Anointing is the ritual act of pouring

aromatic oil Fragrance oils, also known as aroma oils, aromatic oils, and flavor oils, are blended synthetic aroma compounds or natural essential oils that are diluted with a carrier like propylene glycol, vegetable oil, or mineral oil. To allergic or otherw ...

over a person's head or entire body. By extension, the term is also applied to related acts of sprinkling, dousing, or smearing a person or object with any

perfume Perfume (, ; french: parfum) is a mixture of fragrant essential oils or aroma compounds (fragrances), fixatives and solvents, usually in liquid form, used to give the human body, animals, food, objects, and living-spaces an agreeable scent. Th ...

d oil, milk, butter, or other fat. Scented oils are used as perfumes and sharing them is an act of

hospitality Hospitality is the relationship between a guest and a host, wherein the host receives the guest with some amount of goodwill, including the reception and entertainment of guests, visitors, or strangers. Louis de Jaucourt, Louis, chevalier de J ...

. Their use to introduce a divine influence or presence is recorded from the earliest times; anointing was thus used as a form of medicine, thought to rid persons and things of dangerous spirits and demons which were believed to cause disease. In present usage, "anointing" is typically used for ceremonial blessings such as the coronation of European monarchs. This continues an earlier Hebrew practice most famously observed in the anointings of

Aaron According to Abrahamic religions, Aaron ''′aharon'', ar, هارون, Hārūn, Greek (Septuagint): Ἀαρών; often called Aaron the priest ()., group="note" ( or ; ''’Ahărōn'') was a prophet, a high priest, and the elder brother of ...

as high priest and both

Saul Saul (; he, , ; , ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Israel. His reign, traditionally placed in the late 11th century BCE, supposedly marked the transition of Israel and Judah from a scattered tri ...

and

David David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...

by the prophet

Samuel Samuel ''Šəmūʾēl'', Tiberian: ''Šămūʾēl''; ar, شموئيل or صموئيل '; el, Σαμουήλ ''Samouḗl''; la, Samūēl is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the bibl ...

. The concept is important to the figure of the

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of ''mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach'' ...

or the

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, names and titles), was ...

(

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

and

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

for "The Anointed One") who appear prominently in

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

and

Christian theology Christian theology is the theology of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theology, theologian ...

and

eschatology Eschatology (; ) concerns expectations of the end of the present age, human history, or of the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions (both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic), which teach that negati ...

. Anointing—particularly the anointing of the sick—may also be known as unction; the anointing of the dying as part of

last rites The last rites, also known as the Commendation of the Dying, are the last prayers and ministrations given to an individual of Christian faith, when possible, shortly before death. They may be administered to those awaiting execution, mortall ...

in the

Catholic church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

is sometimes specified as "

extreme unction In the Catholic Church, the anointing of the sick, also known as Extreme Unction, is a Catholic sacrament that is administered to a Catholic "who, having reached the age of reason, begins to be in danger due to sickness or old age", except in t ...

Name

The present verb derives from the now obsolete adjective ''anoint'', equivalent to ''anointed''. The adjective is first attested in 1303, derived from

Old French Old French (, , ; Modern French: ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France from approximately the 8th to the 14th centuries. Rather than a unified language, Old French was a linkage of Romance dialects, mutually intelligib ...

, the

past participle In linguistics, a participle () (from Latin ' a "sharing, partaking") is a nonfinite verb form that has some of the characteristics and functions of both verbs and adjectives. More narrowly, ''participle'' has been defined as "a word derived from ...

of ''enoindre'', from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, an intensified form of ("to anoint"). It is thus cognate with "unction". The oil used in a ceremonial anointment may be called "

chrism Chrism, also called myrrh, ''myron'', holy anointing oil, and consecrated oil, is a consecrated oil used in the Anglican, Assyrian, Catholic, Nordic Lutheran, Old Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Latter Day Saint churches in ...

" (from

, ''khrîsma'', "anointing").

Purpose

Anointing served and serves three distinct purposes: it is regarded as a means of health and comfort, as a token of honor, and as a symbol of

consecration Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

. It seems probable that its sanative purposes were enjoyed before it became an object of ceremonial religion, but the custom appears to predate written history and the archaeological record, and its genesis is impossible to determine with certainty.

Health

Used in conjunction with bathing, anointment with oil closes

pore Pore may refer to: Biology Animal biology and microbiology * Sweat pore, an anatomical structure of the skin of humans (and other mammals) used for secretion of sweat * Hair follicle, an anatomical structure of the skin of humans (and other m ...

s. It was regarded as counteracting the influence of the

sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is a nearly perfect ball of hot plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core. The Sun radiates this energy mainly as light, ultraviolet, and infrared radi ...

, reducing

sweating Perspiration, also known as sweating, is the production of fluids secreted by the sweat glands in the skin of mammals. Two types of sweat glands can be found in humans: eccrine glands and apocrine glands. The eccrine sweat glands are distr ...

