Here is the text of the Chrism Mass homily presented by Cardinal Roger Mahony April 5 at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels.

Each year, we gather for the blessing of oils: the Oil of the Sick; the Oil of Catechumens; and the Sacred Chrism. These consecrated oils are then sent out to the 287 parishes of our Archdiocese. They remind us, above all, of Christ the Anointed of God in whose Spirit we are all anointed. They also evoke from us the recognition of our common need for the Spirit's strength and healing. Whatever other meanings may be associated with the Chrism Mass, these must not eclipse the principal reason for our gathering this evening: the blessing of the oils.

The Sacramental Life of the Church is a treasury of riches beyond telling. But for all its richly-laden layers of meaning, it is worth remembering that the whole Sacramental Life of the Church in its entirety rests on four simple earthy elements: bread, wine, water, and oil. This evening we gather in celebration of oil, the oil of anointing-the oil that soothes, strengthens, seals and saturates us with the Spirit.

This evening's Scriptures invite us to ponder the mystery of Christ, the Anointed One of God. Through his holy anointing, Jesus is sent in the Spirit on a mission to bring good news to those most in need of receiving it. As Jesus is anointed, so the Church is anointed. What is said of Christ may be said of the Christian. The reason why Jesus was anointed is the reason for our anointing. Each one of us is anointed, signed and sealed in the oils by which we are initiated into the Church, a Church with a mission of bringing good news to those who live in the hope of some good word.

What we celebrate this evening, first and foremost, is the anointing of all who make up the Body of Christ, the First Anointed. Through the gift of the Spirit, each of us has been strengthened for testimony, empowered to bear witness to the power of a love that will prevail over all evil. But we can only do this if we allow the grace of the Gospel to enlighten and enliven the as-yet unconverted corners of our own hearts, so that we can attend to needs of the blind, the sick, and the lame. Who, precisely, are these-the blind, the sick, the lame, the poor, the captive, the oppressed-in our own time and place? They are all who are last, littlest, and least in Church and society.

Through the anointing in the Oil of Catechumens and the Sacred Chrism, we become Christ figures, configured to Christ in the gift of the Spirit, sent on mission to a world so broken and divided, proclaiming in word and in deed the unsearchable riches of God's love given in Christ Crucified and Risen.

This evening's second reading offers the promise that the First Anointed is the first to be raised from the dead, brought to new life, making of all of us a royal priesthood. By our Baptism and Confirmation, we all share in this priesthood. Those among us ordained are ordained to service, the service of this royal priesthood in which all are given a share in the life of witness, worship, and service which is the one Christian vocation. This evening, your priests, deacons, and bishops express once again their commitment to a life of service after the model of Christ the Servant. Whatever we may say of the uniqueness of the vocation of the ordained-deacon, priest, or bishop-the call to ordination is a call to serve Christ the One Anointed in the Spirit, the first-born of the dead, and to the service of His priesthood of witness, worship, and service in which we all are given a share by baptism.

We celebrate oil: sacrament of healing, sealing, strengthening, and sending. This year in particular, let us behold the gift that is given in the Oil of the Sick. Surely this gift is one of healing and strength for those who are gravely ill due to accident, illness or old age. The blessed oils bring the comfort of Christ and his Body the Church, especially when the sick person is graced at the anointing by the presence of family, friends, and community. But let us also remember tonight that these oils also are to strengthen the sick in their witness to us. It is the sick, the aged, the blind, the poor, and the lame, who are called upon to attest to the truth that in weakness the wisdom of God is made perfect. It is to them that we look for the clearest signs of the paradoxical truth of the Gospel: The seeds of the divine life, and the true power of love, are found in weakness, not in strength.

Especially at this time in the life of the Church, when we are aware of our brokenness and fragility, of our sin and our failure, we rely on the witness of those who, in their illness, suffering and diminishment bear witness to the Anointed One who was emptied of power and strength so that He might become a balm for all wounds. Our wounds. Tonight all of us are called upon to commit ourselves once again to complete reliance on the Spirit of Christ who, in the gift of earthen oil, enlightens, enlivens, guides and heals, so that together with the First Anointed of God, Our Lord Jesus Christ, we, too, might be a balm poured out on all wounds, for the life of the world.