LITURGICAL ANOINTING. - It is that performed with holy oils, by which the persons or objects that receive it are separated from the profane sphere to which they belong and clothed with a special relation to God.
Liturgical anointing already occurs frequently in the Old Testament. Indeed, the furnishings employed in divine service were anointed: the tabernacle and the altar with all their vessels (Ex. 29:36) and the bronze laver for the priests (Ex. 40:9); kings, to signify that the spirit of the Lord was imparted to them (1 Sam. 16:3), whence the title of "anointed" (χριστός, messiah); priests, who were thereby sanctified and consecrated for their ministry; prophets, when the prophetic mission had not been entrusted to them directly by God, but by another prophet (1 Kings 19:16).
In the New Testament, anointing has the character of a Sacrament in Confirmation and in Extreme Unction; whereas in Baptism and in Ordination it is a supplementary rite of highly symbolic value. In all other cases, anointing is only a sacramental.
Liturgical anointing is performed with the oil of chrism, or with the oil of catechumens, or with the oil of the sick. Anointing with chrism is reserved to the Bishop, except for that which the priest performs on the forehead of the newly baptized. The other anointings are performed according to the functions either of the bishop or of the priest. Those anointed are: a) persons: catechumens (with the oil of catechumens); the newly baptized and those to be confirmed (with chrism); priests (with the oil of catechumens); bishops (with chrism); kings and queens (with the oil of catechumens); emperors (at first with chrism, then, after the investiture controversy, with the oil of catechumens); the dying (with the oil of the sick); b) things: the baptismal font (with the oil of catechumens and with chrism), churches (door and walls with chrism), the altar (the sepulcher for the holy relics, the table, the 5 crosses twice with the oil of catechumens, once with chrism, the whole with the oil of catechumens and chrism together) then the front of the altar and the point of junction of the base with the table (with chrism); bells (outside and inside 7 times with the oil of the sick, inside 4 times with chrism), the chalice with the paten (with chrism).
Besides these liturgical anointings there are private ones performed with blessed oil for the use of the faithful (cf. Rit. Rom., tit. IX, 7, 8, 11, 49).
The anointings of Confirmation and of Extreme Unction are of apostolic origin; those of Baptism have been in use since the earliest Christian times. The others — of the ordination of priests and the consecration of bishops, as well as those of kings and emperors and those of other things (churches, altar, bells) — inspired by the Bible, entered the Roman liturgy, and the Gallican one, in the Carolingian era; in the Eastern rite they are still unknown.
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Pietro Siffrin