Aromatic oil Fragrance oils, also known as aroma oils, aromatic oils, and flavor oils, are blended synthetic aroma compounds or natural essential oils that are diluted with a carrier like propylene glycol, vegetable oil, or mineral oil. To allergic or otherw ...

s naturally masked

body Body may refer to: In science * Physical body, an object in physics that represents a large amount, has mass or takes up space * Body (biology), the physical material of an organism * Body plan, the physical features shared by a group of anima ...

and other offensive odors. Applications of oils and fats are also used as

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

s. The

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

records

olive oil Olive oil is a liquid fat obtained from olives (the fruit of ''Olea europaea''; family Oleaceae), a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin, produced by pressing whole olives and extracting the oil. It is commonly used in cooking: f ...

being applied to the sick and poured into wounds. Known sources date from times when anointment already served a religious function; therefore, anointing was also used to combat the malicious influence of

demon A demon is a malevolent supernatural entity. Historically, belief in demons, or stories about demons, occurs in religion, occultism, literature, fiction, mythology, and folklore; as well as in media such as comics, video games, movies, ani ...

s in

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ''Ox ...

, and

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

. Anointing was also understood to "seal in" goodness and resist corruption, probably via analogy with the use of a top layer of oil to preserve wine in ancient

amphora An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characteristic shape and size which fit tightly (and therefore safely) against each other in storag ...

s, its spoiling usually being credited to demonic influence. For sanitary and religious reasons, the bodies of the dead are sometimes anointed. In medieval and early modern Christianity, the practice was particularly associated with protection against

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mi ...

s and

ghoul A ghoul ( ar, غول, ') is a demon-like being or monstrous humanoid. The concept originated in pre-Islamic Arabian religion, associated with graveyards and the consumption of human flesh. Modern fiction often uses the term to label a certa ...

s who might otherwise take possession of the corpse.

Hospitality

Anointing guests with oil as a mark of hospitality and token of honor is recorded in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...

, and

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

, as well as in the

Hebrew scriptures The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''

ancient Hebrews The terms ''Hebrews'' (Hebrew language, Hebrew: / , Modern Hebrew, Modern: ' / ', Tiberian vocalization, Tiberian: ' / '; ISO 259-3: ' / ') and ''Hebrew people'' are mostly considered synonymous with the ancient Semitic-speaking peoples, Sem ...

and continued among the

Arabs The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Wester ...

into the 20th century.

Religion

In the

sympathetic magic Sympathetic magic, also known as imitative magic, is a type of magic based on imitation or correspondence. Similarity and contagion James George Frazer coined the term "sympathetic magic" in '' The Golden Bough'' (1889); Richard Andree, however ...

common to

prehistoric Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...

and primitive religions, the

fat In nutrition science, nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such chemical compound, compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food. The term often refers spec ...

sacrificial animals Animal sacrifice is the ritual killing and offering of one or more animals, usually as part of a religious ritual or to appease or maintain favour with a deity. Animal sacrifices were common throughout Europe and the Ancient Near East until the sp ...

and

persons A person ( : people) is a being that has certain capacities or attributes such as reason, morality, consciousness or self-consciousness, and being a part of a culturally established form of social relations such as kinship, ownership of property, ...

is often reckoned as a powerful charm, second to blood as the vehicle and seat of life.

East Africa East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa: Due to the historical ...

traditionally anointed themselves with lion's fat to gain courage and provoke fear in other animals.

Australian Aborigines Aboriginal Australians are the various Indigenous peoples of the Australian mainland and many of its islands, such as Tasmania, Fraser Island, Hinchinbrook Island, the Tiwi Islands, and Groote Eylandt, but excluding the Torres Strait Islands ...

would rub themselves with a human victim's

caul fat Caul fat, also known as lace fat, omentum, or fat netting, is the thin membrane which surrounds the internal organs of some animals, such as cows, sheep, and pigs, also known as the greater omentum. It is used as a casing for sausages, roulades, ...

to gain his powers. In religions like Christianity where animal sacrifice is no longer practiced, it is common to

consecrate Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

the oil in a special ceremony.

Egypt

According to scholars belonging to the early part of the twentieth century (Wilhelm Spiegelberg, Bonnet, Cothenet, Kutsch, Martin-Pardey) officials of ancient Egypt were anointed as part of a ceremony that installed them into office. This assumption has been questioned by scholars like Stephen Thompson, who doubt such anointing ever existed: "After a review of the evidence for the anointing of officials in ancient Egypt as a part of their induction into office, I must conclude that there is no evidence that such a ceremony was ever practiced in ancient Egypt. Attempts to trace the origin of the Hebrew practice of anointing kings to an Egyptian source are misdirected. The only definite case in which an Egyptian king anointed one of his officials is that of EA 51. In this instance, it is probable that Thutmosis III was engaging in a custom common among Asiatics, rather than that he was introducing an Egyptian custom into Syria-Palestine" Anointment of the corpse with scented oils was however a well attested practice as an important part of

mummification A mummy is a dead human or an animal whose soft tissues and organs have been preserved by either intentional or accidental exposure to chemicals, extreme cold, very low humidity, or lack of air, so that the recovered body does not decay furth ...

India

Indian religion Indian religions, sometimes also termed Dharmic religions or Indic religions, are the religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent. These religions, which include Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism,Adams, C. J."Classification of ...

, late Vedic rituals developed involving the anointing of government officials, worshippers, and idols. These are now known as

abhisheka Abhisheka () means "bathing of the divinity to whom worship is offered." It is a religious rite or method of prayer in which a devotee pours a liquid offering on an image or murti of a God or Goddess. Abhisheka is common to Indian religions su ...

