The Chilling Truth About JFK's Last Rites

John F. Kennedy was president of the United States for just three short years, but during that time he made great leaps and bounds and proved himself to be an effective, dynamic, and energetic leader of the country. He oversaw effective economic expansion, developed policies to combat poverty, and supported civil rights, all while dealing with foreign affairs, most notably the Cuban Missile Crisis, which threatened to tip the world into nuclear war.

Kennedy was also known for his glamor, and his association with major celebrities of his day, most notably the Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe, with whom he was believed to have had an affair. But what few Americans knew at the time — and is still often overlooked today — is that for all his achievements Kennedy was also one of the 20th century's most sickly world leaders, with ill-health having plagued him throughout his life. Even from an early age, Kennedy faced life-threatening illnesses. His family, being Catholic, often considered these health issues so serious that they instructed a priest to perform the last rites, a ritual intended to cleanse the soul of the ill or dying person to increase the likelihood of their salvation. Kennedy was given the last rites a total of five times, according to CBC, first as an infant, and last following his shocking assassination in Dallas, Texas, in November 1963.

John Fitzgerald Kennedy was born in Brookline, Massachusetts, on May 29, 1917. He was the second of nine children born to Joseph Kennedy Sr., a multimillionaire entrepreneur, bootlegger, and senator, and his wife Rose, whose father had served as the mayor of Boston. Coming from such a wealthy and prestigious family, Kennedy was expected to do great things with his life. However, in infancy, he faced manifold health issues that threatened to stop him from reaching adulthood at all.

The first major health challenge of Kennedy's life came when he was 2 years old, and he contracted scarlet fever. Scarlet fever is a bacterial disease which is typically treated with antibiotics but which can be deadly. The child spent a month in the hospital receiving treatment, with ever-present Joseph praying constantly for his recovery. The situation was so dire that a priest was called to attend to the child's spiritual needs were the worst to happen by administering the last rites.

Thankfully, Kennedy recovered but he was plagued with various ailments that meant he remained sickly throughout his childhood and adolescence. His illnesses included digestive issues which may have been due to colitis or irritable bowel syndrome, and later suffered from urinary tract infections and prostatitis. Later reports claimed that he may also have developed a blood disease or possibly jaundice, but the details remain unclear.

Despite his numerous and serious health troubles in early life, John F. Kennedy proved himself to be a physically vigorous young man, who excelled in sports, particularly football, and enlisted to fight in World War II at the age of 24, joining the U.S. Navy where he became a war hero after ensuring the safety of several members of his crew after being shipwrecked.

However, Kennedy's health troubles were far from over. After leaving the Navy, his skin was notably discolored, perhaps as a result of jaundice, meanwhile, he began to suffer from severe back pain which required invasive surgery but would remain an issue for Kennedy throughout his life. Even more serious, however, was the development of new symptoms that began to afflict him while visiting the U.K. in 1947. Kennedy was diagnosed with Addison's disease, an adrenal insufficiency which is potentially fatal if left untreated. Kennedy's diagnosis came before the advent of oral cortisone medication and was treated with adrenal implants. On the journey back to the U.S., his condition became so perilous that a priest was called for. Thankfully, Kennedy recovered and was able to make use of oral medication when it was made available in 1950.

In 1951, John F. Kennedy suffered yet another bout of serious ill health while traveling abroad. This time he was in Tokyo, at the end of a long journey through Asia with his brother, Robert, with whom he had visited countries including Israel, India, and Vietnam before coming to their final destination in Japan. The illness was a recurrence of Addison's disease, which remained dangerous despite its diagnosis and treatment.

Kennedy was then a congressman, and his illness remained a secret from the public. However, in Tokyo, it came close to killing him, when his temperature hit 107​ and he fell into a coma. Under the direction of Robert, Kennedy was flown to a U.S. military base in Okinawa to receive treatment, and once more a priest was called to administer last rites. "They didn't think he could possibly live," Robert recalled (via The Boston Globe). When the two brothers returned after Kennedy's latest brush with death, they were closer than ever and would go on to form a political alliance that would define both of their careers.

In 1952, a year after nearly dying in Japan as a result of Addison's disease, John F. Kennedy was elected to the Senate, the next step in his political career and a major stepping stone in his presidential ambitions. However, he continued to contend with chronic pain and illness, particularly when it came to his back pain, for which he often had to wear a back brace or walk with crutches. In 1954, Kennedy was convinced to undergo surgery to implant a metal plate in his spine, which experts believed was necessary to save his ability to walk.

The procedure was especially dangerous for Kennedy due to his Addison's disease, which raised the potential for complications were he to develop an infection. Sadly, shortly after surgery a urinary tract infection struck Kennedy, and he again fell into a coma, his second in three years, and once again he was given last rites. He was nursed at his parents' Florida home, where his five-month recovery was covered by the national media.

The final time a priest was called to give last rites to John F. Kennedy during his tragically short life was on November 22, 1963, following his shocking assassination in Dallas, Texas. Kennedy, who by then was almost three years into his first term as president of the United States, was riding in an open-top car in a motorcade through Dallas, Texas, alongside his wife, Jacqueline, accompanied by dozens of Secret Service agents when shots rang out across Dealey Plaza, from what was later established to have been the Texas School Book Depository.

Kennedy was struck twice, once through the shoulder, wrist, and thigh, and once through the back of the head, and though he was rushed to Parkland Hospital for emergency treatment, he was declared dead at 1 p.m., half an hour after the shooting. Parkland Parish priest Oscar L. Huber heard news of Kennedy's assassination and rushed to the hospital. He recalled how it went when he gave the President his last rites: "I was taken to the emergency room where I found the President lying on an emergency table; he was covered with a sheet. I walked past Mrs. Kennedy, who was standing beside him and I immediately gave him conditional absolution and conditional extreme unction. This was followed by the last blessing and various prayers that are read for one who is dying and, also, prayers after death. Shortly after this, I left the emergency room." (via The JFK Library).