THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS

From the Sacraments at the Service of Communion and Mission section of the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

322. What is the sacrament of Holy Orders?

1536

It is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time.

323. Why is this sacrament called Holy Orders?

1537-1538

Orders designates an ecclesial body into which one enters by means of a special consecration (ordination). Through a special gift of the Holy Spirit, this sacrament enables the ordained to exercise a sacred power in the name and with the authority of Christ for the service of the People of God.

324. What place does the sacrament of Holy Orders have in the divine plan of salvation?

1539-1546
1590-1591

This sacrament was prefigured in the Old Covenant in the service of the Levites, in the priesthood of Aaron, and in the institution of the seventy “Elders” (Numbers 11:25). These prefigurations find their fulfillment in Christ Jesus who by the sacrifice of the cross is the “one mediator between God and man” (1 Timothy 2:5), the “High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews5:10). The one priesthood of Christ is made present in the ministerial priesthood.

“Only Christ is the true priest, the others being only his ministers.” (Saint Thomas Aquinas)

325. What are the degrees that make up the sacrament of Holy Orders?

1554
1593

The sacrament of Holy Orders is composed of three degrees which are irreplaceable for the organic structure of the Church: the episcopate, the presbyterate and the diaconate.

326. What is the effect of episcopal ordination?

1557-1558

Episcopal ordination confers the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders. It makes the bishop a legitimate successor of the apostles and integrates him into the episcopal college to share with the Pope and the other bishops care for all the churches. It confers on him the offices of teaching, sanctifying, and ruling.

327. What is the office confided to a Bishop in a particular Church?

1560-1561

The bishop to whom the care of a particular Church is entrusted is the visible head and foundation of unity for that Church. For the sake of that Church, as vicar of Christ, he fulfills the office of shepherd and is assisted by his own priests and deacons.

328. What is the effect of ordination to the priesthood?

1562-1567
1595

The anointing of the Spirit seals the priest with an indelible, spiritual character that configures him to Christ the priest and enables him to act in the name of Christ the Head. As a co-worker of the order of bishops he is consecrated to preach the Gospel, to celebrate divine worship, especially the Eucharist from which his ministry draws its strength, and to be a shepherd of the faithful.

329. How does a priest carry out his proper ministry?

1568

A priest, although ordained for a universal mission, exercises his ministry in a particular Church. This ministry is pursued in sacramental brotherhood with other priests who form the “presbyterate”. In communion with the bishop, and depending upon him, they bear responsibility for the particular Church.

330. What is the effect of the ordination to the diaconate?

1569-1571
1596

The deacon, configured to Christ the servant of all, is ordained for service to the Church. He carries out this service under the authority of his proper bishop by the ministry of the Word, of divine worship, of pastoral care and of charity.

331. How is the sacrament of Holy Orders celebrated?

1572-1574
1597

The sacrament of Holy Orders is conferred, in each of its three degrees, by means of theimposition of hands on the head of the ordinand by the Bishop who pronounces the solemn prayerof consecration. With this prayer he asks God on behalf of the ordinand for the special outpouring of the Holy Spirit and for the gifts of the Spirit proper to the ministry to which he is being ordained.

332. Who can confer this sacrament?

1575-1576
1600

Only validly ordained bishops, as successors of the apostles, can confer the sacrament of Holy Orders.

333. Who can receive this sacrament?

1577-1578
1598

This sacrament can only be validly received by a baptized man. The Church recognizes herself as bound by this choice made by the Lord Himself. No one can demand to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders, but must be judged suitable for the ministry by the authorities of the Church.

334. Is it necessary to be celibate to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders?

1579-1580
1599

It is always necessary to be celibate for the episcopacy. For the priesthood in the Latin Church men who are practicing Catholics and celibate are chosen, men who intend to continue to live a celibate life “for the kingdom of heaven” (Matthew 19:12). In the Eastern Churches marriage is not permitted after one has been ordained. Married men can be ordained to the permanent diaconate.

335. What are the effects of the sacrament of Holy Orders?

1581-1589

This sacrament yields a special outpouring of the Holy Spirit which configures the recipient to Christ in his triple office as Priest, Prophet, and King, according to the respective degrees of the sacrament. Ordination confers an indelible spiritual character and therefore cannot be repeated or conferred for a limited time.