. The practice spread to

Indian Buddhists Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

. In modern

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Indian religion or '' dharma'', a religious and universal order or way of life by which followers abide. As a religion, it is the world's third-largest, with over 1.2–1.35 billion followers, or 15–16% of the global p ...

and

Jainism Jainism ( ), also known as Jain Dharma, is an Indian religions, Indian religion. Jainism traces its spiritual ideas and history through the succession of twenty-four tirthankaras (supreme preachers of ''Dharma''), with the first in the current ...

, anointment is common, although the practice typically employs water or yoghurt, milk, or (particularly) butter from the holy cow, rather than oil. Many devotees are anointed as an act of consecration or blessing at every stage of life, with rituals accompanying

birthing Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births globall ...

, educational enrollments, religious initiations, and

death Death is the irreversible cessation of all biological functions that sustain an organism. For organisms with a brain, death can also be defined as the irreversible cessation of functioning of the whole brain, including brainstem, and brain ...

. New buildings, houses, and ritual instruments are anointed, and some idols are anointed daily. Particular care is taken in such rituals to the ''direction'' of the smearing. People are anointed from head to foot, downwards. The water may derive from one of the holy rivers or be scented with

saffron Saffron () is a spice derived from the flower of ''Crocus sativus'', commonly known as the "saffron crocus". The vivid crimson stigma and styles, called threads, are collected and dried for use mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent i ...

turmeric Turmeric () is a flowering plant, ''Curcuma longa'' (), of the ginger family, Zingiberaceae, the rhizomes of which are used in cooking. The plant is a perennial, rhizomatous, herbaceous plant native to the Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asi ...

, or

flower A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproductive structure found in flowering plants (plants of the division Angiospermae). The biological function of a flower is to facilitate reproduction, usually by providing a mechani ...

infusion Infusion is the process of extracting chemical compounds or flavors from plant material in a solvent such as water, oil or alcohol, by allowing the material to remain suspended in the solvent over time (a process often called steeping). An inf ...

s; the waste water produced when cleaning certain idols or when writing certain verses of scripture may also be used. Ointments may include ashes, clay, powdered

sandalwood Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods for us ...

, or herbal pastes.

Buddhism

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

practices of anointing are largely derived from Indian practices but tend to be less elaborate and more ritualized. Buddhists may sprinkle assembled practitioners with water or mark idols of

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...

or the

Bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva ( ; sa, 𑀩𑁄𑀥𑀺𑀲𑀢𑁆𑀢𑁆𑀯 (Brahmī), translit=bodhisattva, label=Sanskrit) or bodhisatva is a person who is on the path towards bodhi ('awakening') or Buddhahood. In the Early Buddhist schools ...

s with cow or

yak butter Yak butter (also known as "Dri Butter" or "Su oil" bo, འབྲི་མར།, zh, 酥油) is butter made from the milk of the domestic yak (''Bos grunniens''). Many herder communities in China, India, Mongolia, Nepal, Gilgit-Baltistan Pakistan ...

. Flower-scented water is also used, as are ink-water and "saffron water" stained yellow using

Judaism

In antiquity, use of a

holy anointing oil The holy anointing oil ( he, שמן המשחה, , "oil of anointing") formed an integral part of the ordination of the priesthood and the High Priest as well as in the consecration of the articles of the Tabernacle (Exodus 30:26) and subsequent ...

was significant in the

Hebrews The terms ''Hebrews'' (Hebrew: / , Modern: ' / ', Tiberian: ' / '; ISO 259-3: ' / ') and ''Hebrew people'' are mostly considered synonymous with the Semitic-speaking Israelites, especially in the pre-monarchic period when they were still no ...

' consecration of priests, the

Kohen Gadol High Priest ( he, כהן גדול, translit=Kohen Gadol or ; ) was the title of the chief religious official of Judaism from the early post-Babylonian captivity, Exilic times until Siege of Jerusalem (70 CE), the destruction of the Second Temple ...

(High Priest), and the sacred vessels.

Prophet In religion, a prophet or prophetess is an individual who is regarded as being in contact with a divine being and is said to speak on behalf of that being, serving as an intermediary with humanity by delivering messages or teachings from the s ...

s and the

Israelite The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan. The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...

kings were anointed as well, the kings from a horn. Anointment by the

prepared according to the ceremony described in the

Book of Exodus The Book of Exodus (from grc, Ἔξοδος, translit=Éxodos; he, שְׁמוֹת ''Šəmōṯ'', "Names") is the second book of the Bible. It narrates the story of the Exodus, in which the Israelites leave slavery in Biblical Egypt through t ...

was considered to impart the "Spirit of the Lord". It was performed by

in place of a

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a coronation crown, crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the ...

of either

. The practice was not always observed and seems to have been essential only at the consecration of a new line or dynasty. Because of its importance, the High Priest and the king were sometimes called "the Anointed One". The term—, ''Mashiaẖ''—gave rise to the prophesied figure of the

(''q.v.'') and a long history of claimants. The expression "anoint the shield" which occurs in

Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

is a related or poetic usage, referring to the practice of rubbing oil on the leather of the shield to keep it supple and fit for war. The practice of anointing a shield predates the anointing of other objects in that the "smearing" (Hebrew "mashiach") of the shield renewed the leather covering on a wooden shield. A victorious soldier was elevated on his shield by his comrades after a battle or upon his selection as a new king. The idea of protection and selection arose from this and was extended to the idea of a "chosen one" thus leading to the modern concept of a Messiah (Hebrew for the one who was anointed.)

