaks excerpts from Christ’s High Priestly Prayer from John 17. At its conclusion, the priest anoints the dying person with consecrated oil – blessed with the power to awaken love – tracing a cross, a doorway into the heavenly world, over each eye and on the forehead.

As the healing oil touches the body, the strength of Christ enters the soul, becoming companion and guide through the passage of death.

As earthly strength fades, the brevity of this sacrament – only a few minutes – allows its power to work deeply. A server assists quietly throughout.

A Blessing for the dead – a signpost after the first life review

Many who have returned from near-death experiences speak of a review of their life. The Sacramental Consultation before death can prepare the soul for this review, which usually continues for the first three days after death.

During these days, family and friends may hold vigil, perhaps reading from the Gospels. Such a vigil supports not only the one who has died, but also those who remain, helping them to find a new relationship as they let their loved one go. However, if it is not possible to do this, we can still be aware that what the soul needs in these days is, above all, peace. Prayers from afar can also bring comfort.

When the great life review fades from the soul’s awareness – after about three days – the first part of the funeral rite, the Departing Blessing, may be celebrated. In this short liturgical act at the coffin, the soul is shown that its path now leads onwards into the realm of soul-being. Those closest to the departed usually take part in this service.

The Funeral – giving the body over to the elements

After the Departing Blessing, the coffin is closed, and the body is entrusted to the elements. The second part of the funeral rite follows.

If burial is chosen, this service is held at the graveside; if cremation, it takes place at the crematorium whenever possible.

The funeral service addresses the soul of the one who has died, sending our support as they begin the long journey into the life after death. In a eulogy, the priest allows the one who has died to behold their life once more through the eyes of those gathered. As the visible presence is released, the mourners are directed to the invisible yet spiritually real presence that now surrounds them.

The Act of Consecration of Man for one who has died

Every Act of Consecration of Man includes the dead in its prayers. Yet when someone has newly entered the world beyond death, there is a special service held for them. On the Saturday following the funeral, an Act of Consecration of Man for one who has died is celebrated, uniting the departed’s path with the prayers of the congregation.

This service offers orientation and strength for the soul’s journey after death. The one who has died can now entrust themself fully to the new world they have entered, while their living friends remain inwardly connected through the same stream of prayer.

Written by Claudio Holland
Edited by Tom Ravetz