From Archbishop Donoghue

Dear Friends in Christ,

Today we celebrate the Chrism Mass. Its importance to us is two-fold: first, it is the liturgy when we consecrate and bless the holy oils to be used in all the local churches during the coming year; as such, it reveals to us the sacramental kinship which exists, by virtue of the Holy Spirit, among all the churches, and among all the individuals who will enter the Faith, who will be confirmed or ordained, or prepare to leave this life, attended by their priests, and encouraged on these journeys by their brothers and sisters in the Lord. And second, the importance of the Chrism Mass is to illustrate the unity of the bishop with his priests, who enjoy the fullness of ordination through him, and who exist, to serve the followers of Christ Jesus, rising from the table, as He did, girding themselves with the apron of charity, and tending to their spiritual, and when fitting, their corporal needs.

The gift of using holy oils finds its fullest meaning in the Sacraments of our Church. But our Lord passed this gift on to us out of the rich storehouse of his own heritage. From the most ancient and revered of those texts by which His culture was formed, and from that wealth of wisdom which He never hesitated to use, since it was truly His own wisdom, we read these words:

...and you shall make...a sacred anointing oil blended as by the perfumer; a holy anointing oil it shall be. And you shall anoint with it the tent of meeting and the ark of the testimony, and the tableÉand the altar...you shall consecrate them, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them will become holy. And you shall anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may serve me as priests. And you shall say to the people of Israel, "This shall be my holy anointing oil throughout your generations... it is holy, and it shall be holy to you."

For the chosen people of the Old Covenant, this symbol of oil, and the rites in which it was used, signified their independence from all other nations and their unique relationship with God. It helped them retain, along with the laws, their belief in the prophets, and in the message of those prophets - that they were a holy people, in whom the promise of a Savior for all mankind would be fulfilled.

We have received this symbol from Christ, and it reminds us as well of these same spiritual treasures - that we are a people set apart, a priestly people, formed and preserved by the laws of our Faith, and filled with purpose by the prophetic Word of God. But we enjoy in these holy oils a new gift as well - the gift of the fulfillment of the promise - the gift of the life and death of Jesus Christ - and the gift of His abiding Presence among us - in the Eucharist, and by the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, in our hearts.

For all the Faithful, the oils we bless today will mark the most important moments of our lives. For no matter the time, no matter the moment, Òby the effective sign of being anointed with these blessed oils, we are raised into the saving effects of the Paschal Mystery - we are prepared for the journey of faith with the Oil of Catechumens; we are permanently sealed by the Holy Spirit with the fragrant Chrism of prophets, priests and kings; we are strengthened in this life and sent forth into eternity with the healing and pardon of the Oil of the Sick.Ó With these oils, we are signed and sealed into the mystery of our Lord's life and Passion and death - the mystery in which our sins are obliterated by mercy - the mystery by which Jesus Christ, the Son of God, redeems us, and makes us worthy to be with the Father.

And it makes us all very happy, and fulfilled in our Faith, to look around us today, and to see what the Mass for blessing these oils makes visible - our whole community, our whole family, the anointed family of God: bishop, priests, deacons, religious, lay men and women, and especially, Catholic young people and schoolchildren.

Dear friends, we draw together today, in this most solemn display of our family, anointed in Faith, to prepare those oils by which the family will be sanctified in the future.

But there is a second meaning to this Chrism Mass, and another gift for which the Church gathers to be grateful Ð the gift of the priesthood. And what better way to express to God gratitude for our priests than to pray for these men Ð these men to whom the holy oils we bless are to be entrusted - who will perform the rites in which the oils will be used, and from which rites, you will receive the treasure of God's grace. Your bishop, your priests, gather here in unity, to remind you of their pledge of service, which begins with our duties to the altar, to the Holy Eucharist, and which extend from that Holy Source, to all the facets of our lives. We ask you to pray for our unity, to pray for our commitment Ð and to beseech the Holy Spirit to stay with us, and give us what is necessary for us to finish the race, and prove worthy of the vocation we have received. And we ask you to begin these prayers now, as we consider our own recommitment to Christ's call and to your service.

Dear brothers,

In these times which are difficult for Catholic priests, in these times where the life to which we are called is not so admired as of old, in these times when spiritual martyrdom draws us very close to the Cross of Christ, what better day of comfort can we hope to experience, than this, when before our eyes, the Faithful have gathered to see us in our brotherhood, and to pray for us as we give ourselves once more to whatever Christ shall require in the days to come.

We take great courage from this friendship, for we understand that it is founded on the friendship of Jesus Christ for His Apostles, for His disciples, and always, always, in the watchful presence of the Blessed Virgin Mary, who cared for our Lord, and who at the foot of the Cross, received the charge to care for us.

By answering our LordÕs call to the priesthood, we have accepted not only a fuller measure of His ministry, but also, a greater portion of His suffering. For the demands on priests are - and must be, greater, if we are to receive that extra measure of grace which will make us worthy to serve the needs of so many. But that is what we do receive - not because we are greater by virtue of our sacrifice or our deeds - but because we are greater in our need for God's mercy, in our need for God's help, to carry the burdens He has given us - given us to share with His Son.

I can attest to these burdens - they are great and many and heavy. But I can also attest to the singular joy which is mine, to be able to share these burdens with such fine priests, who have the power, to make of my burdens, joys for myself, and accomplishments for the People of God. It is my sincerest hope, that whatever the trials of finding the right answers to our problems and challenges, I have been able to return to you, the love and assistance I have received Ð that I have been able to lighten your burdens, and bring you some measure of the true happiness our priesthood promises - the happiness of following in the priestly ministry of Jesus Christ - the happiness of bringing Christ, in His Body and in His Word, to the hungry world.

Dear friends, dear brothers, mindful then of how much we mean to one another, and mindful of the fact that we are GodÕs chosen and anointed people, let us turn now to the work before us: first, the renewal of our priests in their dedication to Christ, and then the blessing of the holy oils which will be brought before us. And as in every moment of worship, let us pray that the Holy Spirit will draw us in to a single embrace, where the responsibilities we accept may be transformed into what God has intended Ð our anointed love, for one another, in the love that Jesus Christ, our High Priest, has offered on our behalf.

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