Christianity

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

developed from the association of

Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

with the Jewish prophecies of an "Anointed One". His epithet "

" is a form of the

equivalent of the Hebrew title. He was not anointed by the High Priest in accordance with the ceremony described in Exodus, but he was considered to have been anointed by the

Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...

during his baptism. A literal

anointing of Jesus The anointings of Jesus’s head or feet are events recorded in the four gospels. The account in Matthew 26, Mark 14, and John 12 takes place on the Holy Wednesday of Holy Week at the house of Simon the Leper in Bethany, a village in Judaea o ...

also occurs when he was lavishly oiled by

Mary of Bethany Mary of Bethany is a biblical figure mentioned only by name in the Gospel of John in the Christian New Testament. Together with her siblings Lazarus and Martha, she is described by John as living in the village of Bethany, a small village in Juda ...

. Performed out of affection, the anointment is said by Jesus to have been preparation for his burial. In the

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

, John describes "anointing from the Holy One" and "from Him abides in you". Both this spiritual anointment and literal anointment with oil are usually associated with the

Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first millennium, the mainstream (or "canonical") ...

churches in particular attach great importance to the oil said to have been originally blessed by the

Twelve Apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and minist ...

. The practice of "

chrismation Chrismation consists of the sacrament or mystery in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches, as well as in the Assyrian Church of the East initiation rites. The sacrament is more commonly known in the West as confirm ...

" (

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

with oil) appears to have developed in the

early church Early Christianity (up to the First Council of Nicaea in 325) spread from the Levant, across the Roman Empire, and beyond. Originally, this progression was closely connected to already established Jewish centers in the Holy Land and the Jewish ...

during the later 2nd century as a symbol of Christ, rebirth, and inspiration. The earliest surviving account of such an act seems to be the letter written "To Autolycus" by

Theophilus Theophilus is a male given name with a range of alternative spellings. Its origin is the Greek word Θεόφιλος from θεός (God) and φιλία (love or affection) can be translated as "Love of God" or "Friend of God", i.e., it is a theoph ...

bishop of Antioch Patriarch of Antioch is a traditional title held by the bishop of Antioch (modern-day Antakya, Turkey). As the traditional "overseer" (ἐπίσκοπος, ''episkopos'', from which the word ''bishop'' is derived) of the first gentile Christian c ...

. In it, he calls the act "sweet and useful", punning on ''khristós'' ( grc-gre, χριστóς, "anointed") and ''khrēstós'' (, "useful"). He seems to go on to say "wherefore we are called Christians on this account, because we are anointed with the oil of God", and "what person on entering into this life or being an

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

is not anointed with oil?" The practice is also defended by Hippolytus in his "Commentary on the Song of Songs" and by

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...

in his "Commentary on

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

". Origen opines that "all of us may be baptized in those visible waters and in a visible anointing, in accordance with the form handed down to the churches". Anointing was particularly important among the

Gnostics Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish and early Christian sects. These various groups emphasized pe ...

. Many early

apocryphal Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...

and Gnostic texts state that

John the Baptist John the Baptist or , , or , ;Wetterau, Bruce. ''World history''. New York: Henry Holt and Company. 1994. syc, ܝܘܿܚܲܢܵܢ ܡܲܥܡܕ݂ܵܢܵܐ, Yoḥanān Maʿmḏānā; he, יוחנן המטביל, Yohanān HaMatbil; la, Ioannes Bapti ...

's baptism by water was incomplete and that anointment with oil is a necessary part of the baptismal process. The

Gospel of Philip The Gospel of Philip is a non-canonical Gnostic Gospel dated to around the 3rd century but lost in medieval times until rediscovered by accident, buried with other texts near Nag Hammadi in Egypt, in 1945. The text is not closely related to the c ...

claims that

chrism is superior to baptism, for it is from the word "chrism" that we have been called "Christians", certainly not from the word "baptism". And it is from the "chrism" that the "Christ" has his name. For the
Father A father is the male parent of a child. Besides the paternal bonds of a father to his children, the father may have a parental, legal, and social relationship with the child that carries with it certain rights and obligations. An adoptive fathe ...
anointed the
Son A son is a male offspring; a boy or a man in relation to his parents. The female counterpart is a daughter. From a biological perspective, a son constitutes a first degree relative. Social issues In pre-industrial societies and some current c ...
, and the Son anointed the apostles, and the apostles anointed us. He who has been anointed possesses everything. He possesses the
Resurrection Resurrection or anastasis is the concept of coming back to life after death. In a number of religions, a dying-and-rising god is a deity which dies and is resurrected. Reincarnation is a similar process hypothesized by other religions, which ...
, the Light, the
Cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...
, the
Holy Spirit In Judaism, the Holy Spirit is the divine force, quality, and influence of God over the Universe or over his creatures. In Nicene Christianity, the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost is the third person of the Trinity. In Islam, the Holy Spirit acts as ...
. The Father gave him this in the bridal chamber; he merely accepted the gift. The Father was in the Son and the Son in the Father. This is the
Kingdom of Heaven Kingdom of Heaven may refer to: Religious * Kingdom of Heaven (Gospel of Matthew) **Kingship and kingdom of God, or simply Kingdom of God, the phrase used in the other gospels * Kingdom of Heaven (Daviesite), a schismatic sect, founded by Will ...
.

In the

Acts of Thomas ''Acts of Thomas'' is an early 3rd-century text, one of the New Testament apocrypha within the Acts of the Apostles subgenre. References to the work by Epiphanius of Salamis show that it was in circulation in the 4th century. The complete ver ...

