In most parts of the world, Catholic dioceses celebrate the Chrism Mass during Holy Week as they prepare for the Sacred Triduum. However, in Alaska, this annual liturgy typically follows a different schedule.
The Church in this vast state, covering 665,384 square miles, usually holds Chrism Masses a few weeks before Holy Week. That’s to enable the many missionary priests, who travel long distances to serve their remote faith communities, to receive the sacred oils, which are consecrated during the Mass, or to have them mailed to their parishes by around Eastertime. The packages contain the Oil of the Sick, the Oil of Catechumens, and the Oil of Chrism, which priests use throughout the year.
Father Kamil Kiszka, moderator of St. Joseph Parish in Kotlik and Holy Family in Mertarvik, serves remote southwestern Alaska villages with populations ranging from 200 to 750. He is also a priest of the Paterson Diocese in New Jersey.
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This year, Father Kiszka had a satisfying spiritual moment during a noteworthy Chrism Mass on March 12, following the recent Alaska Priestly Convocation. Every year, priests ministering in Alaska gather for three days of priestly fraternity and spiritual development at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Anchorage, in the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau.
At the end of their convocation, priests from Anchorage-Juneau celebrate the Chrism Mass with Archbishop Andrew Bellisario, while priests from the Diocese of Fairbanks travel to Fairbanks to celebrate the Mass with Bishop Steven Maekawa, O.P.
“It was wonderful to be in the presence of the two bishops and my brother priests for the time of convocation. I was even happier to celebrate the Chrism Mass in Fairbanks with the diocesan priests. During the Mass, we receive the sacred oils from the bishop, which unite us priests with the bishop in our ministry. It’s great to have a sense of spiritual support and unity,” said Father Kiszka. “The oils are a sign of the grace of God, which I pass on to the people as a priest to strengthen them spiritually.”
Father Kiszka attended an “Oil Mass” last year in Bethel, which he said was unique but lacked the spiritual and fraternal elements of the Chrism Mass, where the bishop consecrates the holy oils and priests renew their promises.
After the Chrism Mass in Fairbanks, large bottles of the sacred oils were taken by one of the priests to another city, Bethel. There, the oils were redistributed at a local church into many smaller bottles, which were sent to some remote parishes. Father Kiszka was able to pick up the set of oils for his parish in Kotlik, located on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta near the coast.
However, the set for his parish in Mertarvik has to wait for his next trip to visit the village.
Unpredictable winter flights make airmail deliveries of the oils difficult. Oils are mailed to parishes without resident priests. In some cases, one priest serves multiple parishes, so oils are mailed ahead when he cannot visit all of them before Easter.
The considerable logistics of distributing and mailing the holy oils only hint at the difficulties faced by mission priests living and ministering in Alaska’s “bush” country. Father Kiszka started his full-time missionary work in Alaska in 2024 and is expected to return to Paterson this July.
The Polish-born priest travels by snowmobile, boat, and four-wheel vehicle. Sometimes he faces sub-zero temperatures. He often lacks access to running water, showers, restrooms, phone service, the Internet, transportation, or food supplies.
To reach Mertarvik, Father Kiszka takes three planes. He sleeps on the floor in the local school to celebrate Mass for parishioners the next day. He enjoys hearing confessions in Yugtun, the native language of the Yupik Indigenous peoples. He also enjoys singing the “Our Father” in Yugtun during Mass.
This winter has been the toughest in Alaska since the 1990s. Illustrating the difficulties, pipes broke in his church in Kotlik, and the city of North Pole, near Fairbanks, experienced extreme temperatures of -66 degrees below zero, according to Father Kiszka.
“Missionary priests like me are getting a sense that there is a wider Church in the world. It’s challenging, but with God’s grace, I see that I’m doing something here in Alaska that will continue: the building up of the Church,” Father Kiszka said. “I’m bringing God with me to the native people I have been serving. I want to help make their faith more alive than I have in myself and my priesthood.”
