Essential Oils

Lavender, Eucalyptus, and Rosemary are just a few essential oils that are believed to promote health and well-being. These oils have become so popular that some medical doctors are using them to help their patients recover. Essential oils are thick saps that have been extracted from plants. They are used in aromatherapy, massage therapy and holistic medicine. Enthusiasts claim they help ease all kinds of maladies, from anxiety to arthritis.

The interest in the value of oils is not new. Ancient athletes covered themselves with olive oil before training or competition, and physicians prescribed it for a number of ailments.

Consider the ways we use all kinds of oil today. We use lotion to heal our skin and protect it against the cold and dryness. We use motor oil to keep our car running smoothly, and we use  cooking oil to help nourish and strengthen us.  

The Church, too, has long known the benefits of oil, and we use our own essential oils in many of our sacramental rites. These oils, the Oil of the Sick, the Oil of Catechumens and the Sacred Chrism, are olive oils that have been blessed by the Bishop at the Chrism Mass. 

The Oil of the Sick is used to anoint persons who are infirm. The word anoint comes from a Latin word meaning to smear or rub. In the Rite of Anointing, the priest rubs the Holy Oil on the forehead and on the hands of the sick.   

The Oil of Catechumens is used on children about to be baptized. The ancient Greeks believed that the human race received the olive tree as a gift from Athena, the goddess of wisdom and strength. It was thought to confer wisdom, power and strength. The words used during the pre-baptismal anointing reflect this: 

“We anoint you with the oil of salvation in the name of Christ our Savior; may he strengthen you with his power who lives and reigns forever and ever. Rite of Baptism for Children (1969)

The Oil of Catechumens is also used on adults and children of catechetical age who are preparing for baptism. In the ancient world, it was believed that catechumens were particularly susceptible to the powers of evil. So in order to make them slippery enough to escape the grip of the devil, their entire bodies were anointed with the Oil of Catechumens. This anointing freed them to be baptized into Christ who had already won the victory over evil. This oil strengthens the catechumens on their journey of faith.

After baptism, the newly baptized are anointed with Sacred Chrism, olive oil scented with balsam. The newly baptized are now the anointed of the Lord, something St. Cyril of Jerusalem spoke of in an ancient homily to the neophytes:

“Next after removing your garments you were rubbed with exorcised oil from the hair of your head to your toes, and so you became sharers in Jesus Christ, who is the cultivated olive tree.”

Chrism is also used in the Sacrament of Confirmation as a seal of baptism, in the Rites of Ordination of Priests and Bishops, and in the Rite of the Dedication of a Church to anoint the new altar and the walls. 

As we use our common oils in everyday life, may we appreciate more deeply the role of oils in the sacred liturgy, and trust God’s power to heal and strengthen us through them.

The Shape of Water

Whenever I go to the gym for a splash in the pool, I can always pinpoint the real swimmers. Their torsos form a perfect T, wide in the shoulders and narrow down to the waist. Their abs are firm and there are no “love handles.” Their sculpted arms and legs form an artistic silhouette. This is what happens to a body after years of movement in the water. These swimmers have allowed the water to reshape them.

All of us were initially shaped by water. Surrounded by water in our mother’s womb, water helped to form and fashion us. Water was our first embrace. When I ponder the glorious and breathtaking sights of nature such as the Grand Canyon and Niagara Falls that have been carved and molded by water, I marvel at the power of water to reshape and reform.  

Water has other properties too. Water cleanses and renews. Water is part of our daily routines: bathing in the morning or evening or having a cup of tea or coffee at certain times of the day. Water gathers us. Think of the number of people who gather in a Jacuzzi, in the pool, or at the beach. Water also scatters us. Consider those who flee from approaching storms, hurricanes or tsunamis. Water can cause death. 

Water is powerful. If you’ve ever swum in the ocean, ridden the waves, or surfed a crest to the shore, you understand the power of water. You cannot fight water and win. If you want to survive water’s power, you must surrender. Water also gives life. Plants, animals, and humans depend on water. We can’t live without it. 

All of this helps us to see why water is the primary symbol for baptism. Baptism also reshapes and refashions us into the children of God. Baptism cleanses us from sin. Baptism renews us and calls us to live as new people. Baptism gathers us into one body—the body of Christ. Baptism scatters us by sending us into our homes, our schools, and our workplaces to live as God’s own people. The power of Baptism prompts us to surrender our will to God’s will time and time again. Baptism causes death by helping us to die to ourselves, to our egos, and to our pride over and over. Baptism gives us new life and assures us of the promise of living with God forever. 

May we immerse ourselves into the call of baptism so that like swimmers, we might be reshaped into the image of God.

Covenants Renewed

Spring is the season of love. All of creation awakens: birds sing melodies of love, flowers emerge to embrace the sun, and June brides and grooms prepare to say “I do,” two small words that promise a lifetime of love. Our Elect and Candidates who await baptism, confirmation and Eucharist, are also preparing to say “I do” promising a lifetime of love. Along with them, the entire community prepares to say “I do,” recommitting to the promises made at baptism.

This is what Lent is all about, a 40-day retreat that prepares us to renew our baptismal covenant—our “I do” to the new covenant in Christ.

