‘Even the sick are sent forth as laborers’

January 31, 2012

What: Mass for the Anointing of the Sick
When: 10 a.m., Feb. 11 
Where: St. Michael Catholic Church, 1801 Sage Rd., Houston
For information or to register: Contact your parish office.

HOUSTON — Since 1993, a year after Pope John Paul II instituted the World Day of the Sick, the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston has celebrated a Mass for the Anointing of the Sick. 

On Feb. 11, in commemoration of Our Lady of Lourdes, the Archdiocese will observe World Day of the Sick at St. Michael Catholic Church, 1801 Sage Rd., Houston. Daniel Cardinal DiNardo will be the main celebrant of the Mass. 

The Order of Malta, a lay religious order founded in Jerusalem in 1050 whose mission is to serve the sick and poor, is assisting with planning and logistics. People interested in receiving the Sacrament of the Sick during the Mass need to contact their parish offices.
All are invited to attend the Mass. The Sacrament of the Sick is reserved for those whose health is seriously impaired by sickness or old age, such as:

Before surgery, if the surgery is caused by serious illness.
Seriously ill children who have sufficient use of reason to be strengthened by the Sacrament.
A seriously ill person may be anointed again if they relapse after recovery or if the condition becomes more serious.
Elderly people who have become notably weakened, even though no serious illness is present.
People are encouraged to receive in one's parish the Sacrament of Penance prior to receiving the Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick. †