The contemporary Roman rite of baptism of children contains two anointings: one before the sacrament of baptism, with the oil of catechumens, and one after the baptism with the sacred chrism. These anointings anticipate a third anointing, that of confirmation, which in the Roman rite is normally given years later, once the young Christian has reached an age where he or she can intentionally and personally claim the faith and be guided by the Holy Spirit that is conferred in the sacrament of confirmation. The fact that this third, uniquely sacramental anointing, normally occurs long after baptism in the Western Church can prompt us to reflect a bit more deeply on the two anointings that remain tied to the Roman rite of baptism. The anointing with the oil of catechumens is a special blessing that the Church offers catechumens for strengthening and enlightenment in the period before baptism. Adults preparing to become Catholics can receive this anointing several times during the catechumenate period. The anointing with sacred chrism is a bit more mysterious. Sacred chrism is used primarily to anoint kings and to ordain priests. The fact that newly baptized children are also anointed with this oil, and into the body of Christ who is priest, prophet, and king, mysteriously links them to this reality of kingly anointing, which predates Christianity.
In 1 Samuel 16:1-13, God commands Samuel to seek out the youth whom God wishes to have anointed as king of Israel to replace Saul, whom God has rejected. This new king will be one of the sons of Jesse, but God does not choose the regal-looking eldest son Eliab who seems the most appropriate for the task according to Samuel’s own reckoning. Indeed, the one that God has chosen is so young and so little qualified that Jesse did not even think to invite him to meet Samuel; Jesse must call him in from the fields, where the boy is tending the sheep. That youth is David, and from the time that Samuel anoints the young lad with the oil of kingship, “the Spirit of the LORD rushed upon David” (1 Samuel 16:13). This, certainly, is not confirmation, which will be a sacrament of the new covenant. It is, rather, an anointing into kingship, which is what we confer using the sacred chrism, after baptism. Christians affirm Jesus to be the long awaited Son of David, the David who receives his kingship at this moment; we Christians are anointed into that same kingship, which Christ shares with us. Let us therefore be attentive to the way God teaches David to be a king, for it is this same kingship, through Christ, that God shares with us.