336. With what authority is the priestly ministry exercised?

1547-1553
1592

Ordained priests in the exercise of their sacred ministry speak and act not on their own authority, nor even by mandate or delegation of the community, but rather in the Person of Christ the Head and in the name of the Church. Therefore, the ministerial priesthood differs essentially and not just in degree from the priesthood common to all the faithful for whose service Christ instituted it.

If you want to learn more go to our page on the Sacrament of Holy Orders

Seeking to Have Your Heart Filled 20 April 2018Friday of the Third Week of Easter John 6: 52-59The Jews quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his Flesh to eat?" Jesus said to them, "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the Flesh of the Son of Man and drink his Blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my Flesh is true food, and my Blood is true drink. Whoever eats my Flesh and drinks my Blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever." These things he said while teaching in the synagogue in Capernaum.Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe that you are present here and now as I turn to you in prayer. I trust and have confidence in your desire to give me every grace I need to receive today. Thank you for your love, thank you for your immense generosity toward me. I give you my life and my love in return.Petition: Lord, help me to face challenges and continue to follow you in faith.1. What is it I Truly Seek? On the preceding day Jesus multiplied loaves and fishes to feed the multitude. The Jews realize there is something special here, that Jesus may be the Messiah, or at least a prophet. They are curious enough to continue following him and asking him questions. They have liked everything he has said up till now. Some of it they have not understood completely or correctly, but it has been close enough to what they are used to hearing that it causes them no great difficulty. They continue to ask questions, looking for understanding, especially understanding they can be comfortable with. What is my attitude when I question Our Lord about events and challenges in my life? Am I seeking to understand so I can embrace God’s plan better, or does my response depend on how much I comprehend?2. Opening Our Horizons: Now Jesus has said something truly shocking. He wants them to eat his flesh and drink his blood! Up to this point, most of the crowd has been willing to accept him as a bread-provider. He fed them yesterday. Maybe, if they hang around long enough, he will do it again. Their ideas about the Messiah are too materialistic, based only on the re-establishment of David’s Kingdom at the expense of the Romans. Jesus, on the other hand, wants to take them to a new level. He wants to take them into the mystery of the loving generosity of God. As good as the manna in the wilderness was, he wants to give something much better. As wonderful as David’s Kingdom was, he wants to give a greater kingdom. This is so far beyond what they are looking for, they will not be able to understand what he is offering. It will have to be accepted in faith.3. Great Gifts Come in Small Packages: We can understand many things, even many spiritual things. In his goodness, God has given us intelligence so that we can understand some of the truths about him. But these simpler truths don’t reveal the full glory of God. They are not as fulfilling as some of the more important truths about him. Jesus wants to give his flesh to eat and his blood to drink. He reveals this to the crowds, and since they lack faith, they don’t understand. Some straggle off to find another “wonder-worker”. Others, looking for understanding, go off to look for a “teacher” who makes sense to them. Hopefully, some are looking for the revelation of the mysteries of God, the greatest gifts that God can offer. They are not looking to fill their stomachs or their minds. They are looking to fill their hearts. These are the kinds of gifts that Jesus intends to give – and in abundance.Conversation with Christ: Dear Lord, so often I am looking for material gifts from you. Help me to realize that the greatest gifts you give may be beyond my understanding. Yet, if I am willing to accept them on faith, they will fill my heart. Perhaps with time, it will be possible for me to understand something of them as well, but the greatness of faith lies in my trust in you.Resolution: What spiritual gift I am most in need of? Faith? Charity? Humility? Something else? Today I will set aside some time to ask God in prayer to grant me that gift.#dailymeditations www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-20042018 ... See MoreSee Less

