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Holy Orders
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The whole church is a priestly people.
Through Baptism all the faithful share in the priesthood of Christ.
This participation is called the “common priesthood of the faithful.”
Based on this common priesthood and ordered to its service,
there exists another participation in the mission of Christ:
the ministry conferred by the sacrament of Holy Orders,
where the task is to serve in the name and in the person of Christ the Head
in the midst of the community
Catechism of the Catholic Church #1591All Catholics know — or at least have heard about — bishops, priests, and deacons. Catholics know they perform ministerial roles in the community, such as presiding over the Eucharist and administering the sacraments.The priesthood was established by God among the Israelites during their exodus from Egypt. God chose the tribe of Levi as priests for the Hebrew nation. The primary duties of the priests were the offering of sacrifice and prayer for the people.
Jesus Christ, in offering Himself up for the sins of all mankind, fulfilled the duties of the Old Testament priesthood once and for all. But just as the Eucharist makes Christ’s sacrifice present to us today, so the New Testament priesthood is a sharing in the eternal priesthood of Christ. While all believers are, in some sense, priests, some are set aside to serve the Church as Christ Himself did.
We say that bishops, priests, and deacons are ordained. But, what does that mean? How did it all start? Why do these people receive a special sacrament?
To find out the answers and to know more about Holy Orders Please click here