Over 400 faithful from every corner of the Diocese of Northampton—from Corby to Slough—gathered at the Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate and St Thomas of Canterbury on Tuesday 16 April for the annual Chrism Mass. The Cathedral was filled to capacity with priests, deacons, religious, seminarians, and lay faithful, all coming together to celebrate one of the most significant liturgies in the diocesan calendar.
Presided over by Bishop David Oakley, the Mass was a powerful expression of unity and hope. The priests of the diocese renewed their sacred promises, recommitting themselves to their vocation and to the service of God’s people. Bishop David then blessed the holy oils—the Oil of Catechumens, the Oil of the Sick, and the Sacred Chrism—which will be used throughout the coming year in the sacramental life of the Church.
Following the Mass, refreshments were served and joy filled the Cathedral courtyard as parishioners shared fellowship, catching up with friends old and new. The atmosphere was one of gratitude, community, and quiet celebration of the Church’s mission.
A Homily of Challenge and Gratitude
Bishop David’s homily invited all present—especially his brother priests—to reflect deeply on the nature of priestly service and the call to live lives marked by gratitude and self-gift. Drawing inspiration from the final words of two former bishops of Northampton—one reportedly saying “Thank you, Jesus, thank you,” and the other humorously exclaiming, “Who turned the TV off?”—the Bishop asked all to consider what our final words might reveal about how we have lived our lives.
He invited the faithful to see the Chrism Mass as an antidote to the cynicism and spiritual fatigue that can sometimes take root in the Christian life. A key image in his homily was that of the soil in the parable of the sower, representing the various ways we can allow—or fail to allow—God’s grace to take root in our lives.
“Today,” Bishop David said, “the prophet Isaiah tells us, ‘You shall be called priests of the Lord.’ But what does this priesthood look like? Jesus uses the servant words of Isaiah to speak to us of what this service to others really means.”
He acknowledged the weariness that can affect priests and laity alike, yet reminded all present that the sacred oils are not just symbols, but tangible pledges of Christ’s abiding presence in the Church. “Sacred oil is a pledge of God’s continual presence, inviting us to hear His heartbeat of love for us.”
Bishop David called on his fellow priests to remain faithful to the high calling they have received, not just in moments of visible success, but especially in times of struggle and hidden service. Referencing Pope Benedict XVI’s words on the hands of the priest, he reflected that anointed hands are meant to shape the world with love, creativity, and mercy.
The Bishop concluded with a return to Bishop Francis’s final prayer: “Thank you, Jesus.” He encouraged all to cultivate this same spirit of gratitude—not only when life is easy, but especially when it is not. It is then, he reminded us, that we truly learn what it means to live a life poured out in love.
You can view pictures from the celebration here
listen to Bishop David’s homily in full here
Here is the full text of Bishop David’s homily given at Northampton Cathedral on 16th April 2025 during the Chrism Mass
The last words of a former bishop of Northampton were, thank you Jesus, thank you. Apparently the alleged final words of his predecessor were who turned the TV off. I wonder what we will say on the brink of eternal life. Will our sentiment be to speak of gratitude for everything we have received in this life? The challenging experiences too. Today the prophet Isaiah tells us, you shall be called priests of the Lord. But what does this priesthood look like? Jesus uses the servant words of Isaiah to speak to us of what this service to others really means. And as my brother priests renew their priestly promises today in this Chrism Mass liturgy, I want to encourage us all to find an echo in our hearts of those words of Bishop Francis thank you, Jesus.
Thank you. When I was a little boy, someone told me that baptism lit a candle in my soul and that nothing could ever put out its light. Me being me and knowing a little of how candles worked, I used to lean over as far as possible without falling over, just to see whether I could put that light out and what it would feel like. In our lives we have all employed more subtle ways than that childish behaviour of dimming our baptismal light. Like the sower whose seed falls into soil hostile to God’s word. Maybe we can recognize how grace has fallen into a path where birds have been waiting to rob us of the Gospel’s joy.
Or we are aware of the rocky ground of our lives where there is no root and we wither under a scorching sun. Then there are the thorns which choke the hope we have received in our different vocations. We tell ourselves what a pity we are unnoticed, unappreciated, or perhaps even worse. That’s the kind of soil I am, and everyone is just going to have to put up with it. This Chrism Mass is the antidote to such poison at work in our lives during the coming year. The oil that is blessed and consecrated today will be a statement of Jesus abiding presence in the life of our diocesan family. We live in a world of understandable mistrust, but there is a bold confidence within sacramental anointing.
Sacred oil is a pledge of God’s continual presence, inviting us to hear his heartbeat of love for us. No matter what human shame throws at this immeasurable love, this is what it means to live within the circle of life which is the alpha and omega of the one who is and who was and who is to come. It is a profound mystery. We are not called to life in Christ because of our perfections, but because through sacraments the Lord God has chosen to plant us within the soil, his totally merciful love. And this grace does not come cheap, the Gospels suggest. From the outset, Jesus knew what proclaiming the good news to the poor and the other signs of the kingdom of God would amount to.
Isaiah’s mysterious songs of the suffering servant all point to a profound truth. This abiding love made truly present in the sacraments invites us disciples, and especially those who are ordained to partake in the redemptive mystery of suffering, which is the living heartbeat of our sacramental ministry. This is the setting for the renewal of promises to be made by our priests in a moment. My dear brothers, in resolving to become more closely conformed to Christ, we are seeking the grace by which we too may lay down our lives for others. We may call this to mind when we celebrate the sacrament of baptism using the oils of catechumens and Chrism.
When we anoint our brothers and sisters with the oil of the sick, we are reminded of the sacred nature of suffering. As a child, my mother always invited me to offer up my little sufferings for some purpose or another. When we anoint the dying, we are reminded of the temporality of our lives and everything in this world. In our priestly ordination, we were consecrated to Christ with sacred Chrism. There are times when our priestly life and ministry invite us to pay the cost of this anointing. And even in better days, we should seek to avoid the temptation to nesting. I think that’s what they call it, making things completely comfortable for ourselves.
Dear brothers, keep in mind what God’s people will pray for us. They will ask the Lord to keep us faithful as ministers of Christ. The High Priest Benedict XVI opened up these words for us in the chrism mass of 2006. He told the priests gathered on that occasion, the Lord wants our hands to be instruments of service. Hence an expression of the mission of the whole person who vouches for him and brings him to men and women. If human hands symbolically represent human faculties and in general skill as power to dispose of the world, then anointed hands must be a sign of the human capacity to for giving, for creativity in shaping the world with love.
It is for this reason, of course, that we are in need of the Holy Spirit. My dear brother priests, like Moses before Israel’s battle, our hands sometimes become weary. We may easily subdue the creativity needed to shape our world with love. And so our gratitude to the Lord is not only when things seem to be going well. On the contrary, when the mists have descended and we cannot see so clearly the fruits of our priestly ministry. That’s when we may discover the power of Bishop Francis Words. Thank you, Jesus. Thank you!