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75th Anniversary of The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Historical InformationThe Germans squeezed over 400,000 Jews within the walled-in area of the Warsaw Ghetto – residents of the city and the neighbouring towns and villages, as well as deportees from the territories incorporated into the Reich. In the ghetto, tens of thousands of people died of hunger and disease. On 22 July 1942, the so-called Great Deportation Aktion began. Within the period of two months the Germans deported over 250,000 Ghetto residents to their deaths at the Treblinka extermination camp. Thousands of people were killed on the spot. Mere 60,000 Jews remained in the so-called Restgetto (Ger.: the remnants of a ghetto). They were mostly young and strong, with no family ties, often employed at the German shops (i.e. small factories or workshops). It was in these circumstances, with nothing left to lose, that the idea of armed resistance against the Nazis was born amongst the Jewish youth in the Warsaw Ghetto. The Jewish Combat Organisation (ŻOB) was established as early as 28 July 1942; its members included members of the left-oriented or Zionist youth movements. Mordechai Anielewicz of the Ha-shomer ha-tzair organization became the leader, and amongst the most famous commanders were Marek Edelman (member of the Bund) and Icchak Cukierman (member of Dror). Another conspiratory organisation brought to life in the early 1943 was the Jewish Military Union (ŻZW), led by Leon Rodal and Paweł Frenkel.Another deportation Aktion, launched by the Germans on 18 January 1943, was met with an armed resistance of the ŻOB militants. “To the Jews! The occupying force has instigated the second act of your genocide! Do not give in! Defend yourselves!” reads the ŻOB proclamation issued at the time. The 4-day long self-defence delayed the final liquidation of the Ghetto and provided some time for the preparations for armed uprising. Over the period of several months, the Jewish Combat Organisation managed to gain respect amongst the Ghetto residents with its acts against the Germans and the Jewish collaborators. Following the ŻOB orders, people started building bunkers and hidden passages in-between buildings, and digging tunnels leading out of the Ghetto. They stocked food and arms, and made contact with Polish underground organisations (Home Army, People’s Guard, Polish People’s Independence Action).When the 2,000 soldiers strong German units, supported by tanks and armoured vehicles, re-entered the Ghetto on 19 April 1943 - the eve of the Passover holiday, they were faced by several hundred ŻOB members divided into 22 militant groups led by Anielewicz, along with 150 militants of the Jewish Military Union. Over the first few days, the insurgents engaged in street skirmish, throwing grenades and bottles with petrol at the German units. Near the Ghetto entrance gate on Wałowa Street, the ŻOB militants stopped an SS column by detonating a special sort of landmine. Jewish and Polish flags, hung on a tall tenement house at Muranowski Square where ŻZW unit led by Paweł Frenkel fiercely resisted German attacks, became a symbol of the Uprising. The ŻOB militants led by Marek Edelman engaged in heavy combat on the location of the so-called ‘brush shop’. On the first day of the Uprising, a Home Army unit made an unsuccessful attempt at blowing up the Ghetto wall along Bonifraterska Street. Despite several more attempts at combating the Germans carried out along the Ghetto wall by the Home Army and People’s Guard units, the help provided by the Polish Underground to the Warsaw Ghetto insurgents was extremely scarce.The subsequent combat meant mainly defending specific bunkers and buildings. The Germans systematically searched one block after another, setting fire to each building they had searched and plundered. They threw smoke candles or grenades to every bunker they had discovered, regardless of the fact that – aside from the insurgents – there were civilians hiding in them. Jürgen Stroop who led the German units during the Uprising wrote in his report on the destruction of the Warsaw Ghetto that his soldiers had captured or killed over 56,000 Jews and located 631 bunkers. The data is most certainly exaggerated. Historians estimate that during the liquidation of the Ghetto 7,000 Jews were shot on the spot, 7,000 were sent off to the Treblinka death camp and 36,000 were deported to labour camps in the Lublin province. Simultaneously, the Germans continued a painstaking search for Jews in hiding on the ‘Aryan side’, offering financial rewards for assistance in capturing them.Mere several dozen of the insurgents managed to flee the burning Ghetto through the sewers or underground tunnels. Many of the survivors were later killed as a result of denunciations; some fought in the Warsaw Uprising. On 8 May 1943, the Germans surrounded the bunker of the ŻOB headquarters at 18 Miła Street. Over a hundred of militants, including Mordechaj Anielewicz, suffocated to death or swallowed poison in order to avoid being captured by the Germans. However, several small groups of insurgents continued to resist until 16 May. In the evening of that day, to mark their victory, the Germans blew up the Great Synagogue on Tłomackie Street, the area beyond the Ghetto borders. Stroop jotted down in his report: “The Jewish district in Warsaw is no more.” In the aftermath of the Uprising, the Germans razed the area of the former Warsaw Ghetto to the ground.The insurgents took up the fight without any hope of a happy ending. They were driven by desire to seek revenge and to incur the greatest possible losses on their perpetrators. First and foremost, however, they chose to die with dignity, holding a gun in their hands. The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising was the largest and most heroic act of armed resistance taken up by the Jews during World War Two. It was also the first civic uprising in occupied Europe. ... See MoreSee Less

