Tag Archives: Chrism Mass

The Chrism Mass

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The word that reflects the deepest identity of Jesus is “Christ.” It is not a name, but a title. The Greek word Christos translates the Hebrew word moshiach or messiah. All those words mean “the Anointed One.” When we call upon Jesus Christ, we invoke the fact that Our Lord is anointed.

Throughout the Bible, anointing means the application of oil to someone’s body. Sometimes, it refers to simple grooming (Luke 7:46). But most of the time it means a special consecration.

People who were anointed were set apart for a sacred task. They were fundamentally changed and divinely equipped for their mission. Through the action of anointing, God gave them a share of the holiness that is divine by nature.

Jesus’ anointing was more radical. He was anointed not with oil, but with the Holy Spirit (Luke 3:22, 4:18-21).

And that is the anointing he has shared with all Christians through the sacraments.

This week bishops in all diocese will celebrate the Chrism Mass. This liturgy takes place every year during Holy Week, and it is an important moment in the life of the local Church. During the Chrism Mass, Catholic priests renew the promises they made at the time of their ordination. They promise to respect and obey their bishop, and to live the chaste life that is proper to the clergy.

But the Chrism Mass gets its name from another action that occurs only on this day. During a special rite, the bishop will bless three different oils to be used in sacraments. He’ll bless holy chrism, the oil of catechumens, and the oil of the sick. The first is used in the sacraments of confirmation and holy orders. The second is used in baptism. The third is used for anointing people who are ill or infirm.

After the Chrism Mass, these oils will be distributed to every parish in the archdiocese. As the bishop sends out the oils, he symbolically renews his connection with every parish under his care. Through those oils he will take part in thousands of sacramental moments throughout the year. He will be there with the priest who visits a parishioner’s hospital bed. He will be there with the deacon who baptizes a baby. He will be there to welcome adult converts who are confirmed on Easter Vigil. In all these sacraments, the clergy apply the oils — they anoint. And so they make Christians, and they strengthen Christian identity, in a way that is true to the root meaning of the word anointing. They make every Christian into another Anointed One, another christ.

The Chrism Mass is a beautiful moment when the unity of the Church — clergy and laity — is most visible.  We have many anointings, but “there is one body and one Spirit … one Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:4-5).

“You have been anointed by the Holy One, and … the anointing which you received from him abides in you” (1 John 2:20, 27).

Adapted from Archdiocese of Los Angeles

A clear test….

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Folks who read blogs don’t always know too much about the person whose writings they have taken the time to read.  You can always find out a little something on an “About” page. Here is mine. I am a Franciscan friar and an ordained Catholic priest.  It is who I am.

Speaking at the Chrism Mass on Holy Thursday at St. Peter’s Basilica yesterday, Pope Francis gave “a clear test” of the meaning of ordained priesthood.

A good priest can be recognized by the way his people are anointed. This is a clear test. When our people are anointed with the oil of gladness, it is obvious: for example, when they leave Mass looking as if they have heard good news. Our people like to hear the Gospel preached with “unction”, they like it when the Gospel we preach touches their daily lives, when it runs down like the oil of Aaron to the edges of reality, when it brings light to moments of extreme darkness, to the “outskirts” where people of faith are most exposed to the onslaught of those who want to tear down their faith. People thank us because they feel that we have prayed over the realities of their everyday lives, their troubles, their joys, their burdens and their hopes. And when they feel that the fragrance of the Anointed One, of Christ, has come to them through us, they feel encouraged to entrust to us everything they want to bring before the Lord: “Pray for me, Father, because I have this problem”, “Bless me”, “Pray for me” – these words are the sign that the anointing has flowed down to the edges of the robe, for it has turned into prayer. The prayers of the people of God. When we have this relationship with God and with his people, and grace passes through us, then we are priests….

Pray for me that I may be a priest who strives to daily pass this “clear test.”