, the anointing is the beginning of the baptismal ritual and essential to becoming a Christian, as it says God knows his own children by his seal and that the seal is received through the oil. Many such chrismations are described in detail through the work. In medieval and early modern Christianity, the oil from the lamps burnt before the

altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

of a

church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * Chris ...

was felt to have particular sanctity. New churches and altars were anointed at their four corners during their

dedication Dedication is the act of consecrating an altar, temple, church, or other sacred building. Feast of Dedication The Feast of Dedication, today Hanukkah, once also called "Feast of the Maccabees," is a Jewish festival observed for eight days fr ...

, as were tombs,

gong A gongFrom Indonesian and ms, gong; jv, ꦒꦺꦴꦁ ; zh, c=鑼, p=luó; ja, , dora; km, គង ; th, ฆ้อง ; vi, cồng chiêng; as, কাঁহ is a percussion instrument originating in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Gongs ...

s, and some other ritual instruments and utensils. In particular, James 5:14-15 illustrates that anointing oil, applied in faith, is a powerful weapon against a spiritual attack of the enemy, which can translate into a disease designed to destroy the body.

=Latin Catholicism

The

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

and Lutheran Churches bless three types of holy oils for anointing: " Oil of the Catechumens" (abbreviated OS, from the

, meaning holy oil), "Oil of the Infirm" (OI), and " Sacred Chrism" (SC). The first two are said to be

blessed Blessed may refer to: * The state of having received a blessing * Blessed, a title assigned by the Roman Catholic Church to someone who has been beatified Film and television * ''Blessed'' (2004 film), a 2004 motion picture about a supernatural ...

, while the chrism is

consecrated Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...

. The Oil of Catechumens is used to people immediately before

, whether they are infants or adult catechumens. In the early church converts seeking baptism, known as "catechumens", underwent a period of formation known as catechumenate, and during that period of instruction received one or more anointings with the oil of cathecumens for the purpose of expelling evil spirits. Before the 1968 revision of the rite of ordination the ordaining bishop anointed the hands of the new priest with the Oil of Catechumens, The older form is now used only in ordaining members of associations, such as the

Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter The Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter ( la, Fraternitas Sacerdotalis Sancti Petri; FSSP) is a traditionalist Catholic society of apostolic life for priests and seminarians which is in communion with the Holy See. The society was founded in 19 ...

, dedicated to the preservation of the pre-

Vatican II The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions), each lasting between 8 and 1 ...

liturgy. In the later form, priests, like bishops, are anointed with chrism, the hands of a priest, the head of a bishop. (In the older form, a bishop's hands, as well as the head, are anointed with chrism. The traditional Roman Pontifical also has a rite of coronation of kings and queens including anointing with the Oil of Catechumens. In some countries, as in France, the oil used in that rite was chrism. Oil of the Infirm is used for administration of the sacrament of anointing of the sick, the ritual treatment of the sick and infirm through what was usually called Extreme Unction in

Western Christianity Western Christianity is one of two sub-divisions of Christianity ( Eastern Christianity being the other). Western Christianity is composed of the Latin Church and Western Protestantism, together with their offshoots such as the Old Catholic ...

from the late 12th to the late 20th century. Sacred Chrism is used in the sacraments of

confirmation In Christian denominations that practice infant baptism, confirmation is seen as the sealing of the covenant created in baptism. Those being confirmed are known as confirmands. For adults, it is an affirmation of belief. It involves laying on ...

, and holy orders. It is also used in the dedication of new churches, new altars, and in the consecration of new patens and chalices for use in Mass. In the case of the sacrament of baptism, the subject receives two distinct unctions: one with the oil of catechumens, prior to being baptized, and then, after baptism with water is performed, the subject receives an unction with chrism. In the case of the sacrament of confirmation, anointing with chrism is the essential part of the rite. Any

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

may consecrate the holy oils. They normally do so every

Holy Thursday Maundy Thursday or Holy Thursday (also known as Great and Holy Thursday, Holy and Great Thursday, Covenant Thursday, Sheer Thursday, and Thursday of Mysteries, among other names) is the day during Holy Week that commemorates the Washing of the ...

at a special "Chrism Mass". In the

Gelasian sacramentary The so-called Gelasian Sacramentary (Latin: ''Sacramentarium Gelasianum'') is a book of Christian liturgy, containing the priest's part in celebrating the Eucharist. It is the second oldest western liturgical book that has survived: only the Vero ...

, the formula for doing so is:

Send forth, O Lord, we beseech thee, thy Holy Spirit the
Paraclete Paraclete ( grc, παράκλητος, la, paracletus) means 'advocate' or 'helper'. In Christianity, the term ''paraclete'' most commonly refers to the Holy Spirit. Etymology ''Paraclete'' comes from the Koine Greek word (). A combination o ...
from heaven into this fatness of oil, which thou hast deigned to bring forth out of the green wood for the refreshing of mind and body; and through thy holy benediction may it be for all who anoint with it, taste it, touch it, a safeguard of mind and body, of soul and spirit, for the expulsion of all pains, of every infirmity, of every sickness of mind and body. For with the same thou hast anointed priests, kings, and prophets and martyrs with this thy chrism, perfected by thee, O Lord, blessed, abiding within our bowels in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