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ALL ARE VERY WELCOME!!! (also in TVP1 today at 8.00pm) Concert for the 75th Anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto UprisingIn fall of 1940, a group of Jewish musicians in the Warsaw ghetto established the Jewish Symphony Orchestra. Among its members were musicians from the Warsaw Philharmonic, the Polish Radio Orchestra as well as many artists from outside the capital.19 April (Thursday), 8PM, free admissionThe most eminent conductor in the ghetto was Szymon Pullman, who, as Marcel Reich-Ranicki observed, believed that even in such terrible conditions, it is an honor and obligation of the Jews to play the best music in best possible way. The Orchestra played works by Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Schubert, Vivaldi, Mozart, Weber and others. Music - write Barbara Engelking and Jacek Leociak in their monograph of the ghetto - gave the tormented prisoners of the ghetto a moment of respite from the nightmare of everyday life, probably a better respite than other forms of art.In April 1942, the German authorities suspended the Orchestra's activity because the band performed, contrary to the binding ban, works by the “Aryan” composers. Yet the musicians continued to work. In the summer of 1942, the Orchestra began to rehearse with the 80-member Shir (hebr. song) Choir. The artists planned to play the 9th Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven. We can find those information in the writings of Kopel Piżyc ("Po wojnie z pomocą Bożą...") and Adolf Berman ("Wos der gojrl hot mir bashert. Mit Jidn in Warshe, 1939-1942").They intended to sing the "Ode to Joy" in the fourth part of the Symphony in Hebrew, translated by Menachem Kipnis.The concert never took place. On July 22, the Germans begun the great deportation of the Warsaw ghetto. In the following weeks more than 300,000 prisoners of the ghetto and almost all the artists of the Orchestra and Choir perished in the death camp of Treblinka.For the musicians of the Orchestra and the Choir, playing Beethoven was a was a protest against the Nazi barbarity, against their forced isolation behind the ghetto walls and symbolic exclusion from humanity. Beethoven and Mozart had been part of their musical world before the war, as well as a part of their identities as artists and Europeans.This year, for the 75th anniversary of the Warsaw ghetto uprising we wish to complete what the Jewish Symphony Orchestra and the Shir Choir began: in the middle of the former ghetto, in front of the Monument of its Heroes and Martyrs, we want to play the fourth part of the Symphony No. 9 of Beethoven in Hebrew.We wish to include outstanding soloists and conductor in the concert next to the musicians of the Polish National Radio Symphony Orchestra and the National Philharmonic Choir.National Patronage of the President of the Republic of Poland, Andrzej Duda, in the 100th Anniversary of Regaining Independence ... See MoreSee Less

