Holy Thursday celebrates the institution of the Eucharist and institution of the sacrament of the priesthood at the Last Supper. Pope Francis will celebrate a Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Thursday evening at a youth detention center in Rome.
During the Vatican’s chrism Mass, the pope, as the bishop of Rome, blessed the oil of the sick, the oil of catechumens, and the chrism oil, which will be used in the diocese during the coming year.
The oils to be blessed by Pope Francis at the chrism Mass on April 6, 2023, at St. Peter's Basilica. Credit: Daniel Ibañez/CNA
Forty-seven cardinals, 42 bishops, and 1,800 priests living in Rome concelebrated the Mass.
Pope Francis, who was hospitalized for three days last week, arrived at the Mass in a wheelchair and sat in a white chair to the side of the basilica’s main altar.
Pope Francis presides over chrism Mass in St. Peter's Basilica on April 6, 2023. Daniel Ibanez/CNA
Speaking during his homily, the pope underlined how the Holy Spirit transformed the lives of Jesus’ apostles after Pentecost.
“After receiving the Spirit, Peter’s fear and wavering dissipated; James and John, with a burning desire to give their lives, no longer sought places of honor; the others who had huddled fearfully in the Upper Room, went forth into the world as apostles,” he said.
The pope added that the Lord “has poured out upon us the anointing of the Holy Spirit, the same Spirit who descended upon the apostles.”
He urged the clerics not to look for fulfillment in one’s own abilities, promotions, or position, but to discover that “the spiritual life becomes liberating and joyful, once we are no longer concerned to save appearances and make quick fixes, but leave the initiative to the Holy Spirit, and, in openness to his plans, show our willingness to serve wherever and however we are asked.”