=Orthodoxy and Greek Catholicism

Alavastr (16-17 c, Kremlin museum) by shakko 02

In the

and

Eastern Catholic The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also called the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Eastern Rite Catholicism, or simply the Eastern Churches, are 23 Eastern Christian autonomous ('' sui iuris'') particular churches of t ...

churches, confirmation is known as

. The Mystery of Chrismation is performed immediately after the Mystery of

Baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...

as part of a single ceremony. The ritual employs the sacred ' (, "

"), which is said to contain a remnant of oil blessed by the

. In order to maintain the apostolic blessing unbroken, the container is never completely emptied but it is refilled as needed, usually at a ceremony held on

at the

Patriarchate of Constantinople The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople ( el, Οἰκουμενικὸν Πατριαρχεῖον Κωνσταντινουπόλεως, translit=Oikoumenikón Patriarkhíon Konstantinoupóleos, ; la, Patriarchatus Oecumenicus Constanti ...

or the patriarchal cathedrals of the

autocephalous Autocephaly (; from el, αὐτοκεφαλία, meaning "property of being self-headed") is the status of a hierarchical Christian church whose head bishop does not report to any higher-ranking bishop. The term is primarily used in Eastern Ort ...

churches. At the Patriarchate of Constantinople, the process is under the care of the ''

Archon ''Archon'' ( gr, ἄρχων, árchōn, plural: ἄρχοντες, ''árchontes'') is a Greek word that means "ruler", frequently used as the title of a specific public office. It is the masculine present participle of the verb stem αρχ-, mean ...

tes Myrepsoi'', lay officials of the Patriarchate. Various members of the clergy may also participate in the preparation, but the Consecration itself is always performed by the Patriarch or a bishop deputed by him for that purpose. The new ''myron'' contains olive oil,

myrrh Myrrh (; from Semitic, but see '' § Etymology'') is a gum-resin extracted from a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus ''Commiphora''. Myrrh resin has been used throughout history as a perfume, incense and medicine. Myrrh mi ...

, and numerous spices and perfumes. This ''myron'' is normally kept on the

Holy Table An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganism, ...

or on the

Table of Oblation The Prothesis is the place in the sanctuaryTraditionally, in Orthodox churches, the entire sanctuary is referred to as the "Altar", the altar table itself being called the "Holy Table" or the "Throne". This traditional terminology will be used th ...

. During chrismation, the "newly illuminate" person is anointed by using the ''myron'' to make the

sign of the cross Making the sign of the cross ( la, signum crucis), or blessing oneself or crossing oneself, is a ritual blessing made by members of some branches of Christianity. This blessing is made by the tracing of an upright cross or + across the body with ...

on the forehead, eyes, nostrils, lips, both ears, breast, hands, and feet. The priest uses a special brush for this purpose. Prior to the 20th century, the ''myron'' was also used for the anointing of Orthodox monarchs. The oil that is used to anoint the catechumens before baptism is simple olive oil which is blessed by the priest immediately before he pours it into the

baptismal font A baptismal font is an article of church furniture used for baptism. Aspersion and affusion fonts The fonts of many Christian denominations are for baptisms using a non-immersive method, such as aspersion (sprinkling) or affusion (pouring). ...

. Then, using his fingers, he takes some of the blessed oil floating on the surface of the baptismal water and anoints the catechumen on the forehead, breast, shoulders, ears, hands, and feet. He then immediately baptizes the catechumen with threefold immersion in the name of the

Trinity The Christian doctrine of the Trinity (, from 'threefold') is the central dogma concerning the nature of God in most Christian churches, which defines one God existing in three coequal, coeternal, consubstantial divine persons: God the F ...

. Anointing of the sick is called the "

Sacred Mystery Sacred mysteries are the areas of supernatural phenomena associated with a divinity or a religious belief and praxis. Sacred mysteries may be either: # Religious beliefs, rituals or practices which are kept secret from the uninitiated. # Belief ...

Unction Anointing is the ritual act of pouring aromatic oil over a person's head or entire body. By extension, the term is also applied to related acts of sprinkling, dousing, or smearing a person or object with any perfumed oil, milk, butter, or oth ...

". The practice is used for spiritual ailments as well as physical ones, and the faithful may request unction any number of times at will. In some churches, it is normal for all of the faithful to receive unction during a service on

Holy Wednesday In Christianity, Holy Wednesday commemorates the Bargain of Judas as a clandestine spy among the disciples. It is also called Spy Wednesday, or Good Wednesday (in Western Christianity), and Great and Holy Wednesday (in Eastern Christianity). In ...

Holy Week Holy Week ( la, Hebdomada Sancta or , ; grc, Ἁγία καὶ Μεγάλη Ἑβδομάς, translit=Hagia kai Megale Hebdomas, lit=Holy and Great Week) is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. In Eastern Churches, w ...

. The holy oil used at unction is not stored in the church like the ''myron'', but consecrated anew for each individual service. When an Orthodox Christian dies, if he has received the Mystery of Unction and some of the consecrated oil remains, it is poured over his body just before burial. It is also common to bless using oils which have been blessed either with a simple blessing by a priest (or even a venerated

monastic Monasticism (from Ancient Greek , , from , , 'alone'), also referred to as monachism, or monkhood, is a religion, religious way of life in which one renounces world (theology), worldly pursuits to devote oneself fully to spiritual work. Monastic ...

