May a Protestant Receive Catholic Last Rites?

Question: May a Protestant Receive Catholic Last Rites?

Answer:

Short Answer:

Unless there is a grave necessity and certain faith requirements are met, a Protestant Christian may not receive the Catholic Last Rites (see CIC, canon 844 §4).  A Lutheran or other Protestant may receive prayers and pastoral care from a Lutheran pastor (or other Protestant minister as the case may be). But this pastoral care is not the same as the Catholic sacrament of the anointing of the sick, which is an essential part of Catholic last rites, as are, normatively, the sacrament of confession (penance) and the Eucharist (CCC 1517; 1525). Because Lutheran communities—and other Protestant ecclesial communities—do not have a valid ministerial priesthood, they cannot validly administer these sacraments.

However, a baptized Catholic who has become Lutheran—or a Protestant Christian otherwise—who wishes to receive Catholic last rites should speak with a Catholic priest about reconciliation with the Catholic Church. In this case, the person could more readily arrange to receive the sacraments of confession, anointing of the sick, and the Eucharist (see CCC 1514-1515).

Longer Answer:

In the case of grave necessity, e.g., danger of death, and provided they “seek such on their own accord, [and] provided that they manifest Catholic faith in respect to these sacraments and are properly disposed,” they may receive the sacraments of the Catholic last rites (CIC, canon 844 §4).

Catholic “last rites” are not simply prayers said near the time of death. They normally include three sacraments: confession (penance), the anointing of the sick, and Holy Communion—i.e., the Eucharist given as Viaticum, which is so named and received in preparing to pass from this life to eternal life (CCC 1524-1525).

A Lutheran pastor—or other Protestant minister—can certainly pray with a dying person, offer spiritual counsel, read Scripture, and provide other pastoral care. Such prayers can be spiritually beneficial in God’s providence (see CCC 1257). However, Lutheran pastoral rites are not the same as the Catholic sacrament of the anointing of the sick.

The Catholic Church teaches that anointing of the sick is one of the seven sacraments Jesus instituted for our salvation and related spiritual sustenance on earth, and so its valid administration requires a validly ordained priest. Because Lutheran communities do not possess a valid ministerial priesthood—nor do they believe in one—they do not validly celebrate the sacraments of the Catholic last rites: confession, anointing of the sick, and the Eucharist; and historically Martin Luther didn’t believe in confession or anointing of the sick. Anglicans and Episcopalians are examples of Protestant ecclesial communities who do believe in all three sacraments, but they do not celebrate them validly.

For someone who was baptized or raised Catholic but later became Lutheran or joined another Protestant community, a desire to receive Catholic last rites can serve as a blessed occasion to speak with a Catholic priest about returning to full communion with the Catholic Church.

In normal circumstances, formal reconciliation begins with confession, through which a person is sacramentally reconciled to Christ and his Church. In addition, once he is reconciled, if a Catholic also needs to receive the anointing of the sick, e.g., when seriously ill or weakened by old age, he may receive this sacrament. Further, when death is imminent, he may receive also Viaticum as part of the Church’s final sacramental care.

Thus, confession is also ordinarily an important part of preparing for death. The Church reminds us that each person faces a particular judgment at death (CCC 1021–1022), so Christians should remain spiritually prepared for the time when God calls them from this life.

If a Protestant Christian is near death and desirous of receiving the Catholic last rites, he should speak directly with a Catholic priest, or have a family member or friend reach out to a priest if he is impeded from doing so. In addition, for persons no longer conscious when a priest arrives, they can still receive anointing of the sick if they “at least implicitly requested it when they were in control of their faculties” (CIC, canon 1006).

Catholic last rites are administered to the living; anointing of the sick is not given when there is no doubt a person has died (CIC, canon 1005). After death, however, a Catholic in good standing is to receive a funeral  Mass offered for the repose of his soul. We should continue to pray for the deceased and may also request subsequent memorial Masses for the repose of his soul. We may also offer memorial Masses for a Protestant Christian or non-Christian.

Someone who was formerly a practicing Catholic and is considering receiving Catholic last rites should contact a Catholic priest before a medical crisis arises. This provides an opportunity to discuss reconciliation with the Church, including confession, anointing of the sick, Viaticum, and any other pastoral or sacramental questions—including the arrangement of a funeral Mass if one is reconciled to Christ and his Catholic Church.

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