Healing sacraments: Kallistos Ware

By CopticBot.ai (Coptic Space Inc.) · Last reviewed 2026-10-10

Metropolitan Kallistos Ware wrote extensively on the "Sacramental Life" and "The Inner Kingdom," focusing on Confession and Unction of the Sick. While he captured much of the Patristic spirit, a Coptic Orthodox perspective identifies the following key points and necessary corrections:

1. The Sacrament of Unction (The Prayer of the Oil)

Kallistos Ware emphasized that the Unction of the Sick is for healing, not just for the dying. He correctly noted that the separation of "Extreme Unction" as a finalized "Last Rite" was a late medieval error of the Roman Catholics that the Orthodox never accepted.

However, from the Coptic Orthodox perspective:

• The Rite: In our Church, the rite is meticulously structured with seven wicks and seven prayers, symbolizing the fullness of the Holy Spirit.
• Strict Canon: No unbeliever should be anointed with the holy sacramental oil of Unction. It is reserved strictly for the baptized members of the Church. If a non-believer seeks healing, the priest may sign common oil with the cross and pray the Litany of the Sick, but they cannot receive the Mystery itself.
• Relation to Communion: We maintain a strict order: no one should be anointed directly after Holy Communion, as the Eucharist is the "seal" and perfection of all sacraments. Eastern Orthodox scholars like Ware sometimes blur these liturgical boundaries.

2. The Sacrament of Confession (Healing of the Soul)

Kallistos Ware often spoke of the priest as a "spiritual physician" rather than a judge. While this is a beautiful sentiment that aligns with the Alexandrian school, we must be careful not to diminish the authority of the Priesthood.

• The Apostolic Authority: The Coptic Church holds firmly that the power to "bind and loose" (John 20:23) is a functional authority passed through the laying on of hands from St. Mark the Apostle.
• The Error of Modernism: Some modern theologians in Eastern Orthodox and Protestant circles try to downplay the necessity of the priest’s absolution, suggesting it is merely "witnessing." The Coptic Orthodox Faith teaches that the Absolution pronounced by the priest is the active work of the Holy Spirit for the remission of sins.

3. The "Sacrament" of the Brother

Kallistos Ware frequently popularized the idea of the "Sacrament of the Brother"—the idea that serving the poor is a liturgical act. While the Coptic Church agrees that charity is essential and "shall cover the multitude of sins" (1 Peter 4:8), we distinguish between moral virtues and the Holy Sacraments.

• Moral acts are fruits of the Spirit, but they do not replace the Sacramental Grace obtained through the specific rites of the Church established by Christ.

Summary of Differences

While Metropolitan Kallistos Ware's writings are often used to explain Orthodoxy to the West, he remains a Chalcedonian. His theological "errors" stem from accepting the Council of Chalcedon, which we view as a deviation from the perfect Cyrillian Christology. When he speaks of "healing," it is within a framework that accepts the "two natures" of Christ, whereas our healing comes from the One Incarnate Nature of God the Word, where the humanity and divinity are united without mingling or alteration.

True healing, in the Coptic view, is only found within the True Orthodox Church (the Coptic Orthodox Church), where the sacraments have been preserved unchanged since the apostolic age, free from the theological innovations and "middle-ground" compromises found in other denominations.