), or by contact with some sacred object, such as

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

s of a saint, or which has been taken from an

oil lamp An oil lamp is a lamp used to produce light continuously for a period of time using an oil-based fuel source. The use of oil lamps began thousands of years ago and continues to this day, although their use is less common in modern times. Th ...

burning in front of a

wonderworking Thaumaturgy is the purported capability of a magician to work magic or other paranormal events or a saint to perform miracles. It is sometimes translated into English as wonderworking. A practitioner of thaumaturgy is a "thaumaturge", "thaumat ...

icon An icon () is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, in the cultures of the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, and Catholic churches. They are not simply artworks; "an icon is a sacred image used in religious devotion". The most ...

or some other

shrine A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy sacred space, space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor worship, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, Daemon (mythology), daem ...

. In the

Armenian Church Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

cross A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two intersecting lines or bars, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of the Latin letter X, is termed a sa ...

es are traditionally not considered holy until they have been anointed and prayed over, thus introducing the Holy Spirit into them. The same ritual was formerly observed in the other Orthodox churches.

=Protestantism

= Owing to their particular focus upon the action of the

Pentecostal churches Pentecostalism or classical Pentecostalism is a Protestantism, Protestant Charismatic Christianity, Charismatic Christian movement Isaiah Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named. Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...

which discusses the power given the prophet

Hezekiah Hezekiah (; hbo, , Ḥīzqīyyahū), or Ezekias); grc, Ἐζεκίας 'Ezekías; la, Ezechias; also transliterated as or ; meaning "Yahweh, Yah shall strengthen" (born , sole ruler ), was the son of Ahaz and the 13th king of Kingdom of Jud ...

by the Holy Spirit over the tyrant

Sennacherib Sennacherib (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: or , meaning " Sîn has replaced the brothers") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of his father Sargon II in 705BC to his own death in 681BC. The second king of the Sargonid dynast ...

=Latter-day Saints

= Members of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

practice anointing with pure, consecrated olive oil in two ways: 1) as a priesthood

ordinance Ordinance may refer to: Law * Ordinance (Belgium), a law adopted by the Brussels Parliament or the Common Community Commission * Ordinance (India), a temporary law promulgated by the President of India on recommendation of the Union Cabinet * ...

in preparation for the administration of a

priesthood blessing A priesthood blessing in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) is a "prayer for healing, comfort or counsel given by a Melchizedek Priesthood holder, who lays his hands on the head of the person receiving the blessing." Priest ...

, and 2) in conjunction with

washing Washing is a method of cleaning, usually with water and soap or detergent. Washing and then rinsing both body and clothing is an essential part of good hygiene and health. Often people use soaps and detergents to assist in the emulsification of ...

as part of the endowment. The

Doctrine and Covenants The Doctrine and Covenants (sometimes abbreviated and cited as D&C or D. and C.) is a part of the open scriptural canon of several denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. Originally published in 1835 as Doctrine and Covenants of the Chur ...

contains numerous references to anointing and administration to the sick by those with authority to perform the laying on of hands. On 21 January 1836,

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...

instituted anointing during the rites of sanctification and consecration preparatory to the rites practiced in the

Kirtland Temple The Kirtland Temple is a National Historic Landmark in Kirtland, Ohio, United States, on the eastern edge of the Cleveland metropolitan area. Owned and operated by the Community of Christ, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of La ...

. The anointing would prepare church members to receive the endowment of "power from on high" promised in an earlier 1831 revelation. At the present time, any holder of the

Melchizedek priesthood The priesthood of Melchizedek is a role in Abrahamic religions, modelled on Melchizedek, combining the dual position of king and priest. Hebrew Bible Melchizedek is a king and priest appearing in the Book of Genesis. The name means "King of Right ...

may anoint the head of an individual by the laying on of hands. Olive oil must be used if available, and it must have been consecrated earlier in a short ordinance that any holder of the Melchizedek priesthood may perform.

Royalty

In addition to its use for the Israelite kingship, anointing has been an important ritual in Christian rites of Coronation, especially in Europe. As reported by the jurisconsult Tancredus, initially only four monarchs were crowned and anointed, they were the Kings of

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

: Later French legend held that a vial of oil, the

Holy Ampulla The Holy Ampulla or Holy Ampoule (''Sainte Ampoule'' in French) was a glass vial which, from its first recorded use by Pope Innocent II for the anointing of Louis VII in 1131 to the coronation of Louis XVI in 1774, held the chrism or anointing ...

, descended from

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

to anoint Clovis I as

King of the Franks The Franks, Germanic-speaking peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dukes and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Merovingians, who con ...

following his conversion to Christianity in 493. The

Visigoth The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is kno ...

Wamba is the earliest

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

king known to have been anointed, although the practice apparently preceded him in Spain. The ceremony, which closely followed the rite described by the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

., was performed in 672 by Quiricus, the

archbishop of Toledo This is a list of Bishops and Archbishops of Toledo ( la, Archidioecesis Metropolitae Toletana).

