The sacrament of the
anointing of the sick is just one way priests and chaplains can minister
to the dying and their families. They -- along with others in pastoral
care ministry -- can also pray, sing, read Scriptures, counsel, help
with arrangements and mediate conflicts. They even grant final requests.
One patient at Our Lady of Mercy Life Center nursing home in
Guilderland, for example, expressed a lifelong desire to see a certain
play. Marie Venaglia, the Catholic chaplain, rented a DVD from the
library and played it for her. After residents die, the center holds a
service for family, staff and visitors. It also has periodic memorial
services. "It's another form of closure, another way to talk about how
(the bereaved are) doing," Venaglia told The Evangelist, newspaper of
the Albany Diocese. "Death is a natural process. We can speak freely
about it. It's not all medical. The pastoral ministry here is all
incorporated into the whole care." She and other Catholics who encounter
death on a regular basis recently reflected on pastoral care of the
dying, God's presence at a deathbed and their common experiences in
patients' final hours. The anointing of the sick -- which Venaglia
described as "a blessing showing that the whole church is united in
praying for this person at this time in their life, not just a death" --
is offered every six weeks and as needed.
The release of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s note, Mater Populi Fidelis , on November 4, 2025, seems to have sparked some immediate and widespread confusion, driven largely by sensationalist headlines from secular sources. In response to requests, particularly surrounding a potential Fifth Marian Dogma of Spiritual Maternity , the DDF addressed the usage of titles like Co-redemptrix and Mediatrix. Unfortunately, this has led to a large contingent online and in the media claiming that the Church has "tossed out" centuries of doctrine, with some outside the Church even proclaiming a "victory" over Catholic teaching (This may be the saddest part of it all, that we as Christians, are "competing" with each other). It is essential to understand that this doctrinal note is fundamentally about titles and clarity, not doctrine and change according to the Vatican News. The true teachings regarding Mary's unique role in salvation remain inviolabl...