Chrism Mass

St Mary's Cathedral - Holy Thursday

+ Cardinal George Pell, Archbishop of Sydney
28 Mar 2002

Welcome to you all for this annual Mass, when the oils to be used during sacred ceremonies around the archdiocese for the next 12 months will be consecrated or blessed.

A special welcome to all the students from the Catholic schools, especially those who will be confirmed during this year.

As you know we take our proud title of "Christian" from the man we follow, Jesus, the natural-born Son of Mary, but also the only Son of God. Christ is not a surname or family name, but means the anointed one, the one chrismed with oil to be the Messiah, the religious leader the Jews were expecting.

So too we are called "Christian" because we follow Jesus, base our values on his teachings and because we too have been "chrismed", anointed with oil in the sacraments of baptism and confirmation.

And finally a word of welcome to my brother priests. This is a special day when we pray together in the Eucharist to celebrate our unity in the ministerial priesthood; to thank God for the gifts and office we have been given and to ask you to pray for us in our ministry of service towards all the members of the Church and the other people around us.

So I particularly ask you, the young people here today, to pray for your priests, especially those in your parishes whom you know. These priests have baptised you, led you through the sacrament of reconciliation and first communion, been involved in preparing you for confirmation.

They will have blessed the marriages of your parents, presided at the funerals of members of your families, and on at least some occasions, imparted the anointing of the sick on friends and family, using a special oil for the sick which will also be blessed during this Mass.

Do not take your priests for granted. They deserve your gratitude, a regular friendly wave and greeting. Sometimes you might hear priests being criticised, possibly even a bishop or two! Sometimes too we hear of scandals; but these are exceptions from the rule. So, again I ask you; be loyal and supportive to your priests for the great work they do.

You all know that the bishops take the place of the apostles, the twelve leaders Jesus himself chose, while the Pope, our Holy Father, John Paul II takes the place of Peter, the rock man, on which the Church is built. Every year the Pope writes a letter to the priests for the Mass on Holy Thursday.

This year is no exception, and this year the Holy Father emphasized the special role of the priest in celebrating the Eucharist, and as minister of the sacrament of reconciliation.

The priest takes Christ's place in celebrating the Eucharist, a repetition of the first Mass on Holy Thursday, the evening before Jesus died on Good Friday nearly 2000 years ago. Jesus himself told us to celebrate and pray the Mass time and time again when he ordered "Do this in memory of me." So the Eucharist is a memorial of Our Lord's death and his resurrection from the dead, which we will celebrate on Easter Sunday. It is far and away the most important of all the seven sacraments and of all Christian celebrations.

The second sacrament mentioned in Pope John Paul's letter is the sacrament of reconciliation, known as the sacrament of penance; or simply as confession (back in the days of my youth).

Here the priests are ministers of God's mercy as they forgive sins in Christ's name. I would particularly recommend this short document (or letter) to the priests for study and meditation. Occasionally people will say to you that they cannot understand why it is necessary to confess our serious sins to a priest so that they can be forgiven. This letter, once again, answers those queries and answers them beautifully.

Many people in our society today live busy, and even hectic lives; sometimes through being always on the go, or sometimes because of isolation, they need personal contact. In the sacrament of reconciliation the Church is able to meet the needs of the human heart.

All the young people here will have made their first confession, and gone to the sacrament of reconciliation for the first time before your first holy communion. As you grow older you will understand better the need for forgiveness and find it easier to overcome the discomfort, or shame, we can feel as we confess our secret sins, those actions which make us feel ashamed. Reconciliation brings healing, really takes our guilt away and helps us to feel better, indeed free. As you young people grow older you will learn about the power of bad habits, which can imprison people. Think of those caught up in drugs, or alcohol or gambling. When our sins are forgiven we begin to become free from these chains.

So Pope John Paul compares the priest in the confessional to the Father forgiving the Prodigal Son; or to the Good Shepherd hunting after the one lost sheep to find him and bring him home.

God often speaks to us through our conscience, urging us to ask His forgiveness for our sins, to measure ourselves against the truths of the gospel. The sacrament of reconciliation helps us to grow up, to become better people. It should be a dialogue of listening, comfort and forgiveness.

My concluding prayer is that the Holy Father who prayed that our belief in Jesus would give us hope and strength. If we regularly strive to be good, to know, to understand and truly meet Christ Our Lord, then we will be able to radiate peace and happiness to others.

To all of you, priests, people and especially all the youngsters here, may you communicate at this time of Easter Christian hope, goodness and peace to all the people around you, and especially to your nearest and dearest.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.