"In a unique way, priests and bishops are set aside within the believing community when hands are laid upon them, and they are anointed with the sacred chrism at their ordinations. As we acknowledge these distinctions within the Church, the sacred oil is a sign of the sacramental unity of the clergy and lay faithful in the person of the Anointed One, Jesus, the Christ.
"Every Chrism Mass has two important moments. First, we bless the holy oils and the chrism used throughout the coming year in our local Church....
"The second key moment in the Chrism Mass takes place when we who are priests renew our commitment to priestly service....This past year has been a difficult time for the whole Church in Philadelphia, but it has been a uniquely painful Way of the Cross for every priest....
"Conversion and renewal are important for every Christian. But they're crucial for us as priests and bishops, because our vocation calls us to be the spark of God's love in the hearts of his people. If priests and bishops don't change, very little in the life of the Church can change....
"In the Gospel of Matthew, Jesus told the crowds that the rabbis 'have taken their seat on the chair of Moses. Therefore, do and observe all things whatsoever they tell you.' In our Catholic tradition we see that same rabbinical role as the duty and responsibility of priests. In our communities God has charged us with taking our seat on the chair of Moses. We need to do everything we can to purify ourselves of vanity and fear and fatigue and resentment, and to make ourselves worthy of that responsibility. Our own souls, and the souls of our people, will depend on the fire that should burn in our hearts -- a fire of love for Jesus Christ, for the Church as our mother, and for the people that God places in our care....
"At ordination, God called each of us to a special relationship of friendship with himself and of service to his people. This is the only real privilege of our priesthood. It's the only one we should seek; and the only one we need for a life of fruitfulness and joy....
"We need to give ourselves to God without holding anything back, so that through us, God will create a new life for our local Church, for our people and for ourselves....
"Jesus is the Alpha and the Omega of this world and all worlds, and we need to reclaim him as the Alpha and Omega of our personal lives and of our ministry. He loves us; he has freed us from our sins by his blood; and he has truly made the Church into his Kingdom....
"Jesus said, 'I came to cast fire upon the earth, and would that it were already kindled.' The fire Christ meant is the fire of God's love -- the fire of zeal and courage and hope that converts hearts and transforms the world. We need to reclaim the mission God intended for all of us as priests. We begin the future today. So may God grant us the passion to burn up every atom, every trace, every memory of ourselves in a fire of service to God's will and to God's people" (Archbishop Chaput, Holy Thursday, 2012).
