Today we celebrate the Feast of St. Blaise, a fourth century Bishop at Sebaste (now the city of Sivas in central Turkey). During a persecution – probably ordered by Constantine’s ally and co-emperor Licinius – St. Blaise was martyred in in the year 316.
In many places (including here at Holy Cross), on February 3rd people gather for the blessing of throats. The blessing is a sign of the people’s faith in God’s protection and love for the sick. Using two crossed and unlit candles, the priest (or other minister) touches the throat of each person, saying: “Through the intercession of Saint Blaise, bishop and martyr, may God deliver you from all ailments of the throat and from every other illness: + in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.”
For reflection: During His earthly ministry, Jesus had a profound care for the sick and the suffering. After His Death, Resurrection, and Ascension, He did not abandon the sick, the suffering and the dying. This is to say, that during His “heavenly ministry,” at the right hand of the Father, He has that same care for the sick and the suffering.
Jesus established the Church as His body on earth. Now His ministry to the sick and suffering is not simply to those who walked the streets in Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria. By establishing the Church, Jesus’ ministry to the sick can now go “to the ends of the earth.”
The preeminent way that Jesus continues to show His care for the sick and suffering, through the Church, is by the sacrament of Anointing of the Sick, which Jesus Himself instituted. “So they (the Apostles) went off and preached repentance. They drove out many demons, and anointed with oil many who were sick and cured them.” (Mark 6, 12-13). St. James, in his letter, describes the essential elements of this special sacrament: “Is anyone among you suffering? He should pray. Is anyone in good spirits? He should sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters (priests) of the Church, and they should pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.” (James 5, 14-15). In what St. James says, we can see that this sacrament is for the maladies of both body and soul. The blessing of throats on the Feast of St. Blaise is yet another way which the Church reaches out to the sick and the suffering with practical compassion. “St. Blaise, Bishop and Martyr. Pray for us.”
