Chrism - Eastern Christianity

Eastern Christianity

The primary use of chrism in the Oriental Orthodox, Eastern Orthodox, and Eastern Catholic Churches as well as in the Assyrian Church of the East, is for Chrismation, which under normal circumstances always immediately follows Baptism, even for infants. Here the blessing of the bishop upon the chrism functions as a substitute for the direct imposition of hands, and chrism is normally used even when the bishop is performing the baptism himself. Its other notable modern use is in the consecration of church buildings, where it is used to anoint the walls and the altar table. Formerly, emperors and kings of monarchies where Orthodoxy was the state religion would be anointed with chrism at their coronations.

Chrism is made during Holy Week beginning on Holy Monday and culminating in the Divine Liturgy on Holy Thursday when it is carried in the Great Entrance and placed upon the altar. It is primarily olive oil with the addition of a range of aromatic essences, patterned after the anointing oil described in Exodus 30:22-33. It can only be consecrated by an autocephalous church. The service is performed by the primate of the Church (e.g. Patriarch) or by other bishop which is specially appointed by him. On completion, chrism is distributed to all the bishops, who, in turn, give it to their parishes when needed. It is not made on an yearly basis, but only when supplies run short.

At the Patriarchate of Constantinople the chrism is produced roughly once every 10 years. It is made according to an ancient formula of the Jewish prophets and patriarchs that calls for 64 ingredients, while the flame needed to boil the mixture during the preparation is made by burning old and disfigured icons. The preparation of the Chrism in the Patriarchate is carried out by the college of the Kosmētores Myrepsoí (Greek: Κοσμήτορες Μυρεψοί, "Deans Perfumers"), presided by the Árchōn Myrepsós, the "Lord Perfumer". The incumbent Archon Myrepsos is biochemist Prodromos Thanasoglou.

In Byzantine times the official responsible was the Grand Sacristan of the Patriarchate, but since then the specific office of the Archon Myrepsos was created. Laity are not allowed to handle either the Chrism or the vessels containing it, therefore the Myrepsoi undergo a sort of "temporary ordination" into the clergy and are given by the Patriarch a gold "Cross of Ministry" to hang from their necks for the duration of their four-day service. The Archon is given the Lention, a silk "towel" or apron. Three copper cauldrons are used for the preparation: the largest contains olive oil, the smallest contains water and the aromatic ingredients and the middle contains wine, which allows the oil to boil without catching fire. The preparation involves several steps, and some, such as the addition of musk and rose oil, are performed by the Patriarch himself. Once the Chrism is filtered and ready, it is consecrated for the final time and stored in silver vessels in the Chapel of Saint Andrew, pending distribution.