The focus on baptism in Lent is ancient. For the earliest Christians, Lent was a time to concentrate on penance and to prepare for baptism. Public penitents returned to be reconciled with the Church and adult catechumens made their final preparation for baptism. In later centuries, infant baptism replaced the baptism of adults. Because of this, the baptismal nature of Lent was diminished and overshadowed by a singular focus on penance. With the renewal of the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults, the Second Vatican Council insisted that the focus of Lent once again be penitential and baptismal.

"The baptismal and penitential aspects of Lent are to be given greater prominence in both the liturgy and liturgical catechesis." Sacroscantum Concilium 109

The Church reminds us that

“The Lenten liturgy disposes both the catechumens and the faithful to celebrate the paschal mystery; catechumens, through the several stages of Christian initiation; the faithful, through reminders of their own Baptism and through penitential practices.” General Norms for the Liturgical Year 27

What we expect of the catechumens is that they have

“undergone a conversion in mind and in action and . . . have developed a sufficient acquaintance with Christian teaching as well as a spirit of faith and charity . . . (and) the intention to receive the sacraments of the Church.” RCIA 120

We who are already Catholic are called to a similar conversion as we prepare to recommit ourselves to our baptismal promises. Do you recall what you promised or what your parents and godparents promised on your behalf? We promised to reject the lure of evil and to embrace the love of God, with words as simple and profound as the words “I do.”

As any married couple knows, it takes a lifetime to realize the meaning of the words “I do.” These words have to be lived out and rediscovered day by day. Each Lent the Church asks us to ponder fully the promises behind these words so that our “I do” at Easter may be sincere and wholehearted. As we prepare to renew our baptismal covenant may we, like creation, awaken to new life, that we may sing the melody of God’s love to all the world.

Silence and The Liturgy

As a former intern coordinator in Washington D.C., I had the opportunity to visit Gallaudet University. Gallaudet is the only University where all programs are specifically designed for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. I witnessed students interacting, collaborating, socializing, storytelling, even laughing—all in complete silence. I have never experienced the power of silence as I did that day.

Perhaps my experience at Gallaudet was magnified because the society in which we live thrives on noise. The first thing many of us do after starting our car is to turn on the radio. Not long after we walk into our houses, we turn on the radio or the television. When we go for a walk or a run, we are usually listening to music instead of the sounds of nature. It is a challenge to strike up a conversation in a public place as most people are clad with headphones or ear-buds. 

Oddly enough, our hunger for silence grows. Coffee shops are filled with patrons seeking a hushed atmosphere. Silent retreats are booked with visitors trying to get away from the noise and chaos of everyday life.  Practices that foster inner peace, such as yoga and tai chi are as popular as ever.

The season of Lent invites us to spend some time in silence. One of the ways we can do that as a community is by experiencing silence in the liturgy. Though our liturgy is filled with the “holy” noise of words, prayers, and music, the liturgy also calls for silence—especially after the proclamation of the Word of God, the Homily and Holy Communion. As in life, we need a balance of sound and silence in our liturgies. Our Mass is so rich and overflowing with meaning, we need silence to digest it all. The liturgy invites us to be quiet, not only as individuals, but as a corporate body who, like the student body at Gallaudet, knows how to be with and for each other—even in silence.

Hunger, Fullness and The Eucharist

Hunger is such a natural instinct we hardly give it a thought. Being hungry can mean anticipating, craving, longing, yearning, desiring, aspiring and hoping. There is always room for more.

Being full, on the other hand, can mean feeling uncomfortable, bloated, lethargic, drowsy, listless, heavy, passive, slothful and slow. There is no room for more.

When it comes to sharing in the body and blood of Christ, I wonder, are we hungry or full? This was a question implied in a letter written by Pope St. John Paul II in 1980 on the “Mystery and Worship of the Most Holy Eucharist.” The Pope was concerned that unlike decades past, everyone was now going to communion (emphasis added). He didn’t say this was a bad thing. He was merely trying to stimulate our awareness of what we do when we share in Christ’s body and blood by saying, “If our eucharist is authentic, it must make us grow in the awareness of the dignity of each person.”

That awareness of the dignity of all human beings begins with ourselves. Are we aware of our own dignity? Are we aware of how God sees us? Are we aware of how much God hungers for us? God anticipates, craves, longs and yearns for us. The Eucharist is an expression of God’s love which seeks to be one with us. When we partake in the sacred meal, God becomes ever more a part of us and we ever more a part of God. The Eucharist is a reminder that we are “oned” with God, as the great mystic Julian of Norwich put it.

The Eucharist is also a reminder that we are united to the community of believers, an understanding that was highlighted in a famous sermon to the newly initiated by St. Augustine.

“So now, if you want to understand the body of Christ, listen to the Apostle Paul speaking to the faithful: ‘You are the body of Christ, member for member.’ (1 Cor. 12.27) If you, therefore, are Christ's body and members, it is your own mystery that is placed on the Lord's table! It is your own mystery that you are receiving! You are saying ‘Amen’ to what you are: your response is a personal signature, affirming your faith. When you hear ‘The body of Christ’, you reply ‘Amen.’ Be a member of Christ's body, then, so that your ‘Amen’ may ring true!

May we who so casually and freely approach the table of the Lord realize what it means to say “Amen,” what it means to grow in the awareness of the dignity of each person, that our “Amen” may ring true!