Sacrament of Holy Orders

I. Introduction

• This document explores the nature of the priestly vocation in the Catholic Church.

• It emphasizes the importance of understanding the priesthood's role in the Philippines, where it significantly influences both the Church's shape and its impact on society.

II. Background and Motivation

• Crisis in the Priesthood:

  • Worldwide shortage of priests and decline in vocations.

  • Potential for reducing priestly ordination to a mere functional appointment, neglecting the "priesthood of all the faithful."

  • Emergence of diverse lay ministers, leading to an "identity crisis" for ordained priests.

• Importance of Priesthood in the Philippines:

  • The leadership of ordained ministers significantly influences the Church and its impact on Philippine society.

  • The need for a priesthood that responds to the signs of the times.

III. Exposition

A. Origin and Meaning of the Priestly Vocation

• Every Christian is called to seek, find, and stay with Christ.

• This call is Trinitarian: a free gift of God, grounded in the Father's free loving choice, who blesses us in His Son, Christ Jesus, and seals us with the Holy Spirit.

• The Church is the "begetter and educator of vocations."

• The priestly vocation is a call to serve the People of God with a particular belonging and configuration to Jesus Christ.

• It is grounded in the Trinity: the priest is sent forth by the Father, through the mediatorship of Jesus Christ, to live and work by the power of the Holy Spirit in the service of the Church.

B. Holy Orders

• Holy Orders is the sacrament of apostolic ministry, through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church.

• "Order" in Church usage means the group or body of those who carry on certain functions, such as teaching, sanctifying, and governing.

• Ordination is the sacramental act by which one is integrated into the orders of bishops, priests, and deacons. It confers a gift of the Holy Spirit, enabling the exercise of a sacred power which can only come from Christ himself, through his Church.

C. Priesthood in Salvation History

• Old Testament:

  • God called all the Israelites to be "a kingdom of priests, a holy nation."

  • Aaron and his descendants, the tribe of Levi, were consecrated for priestly ministry.

  • Priests acted on behalf of the people as their representatives before God, offering gifts and sacrifices for sins.

  • However, the Old Testament priesthood was powerless to effect definitive salvation.

• New Testament Ministry:

  • Discipleship: Priests are called to "follow Jesus" in total commitment, undeterred by family ties, hardship, or death.

  • Apostleship: Priests are "sent" to serve in the mission of Jesus and the Church, preaching the Gospel and serving others.

  • Presbyterate: Priests are "elders" responsible for the pastoral care of Church members, representing an institution with authority to serve, not dominate.

  • Presider at the Eucharist: Priests offer the holy sacrifice of the Mass in persona Christi, gathering the community for prayer and the "breaking of bread."

D. Jesus Christ, the One Mediator/Priest

• Unique Priesthood of Christ:

  • Jesus Christ is the unique Mediator of the New Covenant between God and humankind.

  • He is God-made-man, Emmanuel, God among us, in whose very being the New Covenant is fully realized.

  • He is uniquely "priest" by his very being and by his actions.

  • His sacrifice on the Cross opened for us access to the Father’s house, surpassing all priestly offerings and sacrifices of the past.

  • His whole life was a priestly act, bringing us into the fellowship of the Holy Spirit.

• Christ Shares His Priesthood:

  • Christ communicated to all his disciples the dignity and mission of priests of the new and eternal Covenant.

  • He called and appointed the Twelve to preach the Good News and have authority to expel demons.

  • Christ's Priesthood is present in the Church in a twofold manner: in the common priesthood of all the baptized and in the ministerial priesthood of the ordained.

IV. Royal Priesthood and Ministerial Priesthood

A. Royal Priesthood of the Faithful

• All the baptized share in the unique priesthood of Christ.

• They are consecrated to be a spiritual house and a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices and proclaiming the perfection of Christ.

• They exercise their priesthood through sharing in the mission of Christ as Prophet, Priest, and King.

• They form a priestly community, radically transformed by the grace of Christ, offering everything they are and have to God.

B. Ministerial Priesthood of the Ordained

• The Lord appointed certain ministers among the faithful to hold the sacred power of Order.

• They are consecrated to preach the Gospel, shepherd the faithful, and celebrate divine worship as true priests of the New Testament.

• They renew in Christ's name the sacrifice of redemption and lead the holy people in love, nourishing them by God's Word and strengthening them through the Sacraments.

