From Cathedral to Parish: How the Office for Divine Worship brings the Chrism Mass to life

By Allison Mosier

03/03/2026

Long before the first hymn echoes through Saint Peter Cathedral, the work of the Chrism Mass is already underway. For the Office for Divine Worship, this sacred liturgy is not simply a date on the diocesan calendar — it is one of the most significant and logistically complex celebrations in the life of the church in northwestern Pennsylvania.

Planning begins quietly. “It’s thought through and discussed a few months in advance,” explained Maripat Grant, Coordinator of the Office for Divine Worship. “But the real ‘doing’ begins two weeks before Lent.”

From that point forward, the scope widens quickly. Unlike a parish Mass serving one worshiping community, the Chrism Mass serves the entire Diocese of Erie — every parish, every priest and every sacrament that will be celebrated in the coming year.

“There are many more moving parts,” Grant said. “More people, more objects, more coordination — all of it unfolding at once.” Nearly the entire presbyterate gathers — active priests, retired clergy and religious order priests — joined by deacons, seminarians, altar servers and musicians. More than 50 ministers serve visibly in the liturgy alone, with many others working behind the scenes.

Yet for Father Matt Kujawinski, Director of the Office for Divine Worship, the liturgy’s power lies not in its size — but in its meaning. “In the Liturgy of the Word, the readings proclaim Christ as the Anointed One — the one sent to bring healing, freedom and restoration,” he said. “That identity shapes everything that unfolds.” One of the most powerful moments comes after the homily, when priests stand and renew the promises made on the day of their ordination. “It’s a return to their ‘yes,’” Father Kujawinski explained. “A renewal of their commitment to prayer, service, preaching and unity with the bishop — and a reminder to the faithful that priesthood is lived for them.”

Then comes the blessing and consecration of the holy oils — the heart of the Chrism Mass. The Oil of the Sick and Oil of Catechumens are blessed. Sacred Chrism — infused with balsam fragrance — is consecrated by the bishop himself. “The bishop’s words and actions during the consecration are important to watch,” Father Kujawinski said. “Especially when he breathes over the oil — it recalls the Holy Spirit’s action in creation and at Pentecost.”

For Grant, that moment carries a deeply personal resonance. “The scent rising and spreading like prayer,” she reflected. “As the Chrism’s fragrance fills the church, it becomes a living sign of how the Holy Spirit moves through the Body of Christ.” But even as the liturgy continues, the work behind the scenes is already shifting into its next phase. “During the Communion Rite, the vessels are taken behind the sacristy,” Grant explained. “The oils are poured into smaller containers so they can be distributed.”

Volunteers fill bottles. Oils are packaged into sets. Students assist with transport. Distribution tables are organized by deanery, complete with sign-out sheets to ensure each parish receives its allotment. “People who help for the first time are always surprised,” Grant said. “They don’t realize how organized and carefully planned it all is.”

By the end of the evening, priests personally collect the oils — often after a shared meal — carrying them back to their parishes. Every parish in the Diocese of Erie receives them, along with Catholic institutions where sacramental ministry takes place.

“What happens here shapes every sacramental celebration for the year ahead,” Father Kujawinski said. “It makes the bishop’s presence tangible in each parish.” These oils will anoint the sick in hospital rooms, strengthen catechumens preparing for baptism and seal confirmandi with the Holy Spirit. The Chrism will consecrate altars, churches and men ordained to priesthood and episcopacy. They will reach prisons, nursing homes and bedsides where Christ’s healing presence is needed most.

For the Office for Divine Worship, the impact is both humbling and profound. “What begins in one place spreads to all,” Grant said. “Breathing in the same fragrance, we remember we share one Spirit, one anointing and one mission.” It is that unity — cathedral to parish, bishop to faithful — that makes every hour of preparation worthwhile.

After months of planning, rehearsals and coordination, the result is a liturgy that appears seamless to the faithful. But behind its beauty stands a team entrusted with safeguarding one of the most sacred moments in the diocesan year — ensuring that what is blessed at one altar becomes grace carried to every corner of the Diocese of Erie.

To learn more about the significance of the Chrism Mass, view the interview here. 


All are invite to attend the Chrism Mass this March 30:

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