Attendance was limited to about 150 ticket-holders, but many others viewed the annual chrism Mass on Diocese of Cleveland website. The liturgy, celebrated by Bishop Edward Malesic in the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, is a highlight of the year.
During the Mass, the oils used for sacraments are blessed and members of the presbyterate renew their priestly promises. In non-pandemic times, it also was a day of sanctification for priests when they would gather in fellowship and prayer.
The bishop said although he was sad to leave his prior position as bishop of the Diocese of Greensburg, Pennsylvania, he is happy to be in Cleveland. “I’ll be even happier next year when we are able, please God, to have this church filled with our priests, deacons, religious women and men and our lay faithful,” he said, noting the liturgy is a highlight of the year for many.
“Priests gather to renew their priestly promises, all of us gather to renew the oils used in our sacraments and rituals of consecration and the Church is fully expressed as a meeting of the diocesan bishop, with his clergy and the flock of the faithful,” he added.
Acknowledging the limited attendance, Bishop Malesic said he knows that the cathedral “is filled to the brim by the blessing of the Holy Spirit. And at this Mass, we can know that this sacred space is filled with Mary, the mother of God, and all the saints who intercede for us, choirs of angels who adore God with us, Jesus who never leaves us as orphans and many others who are sitting around their computer screens praying along with us right now, including so many of our priests.”
He recalled celebrating the chrism Mass last year in Greensburg, unaware that one of the oils he was blessing – the chrism (perfumed olive oil) – would be used to anoint the head of his successor after he moved to a new diocese. As former Cleveland bishop and now Philadelphia Archbishop Nelson Perez – “You may remember him,” the bishop quipped – poured the chrism onto Bishop Larry Kulick’s head, “I realized that I had consecrated that oil of chrism at last year’s chrism Mass in Greensburg.”
Who really knows how the oils blessed and consecrated at the chrism Mass will be used in the next year, the bishop wondered aloud. He questioned how many infants would be baptized, how many would be sealed with chrism in confirmation, how many might be anointed as part of the last rites and how many catechumens will be anointed with the oil. Also, he acknowledged the four transitional deacons who are on track for priestly ordination in May, noting they will be consecrated with chrism for service at the altar.
“And who knows – if you throw me out of Cleveland in the next few months, maybe the oil we consecrate today will be poured on the head of a new bishop,” he quipped.
“In whatever way we use these oils, let’s not be stingy about it. Let’s be generous with them,” he added, which promoted him sharing the story of how much oil Archbishop Perez poured onto Bishop Kulick’s head. “The stone floor had to be mopped up after Bishop Kulick stood up,” he said.
Bishop Malesic explained that three oils are blessed at the chrism Mass:
- The oil of catechumens represents the blessing of God’s power to save us from evil, strengthening us to let go of our sinful past.
- The oil of the sick is able to bring the blessing of God’s strength to those who are ill.
- And the oil of chrism, which takes its name from Christ and represents the anointing we receive from Jesus, who sets us aside to be God’s children in baptism, gifted witnesses of our faith in confirmation, and for some of us, his ordained witnesses as priests and bishops.
“These oils represent the abundant blessing of Christ flowing through the members of his body, the Church, giving us everything we need in abundance for our salvation,” he added.
Referring back to the oil flowing off Bishop Kulick’s head, Bishop Malesic said we should let the oil of God’s blessing flow from us, too. “We should not try to bottle up God’s goodness. We must share it with others.”
This can be done by uncorking God’s gifts, spreading his Gospel, opening the spigot of God’s goodness in service to the Church, our communities, the poor, those held captive to sin and addictions, the blind who can’t see Christ in their neighbors and in service to all who feel God’s love hasn’t touched them yet.
“Let these oils and the blessings they bestow upon us flow out from here to every corner of this diocese to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord – a year that, we pray, will be better than the last year,” the bishop said.
He also addressed the priests – both those gathered in person and those watching the liturgy – telling them he was impressed with their fraternity; delighted at their energy; proud of their fidelity and grateful for their hospitality. “I know that we have not been able to gather as a presbyterate since last year. I feel a sense of impatience to get to meet all of you – trust me,” he added.
But the time is coming when they will be able to gather around the same altar. Until then, he asked the newly ordained to keep their zeal; those in the middle years to keep the faith and run the race to the finish; the senior priests to know that all are grateful for their long years of service; and those retired from active ministry to know they are not forgotten, that we rely on their prayers and the sacrifices they continue to make. He also remembered the deceased priests. “They intercede for all of us who hope to hear the words they have already heard, “Well done, good and faithful servant, and enter into the joy of the Lord.”
He told the priests they are loved, supported and needed. In addition, he told the faithful that the ordained clergy want them to know what a blessing they have been, especially during the difficult days of the past year.
“When the time comes, may these oils permeate every corner of our diocese with the blessing of God who loves us in a way that we cannot contain,” he added.