C. Inter-Relation of the Two Priesthoods

• The one Priesthood of Christ is shared differently by the "common" or "royal priesthood" of all the baptized and the ministerial priesthood of those who have received the Sacrament of Orders.

• They are essentially different yet ordered one to another.

• The ministerial priesthood tends to make the faithful aware of their common priesthood and to activate it.

• The common priesthood calls forth the ministerial priesthood.

V. Models of Ministerial Priesthood

A. Different Models

• Sacral Model: Emphasizes the special powers of the priest, exercised principally in the administration of the sacraments.

• Service Model: Emphasizes the priesthood as a ministry of community leadership, exercised in service (diakonia).

• Representational Model: Emphasizes that bishops and priests are incorporated into the Church's pastoral office, representing Christ and the Church.

B. In the Person of Christ, Head

• Configured to Christ: Priests are ordained to be sacraments of Christ, acting in the person of Christ the head.

• What Priests Do: Priests are a sacramental representation of Jesus the Head and Shepherd, proclaiming his Word, repeating his acts of forgiveness and salvation, and showing his loving concern for the flock.

C. In the Name of the Whole Church

• Priests represent Christ, the Head, Shepherd, and Spouse of the Church, and are placed in the forefront of the Church.

• Their relationship to Christ and the Church is found in their very being, by virtue of their sacramental consecration, and in their activity.

• They serve the Church as mystery, communion, and mission.

D. The Church in the Philippines

• Priests are "representatives of Christ the Head in and before the community," "servant-leaders of the community."

• The essential traits of the Christian community in the Philippines are formed by the Word of God, Eucharistic, prophetic, and ministerial.

• The over-riding challenge is "to become the 'Church of the Poor'."

VI. The Three Degrees of the Sacrament of Orders

A. Bishops

• Episcopal consecration confers the fullness of the sacrament of Orders.

• Bishops undertake Christ's own role as Teacher, Shepherd, and High Priest, and act in his person.

• Each Bishop has pastoral responsibility for a particular diocese, but also collegially with all his brothers in the episcopate, care for all the Churches.

B. Priests

• Priests are co-workers of the episcopal order for the proper fulfillment of the apostolic mission entrusted to it by Christ.

• They have three main functions: to preach the Gospel, shepherd the faithful, and celebrate divine worship as true priests of the New Testament.

• It is especially in the sacrifice of the Mass that they exercise their sacred functions in a supreme degree.

C. Deacons

• Deacons serve the People of God in the service of the liturgy, of the Gospel, and of works of charity.

• They administer baptism solemnly, are custodians and distributors of the Eucharist, assist and bless marriages, bring Viaticum to the dying, read the Sacred Scripture, instruct and exhort the people, preside over worship and prayer, administer sacramentals, and officiate at funeral and burial services.

VII. Effects of the Sacrament of Orders

A. The Spirit and the Life of the Ordained

• The Sacrament of Holy Orders configures the ordained to Christ by a special grace of the Holy Spirit.

• It confers an indelible spiritual character, a mark made in the depths of the priest's being.

• The ordained ministry incarnates the priesthood of Jesus Christ in the priest himself.

B. Spirituality of Priests

• The Holy Spirit: The Spirit of the Lord is the principal agent in the spiritual life of all Christians, especially of priests. He creates the "new heart" and inspires and guides it with the new law of love and pastoral charity.

• Spiritual Life of Priests: Priests are bound in a special way to strive for perfection, since they are consecrated to God in a new way by their ordination. They witness to the "radicalism of the Gospel," particularly through living out the evangelical counsels: apostolic, pastoral obedience, celibacy, and evangelical poverty.

• John Paul II's Exhortation to Priests: The priestly vocation is essentially a call to holiness, in the form which derives from the Sacrament of Orders. Holiness is intimacy with God, imitation of Christ, unreserved love for persons, and love for the Church.

• For Our Filipino Priests: Filipino priests are called to a spirituality that is rooted and centered on Christ, ministerial, collegial, lived in the spirit of the evangelical counsels, missionary, Eucharistic, and Marian.

VIII. Integration

• Doctrinally, both the Sacraments of Marriage and Orders are grounded on the truths of Creation and Redemption.

• Morally, marriage and the family constitute the key factors in Catholic moral life, which itself is enlightened, inspired, and empowered by the conscientious exercise of both the priesthood of the faithful and the ministerial priesthood of the ordained.