Applied oil as part of a religious rite (8)
I believe the answer is:
anointed
'applied oil as part of a religious rite' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
This is the entire clue.
(Other definitions for anointed that I've seen before include "Consecrated with sacred oil" , "Applied oil as part of a religious rite" , "Nominated (as successor)" , "Smeared with oil" , "Chosen as if by divine intervention" .)