The Anointing: Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow

by R.T. Kendall

The word anointing, or unction, is translated from the Greek chrisma. I shall stick to the term anointing. The dictionary definition refers merely to the application of ointment or oil. The anointing of oil, sometimes called Extreme Unction, is one of the seven sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church, generally used when a person is dying.2 It is based on James 5:14: “Is any one of you sick? He should call the elders of the church to pray over him and anoint him with oil in the name of the Lord.” But there is no indication this should be done only when someone is dying. While I was pastor at Westminster Chapel, we administered the anointing of oil and had a number of people testify to being healed. The word anointing comes from the root chrio in the Greek and is the word that underlies “Christ,” which means “Messiah” or “the Anointed One.” The word chrisma is used in 1 John 2:20, 27, but it is not the same word as charisma (which usually refers to someone’s electrifying personality) or even charismata (which mainly refers to gifts of the Holy Spirit). And yet, as we shall see, the latter words, charisma and charismata, are nonetheless the result of the anointing.