Alaskan Chrism Masses: bishops and priests unite with joy #Catholic –
In most parts of the world, Catholic dioceses celebrate the Chrism Mass during Holy Week as they prepare for the Sacred Triduum. However, in Alaska, this annual liturgy typically follows a different schedule.
The Church in this vast state, covering 665,384 square miles, usually holds Chrism Masses a few weeks before Holy Week. That’s to enable the many missionary priests, who travel long distances to serve their remote faith communities, to receive the sacred oils, which are consecrated during the Mass, or to have them mailed to their parishes by around Eastertime. The packages contain the Oil of the Sick, the Oil of Catechumens, and the Oil of Chrism, which priests use throughout the year.
Father Kamil Kiszka, moderator of St. Joseph Parish in Kotlik and Holy Family in Mertarvik, serves remote southwestern Alaska villages with populations ranging from 200 to 750. He is also a priest of the Paterson Diocese in New Jersey.
Click here to subscribe to our weekly newsletter.
This year, Father Kiszka had a satisfying spiritual moment during a noteworthy Chrism Mass on March 12, following the recent Alaska Priestly Convocation. Every year, priests ministering in Alaska gather for three days of priestly fraternity and spiritual development at the Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Anchorage, in the Archdiocese of Anchorage-Juneau.
At the end of their convocation, priests from Anchorage-Juneau celebrate the Chrism Mass with Archbishop Andrew Bellisario, while priests from the Diocese of Fairbanks travel to Fairbanks to celebrate the Mass with Bishop Steven Maekawa, O.P.
“It was wonderful to be in the presence of the two bishops and my brother priests for the time of convocation. I was even happier to celebrate the Chrism Mass in Fairbanks with the diocesan priests. During the Mass, we receive the sacred oils from the bishop, which unite us priests with the bishop in our ministry. It’s great to have a sense of spiritual support and unity,” said Father Kiszka. “The oils are a sign of the grace of God, which I pass on to the people as a priest to strengthen them spiritually.”
Father Kiszka attended an “Oil Mass” last year in Bethel, which he said was unique but lacked the spiritual and fraternal elements of the Chrism Mass, where the bishop consecrates the holy oils and priests renew their promises.
After the Chrism Mass in Fairbanks, large bottles of the sacred oils were taken by one of the priests to another city, Bethel. There, the oils were redistributed at a local church into many smaller bottles, which were sent to some remote parishes. Father Kiszka was able to pick up the set of oils for his parish in Kotlik, located on the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta near the coast.
However, the set for his parish in Mertarvik has to wait for his next trip to visit the village.
Unpredictable winter flights make airmail deliveries of the oils difficult. Oils are mailed to parishes without resident priests. In some cases, one priest serves multiple parishes, so oils are mailed ahead when he cannot visit all of them before Easter.
The considerable logistics of distributing and mailing the holy oils only hint at the difficulties faced by mission priests living and ministering in Alaska’s “bush” country. Father Kiszka started his full-time missionary work in Alaska in 2024 and is expected to return to Paterson this July.
The Polish-born priest travels by snowmobile, boat, and four-wheel vehicle. Sometimes he faces sub-zero temperatures. He often lacks access to running water, showers, restrooms, phone service, the Internet, transportation, or food supplies.
To reach Mertarvik, Father Kiszka takes three planes. He sleeps on the floor in the local school to celebrate Mass for parishioners the next day. He enjoys hearing confessions in Yugtun, the native language of the Yupik Indigenous peoples. He also enjoys singing the “Our Father” in Yugtun during Mass.
This winter has been the toughest in Alaska since the 1990s. Illustrating the difficulties, pipes broke in his church in Kotlik, and the city of North Pole, near Fairbanks, experienced extreme temperatures of -66 degrees below zero, according to Father Kiszka.
“Missionary priests like me are getting a sense that there is a wider Church in the world. It’s challenging, but with God’s grace, I see that I’m doing something here in Alaska that will continue: the building up of the Church,” Father Kiszka said. “I’m bringing God with me to the native people I have been serving. I want to help make their faith more alive than I have in myself and my priesthood.”