Sharing the Anointing of Christ
By Father Brendan Williams
In preparation for the feast of Pentecost 2004, our Holy Father made this plea: "I invite all the faithful, especially the members of the movements of Renewal in the Spirit, to participate in the prayer vigil, to invoke on ourselves and on the whole Church a copious effusion of the gifts of the Holy Spirit." Therefore, let us take this plea to heart and pray with expectant faith for this effusion, as the Pentecostal birthing continues to enrich the Church.
To understand this “birth,” we must see it as a sharing in the life of the Holy Trinity. Jesus told us that He came that we might have life and have it to the full (Jn 10:10). He made this possible through His death and resurrection. Now, through Pentecost, He pours out this new life upon us in the power of the Holy Spirit, “the Lord and Giver of Life” (Nicene Creed).
At the Annunciation, Jesus was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit. As He took on our human nature He united his divinity with our humanity—heaven with earth. At that moment he became the eternal High Priest and Savior of the world: The angel said to her, "Do not be afraid, Mary, for you have found favor with God. And now, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you will name him Jesus” (Lk 1:30-31).
There would be another important intervention of the Holy Spirit in the life of Jesus: the Baptism in the Jordan. As Jesus was about to enter his public ministry He went down to the Jordan and was baptized by John. As He was coming up out of the water the heavens opened and the Holy Spirit came down and anointed Him. What is the significance of this anointing?
In the Old Testament the purpose of anointing was to make a person sacred and empowered for a special mission or task. In the passage from Isaiah 61: 1-2, as in others in the O.T., the anointing brings the spirit of Yahweh upon the person and impels him to some extraordinary deed. Thus we see references to the anointing of priests, prophets and kings. They were consecrated and empowered to carry out their sacred duties in the service of God’s People.
St. Mark describes Jesus’ anointing thus: “On coming up out of the water he saw the heavens torn open and the Spirit, like a dove, descending upon him. And a voice came from the heavens, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased’” (Mk 1:10-11).
Scholars, such as Oscar Cullman, suggest that it was at the Baptism at the Jordan, when the Holy Spirit anointed Him, that Jesus fully grasped in His human consciousness, and fully accepted, His vocation as Messiah and Servant of God. The importance of this anointing cannot be overstated. In St. Mark’s account it signifies the beginning of the Gospel where Jesus was propelled into His ministry. Jesus is now consecrated and empowered to go forth as Priest, Prophet and King to save humanity.
St. Luke is especially explicit in detailing the action of the Holy Spirit in Christ after His baptism: “Filled the Holy Spirit, Jesus returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the desert for forty days where he was tempted by the devil” (Lk 4: 1). Further on: “ Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit….He unrolled the scroll and found the passage where it was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring glad tidings to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim liberty to captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, and to proclaim a year acceptable to the Lord." Rolling up the scroll, he handed it back to the attendant and sat down, and the eyes of all in the synagogue looked intently at him. He said to them, "Today this scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing."
As King He would crush the kingdom of Satan. As Prophet He would proclaim the Good News in power, accompanied by miracles. As Priest He would often retire to an out-of-the-way place to commune with His Father in the depth of intimate prayer.—a prayer that the disciples yearned to experience (c.f. Lk 11:1). As Priest He would offer Himself on the Cross and leave us the New Passover Feast, which we will celebrate, in joyful hope, till He returns again.
On the Church He would pour forth His Spirit so that we can now share His anointing and continue His work of salvation. The name Christian means, not just follower of Christ, but rather one who shares in His anointing. At our Baptism, the prayer after the anointing with chrism reminds us of this fact: “God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ has freed you from sin, given you a new birth by water and the Holy Spirit, and welcomed you into his holy people. He now anoints you with the chrism of salvation. As Christ was anointed Priest, Prophet and King, so may you live always as a member of his body, sharing everlasting life” (Rite of Baptism).
A truly apt vision of the Church then is given to us by theologian, H. Muehlen, who defines her as “the continuation in history of the anointing of Christ with the Holy Spirit.” Father Cantalamessa, preacher to the Papal Household, tells us that the Holy Spirit does not come to us directly from heaven. Rather, he comes to us from the heart of Christ on the Cross. The prophet Ezekiel had already been given this vision in the sixth century B.C. In chapter 47 he describes the water bursting forth from the Temple and flowing down the Kidron Valley, bringing life to the desert and refreshing the stagnant waters of the Dead Sea. “On the banks, on both sides of the river, there will grow all kinds of trees for food. Their leaves will not wither nor their fruit fail, but they will bear fresh fruit every month, because the water for them flows from the sanctuary. Their fruit will serve for food their leaves for healing" (v.12). These refreshing waters now flow through the Church and through each one of us who believes. Jesus said: "Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer's heart shall flow rivers of living water’” Now he said this about the Spirit, which believers in him were to receive;” (Jn 37-39).
At that gathering in Rome on the eve of Pentecost, our Holy Father paid special tribute to the place of the Charismatic Movement in the renewal of the Church when he said:
“Thanks to the Charismatic Movement; a multitude of Christians, men and women, young people and adults have rediscovered Pentecost as a living reality in their daily lives. I hope that the spirituality of Pentecost will spread in the Church as a renewed incentive to prayer, holiness, communion and proclamation.”
As we continue to rediscover Pentecost, let us become more and more aware of the awesome anointing that we share in Christ. Let us pray that the prayer of the Bishop over the chrism at the Chrism Mass will indeed be fulfilled in us and in the whole Church: “May this unction permeate them and make them holy so that, freed from the corruption of their first birth and consecrated as the temple of your glory, they may breath forth the perfume of a holy life.” We can all say a rousing Amen to that. Our Holy Father will rejoice with us as that “copious effusion of the gifts of the Holy Spirit” continues to flow in the Church.