“Then, when ye were stripped, ye were
anointed with exorcised oil, from the very hairs your head to your
feet Ib. § 3..” The consecration of the
“exorcised oil” is thus described Const. Apost.
vii. c. 42.: “Now this is blessed by the
chief-priest for the remission of sins, and the first preparation for
Baptism. For he calls thus upon the Unbegotten God, the Father of
Christ, the King of all sensible and intelligent natures, that He would
sanctify the oil in the name of the Lord Jesus, and impart to it
spiritual grace and efficacious strength, the remission of sins, and
the first preparation for the confession of Baptism, that so the
Candidate for Baptism, when he is anointed may be freed from all
ungodliness, and may become worthy of initiation, according to the
command of the Only-begotten.”