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Abouna’s Reflections

Shlomô l’baitô hono!,1 with this greeting a priest enters a house. From the days when Our Lord sent His disciples out to prepare His arrival, these words have echoed down through the ages. Shlomô: peace, wellbeing, wholeness, health. What more could one wish upon another? Thus it is to this day when a priest brings the Holy Mysteries to the flock of Christ. As an apostle of the Savior, the presbyter brings the peace of Christ that is intrinsic to the sacred priesthood, and when he comes bearing the divine and substantial reality of the Body of Christ in the Eucharist to distribute in Holy Communion to the sick or housebound this shlomô penetrates the household and establishes it even more firmly.

How are we to receive this divine peace and sacred presence?

As often can happen, without periodic reminders, we can easily forget what details there are that surround our Christian lives. Please bear with me as we consider what we are to do when receiving Christ, our Lord, into our homes.

Catholics have always enriched their lives with what the Church calls sacramentals: objects blessed as channels of grace such as rosaries, holy water, blessed palms, etc. As the eternal One of all Holiness chose to appear among men as Man, and as He made it a point to manifest Himself in visible flesh, so it is that the Church blesses and enriches its life by the blessing of objects and foods to act as tangible manifestations of grace. These things demonstrate our fundamental belief that the Hidden One chose to manifest Himself historically in a visible manner. From that moment, time and all visible reality began to participate in a renewed creation. Anything not used for sin can be blessed and sanctified so that its usage becomes a channel of grace, blessing and thanksgiving. Candles, rosaries, holy water and palms we know, but clothing, flowers and even the bed linens of the sick can be blessed and sanctified.

There has always been the custom to keep blessed candles in our homes for use in prayer, especially when there is a member of the family who is sick or dying. The candle’s light and warmth are natural reminders to us of the divine light and fire of divine charity with which we are touched by God’s compassion. We should remember that this, and along with rosaries and holy water, we should keep at least a small supply of blessed candles in our homes. Preparation is needed when we receive the Most Blessed Sacrament into our homes. It is, after all, Christ Himself Who comes among us. TVs, stereos and all noise, music and commotion should be silenced. At least in the vicinity of the one being visited, silence should reign, prayerful and churchlike. The priest arriving with the Blessed Sacrament is met at the door with a lighted candle. When he enters he will bring the peace of Christ, “Shlomô l’baitô hono.” The one greeting the priest then escorts him and shows him to the room of the sick person. In this room there should be setup a small “altar”, that is, a clean table where the Blessed Sacrament can be placed and, for Anointing, the holy oils when necessary. This table to receive Our Lord should be covered by a clean white cloth. On it there should be a crucifix and two candles – much like an altar – along with a small cup of water (for the purification of the priests’ fingers after Holy Communion is distributed) and holy water. The water used in the ablutions will be poured out on the ground after the ceremony.

If the sick person is to be anointed in the Mystery of Anointing, then there should also be four/six cotton balls, a small slice of bread and, when possible, a slice of lemon or a small amount of lemon juice. This may seem unusual, but the lemon juice is used to cut the sacred oils left on the priest’s fingers and the bread absorbs it all afterward. Both these items, the cotton and the bread, the priest will take with him when he leaves and they will be burned and properly disposed of at a later time. Ideally, a small empty dish canSick Call 1 act to receive these items during the ceremony once they are used.

This photo shows how all this should look. Of course, if Holy Communion is the only thing for the visit that is to be done, then the white covered table, holy water, crucifix, small cup of water and two candles are the only things necessary.

Perhaps to some, this may all seem burdensome, but the observance of these types of details shows (and develops and forms) a properly religious spirit devoted to Our Lord and His sacred Mysteries. Sick Call 2Every Catholic home should have these items reserved and prepared for the eventual visits of the priest and the Holy Mysteries. There are crucifixes available in religious goods stores and suppliers that can be bought that hold within themselves the minimal necessary to properly setup for what is called a “sick-call” – when the Blessed Sacrament is brought to the invalid for Holy Communion. The face of the crucifix slides off and the back acts as a box that holds two candles, holy water and cotton. The crucifix itself is set into the slotted box to stand upright and the arms of the cross contain holders for the two candles.

May the Compassionate and Merciful One grant to us all a spirit of piety and devotion that allows us to stand in reverent awe before the divine realities within which we are allowed to act and touch. After all, to receive the Incarnate God within our home is a divine gift not given to all.

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