Chrism Mass 2026: "Go, Make Disciples"

^{Source: Diocese of Nottingham}
On Wednesday 1st April 2026, Bishop Patrick McKinney celebrated the annual Chrism Mass at Nottingham Cathedral, bringing together clergy, religious, and laity to witness the blessing of the sacred oils and the renewal of priestly commitments.

In his homily, the Bishop reflected on the recently published five-year Diocesan Mission Plan, "Go, make disciples," emphasising that through baptism, every member of the faithful shares in Christ's anointing and mission. He addressed themes of collaborative ministry, the joy of faithful service, and the importance of priests working together rather than in isolation. His words offered both encouragement and a compelling vision for the diocese's shared journey ahead. The full text of the homily is presented below.

Homily of Bishop Patrick for the Chrism Mass

As we begin to reflect upon how to implement our recently published 5 Year Diocesan Mission Plan, ‘Go, make disciples’, it’s appropriate that today we are reminded that each one of us here, laity, religious and clergy has been anointed. We have been anointed with the oil of catechumens and the oil of Chrism in the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, some may also have been anointed with the oil of the sick, and others have been anointed in the Sacrament of Orders. Each one of us, through our baptism, has been taken into God’s service, into the life of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. We each now share in the life and mission of Christ himself and in the commission he has given each of us, ‘Go, make disciples’. The gift of the Holy Spirit, in Baptism and Confirmation, equips us for the life of Christian discipleship, with all the challenges, opposition or indifference that it can bring. How? Because our anointing instils in us the gift of hope, the supernatural virtue, by which the things of this world are seen in their true perspective.

So we learn not to be despondent when people do not understand us or the moral principles that, as Catholics, we strive to live our lives by. Instead, we hold on to the promise of the Lord, ‘I will be with you always’, and we place our trust in the way the Holy Spirit empowers and guides us in the daily living out of our Christian faith. We know that all who are anointed, be they  boys and girls, young people, men and women, are called to be people of love, compassion and care, after the example of Jesus and, even if at times we fail through our human weakness, the mark of God’s loving care and ownership of us remains forever. We may be unfaithful at times, God is always faithful.

In a little while you will witness the priests here present renewing their ordination promises; it’s the annual opportunity to renew and deepen still more their openness to the power and effectiveness of the anointing they received at ordination.  I would like to invite each of you, at some point in this Mass, to renew in silent prayer the anointing you received in baptism and confirmation; open your hearts afresh to the power of the Holy Spirit given to you in those sacraments; may you each be emboldened with renewed courage, faithfulness and hope in your daily witness to Christ, in your sharing in the Church’s mission. Thank you for your love and commitment to the crucified and Risen Christ;  your lives of faith lived out generously do so much to encourage and inspire your priests and me, your bishop. Thank you.

My brothers, priestly life brings each of us so many blessings, and I look forward on Good Shepherd Sunday to you sharing humbly and honestly with your parishioners the story of your own particular calling to priesthood and what your priestly ministry means to you. I know It’s not always easy because, as priests, you willingly carry at times something of the burdens of your parishioners, their wounds, grief and struggles, as well as your own. We live in a culture that misunderstands what the Lord has commissioned you to offer and which sometimes mistrusts what you represent. I know also that you each do your best to serve communities that so often need more than you can humanly give. And yet God has chosen and anointed each of you, each of us, with our gifts and limitations, to be his priests, his chosen instruments. I know you often feel tired, stretched and sometimes overwhelmed, as do I, but the Lord, whom we all do our best to serve, does not ask us to be perfect, but to be faithful. Your ministry, and mine too, is thankfully not finally measured by our efficiency, but rather by our love for Christ and for those we are called to serve.

I’d like today to emphasise a point that I speak about in the Diocesan Mission Plan. It’s this: priesthood was never meant to be lived in isolation, because Jesus did not send his disciples alone. You are part of a diocesan presbyterate and so you must each remain conscious, as do I, of the care and encouragement we are called to give each other, and of our need to be open to and appreciative of the support we receive from many others: the deacons with whom you serve, the religious around you and, most especially, your parishioners. Today, let’s pray for each other; let’s forgive one another, where that is needed, and let’s keep on encouraging each other. The more we can show an ever-more united presbyterate, the more we will reveal Christ powerfully at work among us.

Many of you carry a burden that was never Christ’s intention for you: the weight of feeling you are the sole minister, the sole voice, the sole source of spiritual energy in your parish. This burden can often distract you from doing your essential work as a priest: to preside at the Eucharist, to absolve sins in Christ’s name, and to anoint the sick, because you feel pulled in too many directions. So please do seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit to ask, who in your parish has the gifts, skills and willingness to work alongside you as part of a small parish or Chaplaincy Mission Leadership Team? Who are the people who will pray, advise, support and work with you to bring discipleship and mission to life in your context? This is not laziness or abnegation of your priestly duties; it is a delegation born of wisdom and trust in the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Please allow yourself in prayer to be freed from the illusion that you must do it all by yourself. I do believe the Holy Spirit, if we are open to it, will raise up people to be active co-workers with Christ, with you, in the service of their parish’s missionary calling. I believe also that the priests who dare to explore this approach to their ministry will experience a new freedom, the freedom to focus on the essence of their own priestly mission: to encounter ever-more deeply Christ’s love, to grow more and more in their own understanding of their discipleship, and to recognise that their primary vocation is to be a disciple-maker, one anointed by the Holy Spirit to help God’s people encounter Christ, grow as his co-workers and recognise their particular role in the Church’s mission. When priests empower their parishioners in this way  I believe they will, they do, experience a resurgence of joy, the visible joy and freedom of priests who are truly alive in Christ. This cannot but be contagious and attractive, and I feel sure it will play a part in encouraging more young men like Michael and Lukas, our seminarians, and Jacob and Corrado who will begin their propedeutic year of formation in October,  to hear and respond to Christ’s call to serve him as priests.

In a few moments, we will stand to renew our priestly promises: to unite ourselves more closely to Christ; to be faithful stewards of the mysteries of God, and to discharge our ministry to shepherd God’s people with a pastor’s heart. Before we do so, I take this opportunity to thank each of you for your faithful and generous ministry, for the care and support you show each other, and for your continuous patience and kindness towards me. Thank you! Let’s take a moment of quiet prayer now so as to prepare ourselves to renew our ordination promises.