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DAILY MEDITATION:Bread for Eternity 19 April 2018Thursday of the Third Week of Easter John 6: 44-51 Jesus said to the crowds: "No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draw him, and I will raise him on the last day. It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to my Father and learns from him comes to me. Not that anyone has seen the Father except the one who is from God; he has seen the Father. Amen, amen, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life. I am the bread of life. Your ancestors ate the manna in the desert, but they died; this is the bread that comes down from heaven so that one may eat it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my Flesh for the life of the world."Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe that you are present here and now as I turn to you in prayer. I trust and have confidence in your desire to give me every grace I need to receive today. Thank you for your love, thank you for your immense generosity toward me. I give you my life and my love in return.Petition: Lord Jesus, help me value more the gift of yourself in the Eucharist.1. A Gift from the Loving Father: The Father is the one who sent him and who will draw souls to him. “No one can come to me unless the Father draw him.” So, those individuals who heard Christ’s words and were drawn to him that day were doing so because of a gift of faith from the Father. If we today have faith in Christ, it also is a gift from the Father, who wants to draw us to his Son. If we have doubts or weakness in faith, we should ask the Father to draw us nearer to his Son and to help us believe with our whole heart and mind.2. The Word Was Made Flesh: Christ’s birth took place in the town of Bethlehem, which in Hebrew (bêth-lehem), means "house of bread." He was also laid in a manger, where food for animals would normally be placed. Before becoming bread which would be our food, Christ first became man. Merely giving us some specially blessed bread would not be nearly as significant as giving himself. That is how God always loves: by giving himself completely and without reserve.3. His Flesh Was Made Bread: The Gospel accounts of Christ multiplying the loaves report he did so out of compassion for the crowd: "I have compassion for the crowd, because they have been with me now for three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not want to send them away hungry, for they might faint on the way" (Matthew 15:32). This same compassion moves him to give himself as our bread in the Eucharist. He does not want us to die for lack of spiritual nourishment. Christ—in the greatest gesture of humility—became man like us, the same in every way except sin. But in an even greater gesture of humility, he descended further still to become our spiritual food.Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, how can I not trust in you? You have already become human just like me. Then you descend to an even humbler state of service to become food for my soul. Help me to receive you in the Eucharist with gratitude, fully aware of your loving presence.Resolution: I will start preparing my heart today to attend Mass this Sunday and receive Christ lovingly in Communion. #dailymeditations www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-19042018 ... See MoreSee Less

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DAILY MEDITATION:"You Will Never Be Lost Where I Cannot Find You." 18 April 2018 Wednesday of the Third Week of Easter John 6: 35-40Jesus said to them, "I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. Everything that the Father gives me will come to me, and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away; for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day. This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day."Introductory Prayer: Lord, I believe that you are present here and now as I turn to you in prayer. I trust and have confidence in your desire to give me every grace I need to receive today. Thank you for your love, thank you for your immense generosity toward me. I give you my life and my love in return.Petition: Lord, help me to have deeper confidence and trust in you.1. An Empty Hole the Size of Christ: “It’s like I had a big hole in my heart, and I couldn’t fill it with anything.” So exclaimed someone who recently came back to the sacraments after being away for many years. She was hungering and thirsting for Christ, and, thankfully, Christ didn’t permit anything else to fill the place in her heart where only he belonged. On re-encountering Christ—in his mercy in confession, in his nourishing grace in communion—she was able to experience the benefits promised by Christ himself: “Anyone who comes to me I will never drive away.” Every one of us invariably finds holes in our hearts, small or not so small. Only Christ belongs there. To welcome Christ back into our hearts, we must seek out his mercy and nourishing grace.2. Then Why Are You Afraid? If what we need is Christ and what we truly long for is Christ, then what keeps us from going to him? Sometimes it is our pride, or spiritual laziness, or maybe superficiality in our spiritual life. But behind these reasons is often a fear that if we open ourselves to Christ, we will somehow lose out. Benedict XVI addressed this fear in his first homily as Pope: “Do not be afraid of Christ! He takes nothing away, and He gives you everything. When we give ourselves to Him, we receive a hundred-fold in return. Yes, open, open wide the doors to Christ - and you will find true life. Amen” (Mass for the Inauguration of the Pontificate, April 24, 2005).3. Can You Tell Me Where the Lost-and-Found Is? These are words that Christ has never spoken—nor ever will. It is his Father’s will that Christ lose none of those entrusted to him. Christ never fails in his mission. Rather, in today’s reading, he promises: “And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.” This is our guarantee that we will never be abandoned and left without his grace to support us. There will be no difficulty, obstacle, or temptation too great for him to help us overcome.Conversation with Christ: Lord Jesus, I trust in you. Despite the real struggles and obstacles in my path now, I know that you are leading me towards you. You are the only one who can fill the depths of my heart. Somehow, mysteriously, each of these trials is part of making that a reality.Resolution: When faced with any obstacle today—even if it is small—I will say a quick prayer, entrusting the situation to Christ.#dailymeditations www.stswithuns.org.uk/event/dr-18042018 ... See MoreSee Less

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Compendium of the Catechism of the Sacrament of Holy Orders

THE SACRAMENT OF HOLY ORDERS

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