SACRAMENTS

What is Chrismation?

Chrismation is the Mystery in which a newly-baptized Christian receives "the seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit" through anointing with holy chrism, a specially blessed oil. As Baptism is our personal Pascha, our participation in Christ's death and resurrection, Chrismation is our personal Pentecost, our participation in the descent of the Holy Spirit on the Church.

In Orthodox practice, Baptism and Chrismation are not separate stages of initiation but a single entrance into the life of the Church. The newly-baptized is anointed immediately, while still wearing the white baptismal garment. The priest traces the sign of the cross with holy chrism on the forehead, eyes, nostrils, mouth, ears, chest, hands, and feet, saying with each anointing: "The seal of the gift of the Holy Spirit." The congregation responds with each anointing: "Seal!"

Each anointing dedicates that part of the body, with its particular gift and capacity, to Christ. The eyes are sealed for seeing Him, the mouth for speaking His truth, the hands for serving Him in others. The whole person, from the crown of the head to the soles of the feet, is consecrated.

Why Do We Chrismate?

The Acts of the Apostles records that after Christ's Ascension, the gift of the Holy Spirit was given to His Church on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2). From that day forward, the apostles laid hands on the newly-baptized so that they too would receive the Spirit (Acts 8:14-17, Acts 19:1-7). Chrismation is the form this apostolic practice has taken in the Orthodox Church.

The chrism itself reflects this apostolic continuity. The chrism used at Holy Apostles is consecrated by the Ecumenical Patriarch in Constantinople and is distributed to dioceses and parishes throughout the world. Those who bless the oil, therefore, form an unbroken succession of bishops that reaches back to the apostles themselves. When a person is chrismated at Holy Apostles, they are anointed with the same blessing that has sealed Christians since the earliest centuries.

Through Chrismation a Christian is given what Christ called "power from on high" (Luke 24:49). This is not power in any worldly sense, but the indwelling of the Holy Spirit who makes the new life of Baptism livable. The Mystery does not work magic; it does not exempt the chrismated from struggle. It gives them, instead, the Spirit who prays in them, sanctifies them, and slowly conforms them to Christ over the course of a lifetime.

How Are We Chrismated at Holy Apostles?

Chrismation at Holy Apostles is celebrated in two contexts. 

For those being baptized, whether infants, children, or unbaptized adults, Chrismation follows immediately after the threefold immersion. The newly-baptized is dressed in a white garment, and the priest anoints them with holy chrism. The congregation joins in by responding "Seal!" with each anointing, witnessing that this person now belongs fully to Christ and to His Church.

For those already baptized in another Christian tradition that baptizes in the name of the Holy Trinity, Chrismation is typically the Mystery by which they are received into the Orthodox Church. The candidate comes to the front of the church, makes the profession of the Orthodox faith, and is anointed with the same holy chrism used in baptismal Chrismation. The Orthodox Church recognizes the form of a candidate's earlier baptism and completes it through Chrismation rather than performing a second baptism.

In both contexts, Chrismation is the doorway to the Eucharist. The newly-illumined receives Holy Communion for the first time at the same Liturgy (or, if necessary for scheduling, at the next Divine Liturgy), completing the threefold initiation of Baptism, Chrismation, and first Communion as a single entrance into the full life of the Church.

Learn More

If you are preparing for chrismation at Holy Apostles, please download the information and paperwork packet by clicking on the paperwork button on this page.

For further reading we recommend:

• Alexander Schmemann's Of Water and the Spirit

• Fr. Thomas Hopko's The Orthodox Faith, Volume 2: Worship

• Metropolitan Kallistos Ware's The Orthodox Church