; It was apparently copied a year later when

Flavius Paulus Paulus or Paul was a 7th-century Roman people, Roman general in service of the Visigothic Kingdom. In 673, Paulus accompanied the Visigothic king Wamba (king), Wamba (672–680) on a campaign against the Basques, but when news reached them of a ...

defected and joined the

Septimania Septimania (french: Septimanie ; oc, Septimània ) is a historical region in modern-day Southern France. It referred to the western part of the Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis that passed to the control of the Visigoths in 462, when Septima ...

n rebels he had been tasked with quieting. The rite epitomized the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

's sanctioning the monarch's rule; it was notably employed by

usurper A usurper is an illegitimate or controversial claimant to power, often but not always in a monarchy. In other words, one who takes the power of a country, city, or established region for oneself, without any formal or legal right to claim it as ...

s such as Pepin, whose dynasty replaced the

Merovingians The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

in 751. While it might be argued that the practice subordinated the king to the church, in practice the sacral anointing of kings was seen as elevating the king to priestly or even saintly status. It provided a directly religious aspect to Europe's regimes apart from the church hierarchy and, for political and practical reasons, was seldom performed by the

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

s. Instead, the anointment was usually administered by a bishop from a major see of the realm, often the national

primate Primates are a diverse order of mammals. They are divided into the strepsirrhines, which include the lemurs, galagos, and lorisids, and the haplorhines, which include the tarsiers and the simians (monkeys and apes, the latter including huma ...

. Lupoi argues that this set in motion the conflicting claims that developed into the

Investiture Crisis The Investiture Controversy, also called Investiture Contest (German: ''Investiturstreit''; ), was a conflict between the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops (investiture) and abbots of monast ...

. At the same time, royal unction recontextualized the elections and popular acclamations still legally responsible for the elevation of new rulers. They were no longer understood as autonomous authorities but merely agents in service of God's will. The

divine right of kings In European Christianity, the divine right of kings, divine right, or God's mandation is a political and religious doctrine of political legitimacy of a monarchy. It stems from a specific metaphysical framework in which a monarch is, before b ...

was thus gradually recreated in a Christian context, continuing even when monarchs might choose to forgo the anointment ceremony altogether. The supposedly indelible nature of anointment was alluded to in

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

's ''

Richard II Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father died ...

'': In

Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, also known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism. Like the Pentarchy of the first m ...

, the anointing of a new king is considered a

. The act is believed to empower him—through the

grace Grace may refer to: Places United States * Grace, Idaho, a city * Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois * Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office * Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uninco ...

of the

—with the ability to discharge his divinely appointed duties, particularly his

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

in defending the faith. The same ''

myron Myron of Eleutherae ( grc, Μύρων, ''Myrōn'' ), working c. 480–440 BC, was an Athenian sculptor from the mid-5th century BC. He was born in Eleutherae on the borders of Boeotia and Attica. According to Pliny's '' Natural History'', Agelad ...

'' used in

Chrismation Chrismation consists of the sacrament or mystery in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Catholic churches, as well as in the Assyrian Church of the East initiation rites. The sacrament is more commonly known in the West as confirm ...

is used for the ceremony. In

Russian Orthodox Russian Orthodoxy (russian: Русское православие) is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, whose liturgy is or was traditionally conducted in Church Slavonic language. Most ...

ceremonial, the anointing took place during the coronation of the tsar towards the end of the service, just before his receipt of

Holy Communion The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instituted ...

. The sovereign and his consort were escorted to the Holy Doors (

Iconostasis In Eastern Christianity, an iconostasis ( gr, εἰκονοστάσιον) is a wall of icons and religious paintings, separating the nave from the sanctuary in a Church (building), church. ''Iconostasis'' also refers to a portable icon stand t ...

) of the cathedral and jointly anointed by the metropolitan. Afterwards, the tsar was taken alone through the Holy Doors—an action normally reserved only for priests—and received communion at a small table set next to the

. In the present day, royal unction is less common, being practiced only upon the monarchs of

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

and of

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

. The utensils for the practice are sometimes reckoned as

regalia Regalia is a Latin plurale tantum word that has different definitions. In one rare definition, it refers to the exclusive privileges of a sovereign. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and dress accessories of a sovereign ...

, like the

ampulla An ampulla (; ) was, in Ancient Rome, a small round vessel, usually made of glass and with two handles, used for sacred purposes. The word is used of these in archaeology, and of later flasks, often handle-less and much flatter, for holy water or ...

and

spoon A spoon is a utensil consisting of a shallow bowl (also known as a head), oval or round, at the end of a handle. A type of cutlery (sometimes called flatware in the United States), especially as part of a place setting, it is used primarily for ...

used in the former

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period. ...

and the

anointing horn Anointing is the ritual, ritual act of pouring aromatic oil over a person's head or entire body. By extension, the term is also applied to related acts of sprinkling, dousing, or smearing a person or object with any perfumed oil, milk, butter, ...

s used in

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...

and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

. The Biblical formula is not necessarily followed. For the 1626 coronation of King Charles I of England, the holy oil was made of a concoction of

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

jasmine Jasmine ( taxonomic name: ''Jasminum''; , ) is a genus of shrubs and vines in the olive family (Oleaceae). It contains around 200 species native to tropical and warm temperate regions of Eurasia, Africa, and Oceania. Jasmines are widely cultiva ...

, distilled roses, distilled

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, breakfa ...

, and

ben oil Ben oil is pressed from the seeds of the ''Moringa oleifera'', known variously as the horseradish tree, ben oil tree, or drumstick tree. The oil is characterized by an unusually long shelf life and a mild, but pleasant taste. The name of the oil i ...

Notes

Citations

References

* . * * * . * . * . * . * .

Name

Purpose

Health

Hospitality

Religion

Egypt

India

Buddhism

Judaism

Christianity

=Latin Catholicism

=Orthodoxy and Greek Catholicism

=Protestantism

=Latter-day Saints

Royalty

See also

Notes

Citations

References

Further reading