Dear People Whom God Loves,

IV

REFLECTIONS ON

VATICAN COUNCIL II

Again, these thoughts are based on the book Keys to the Council.   This concerns the relationship of the priesthood of the laity and the ordained priesthood.

Among Jesus’ first believers, class distinctions were not acceptable.  When these divisions arose, they were condemned.  Paul’s letter to the Galatians testifies to this.  Paul’s words: “There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male or female; for all are one in Christ Jesus”.

In the New Testament, there was no class division into clergy and laity.  When the word priest was used, it referred to either Christ or the whole people of God.  For example, in I Peter, “You are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation…”

By the third century, it had become more common to distinguish between the clergy and the laity.  Still, at these times, baptism remained as prior.

By the year 1000 AD, the distinction between them was more rigid.  It then became an essential part of church theology that there are two kinds of Christians, clerics and lay people.

During this time, the celebration of the Eucharist was mostly a clerical affair.  Lay people were mostly spectators and didn’t generally receive communion.   I remember when I was ordained in 1951, there were not a lot of people receiving communion.

During this same time arose the distinction between lay people and monks…laity seen in contrast to clergy in leadership and in contrast to monks in holiness.

Martin Luther recovered the belief that all are priests by baptism.  This led to the battle between Protestants and Catholics.  Protestants emphasized the priesthood of all believers and Catholics emphasized the ordained priesthood.

This is an example of what usually happens when we fight.  Both sides only stress one side and disregard the other or call it all wrong. In the end, truth is the loser.

More next time.

Smile, God Loves You,

Father Clay

 Dear People Whom God Loves,

V

REFLECTIONS ON

VATICAN COUNCIL II

We continue with our reflections on the relationship of the priesthood of the laity and the ordained priesthood.  We will see that the Council did not see them in opposition.

In its document on the Church, the first chapter spoke of the mystery of the Church.

The mystery is that the self-emptying love that is God comes into Jesus and, through Jesus, into the Church, his body of which he is the head.

The second chapter is dedicated to the people of God.  The chapter on the hierarchy is chapter three.  This indicates that we must understand hierarchy within the whole people of God—or to put it another way—within the whole communion of what we call Church.

The whole people of God are called to be transformed into the image of Jesus.  That is to surrender to the Love that Jesus called Abba and then be transformed into people of compassion and respect.  This brings us to the communion we call the Church.  And to the degree that we are transformed and live that transformation, others will be drawn to live in that compassion and respect.

We must keep in mind what the Church is and its mission from Jesus if we are to deeply understand the relationship of the priesthood of the laity and the ordained priesthood.

The Council document says that the two priesthoods differ “essentially and not only in degree”; yet both share equally in the one priesthood of Christ.  The Council was not talking about two different groups of priests…rather two interrelated priestly realities.  All are called and entered into by baptism into the priesthood of the faithful.  Meaning that all are called to follow in Jesus’ footsteps.

We can only understand the ministerial priesthood when we understand what it means to live the common priesthood of all and then understand how the ordained priesthood fits into that.

More next time.

Smile, God Loves You,

Father Clay

Dear People Whom God Loves,

VI

REFLECTIONS ON

VATICAN COUNCIL II

We now turn to the understanding of the baptismal priesthood and then we will be able to understand how the ordained priesthood fits into it.

What does it mean to be a priest in Christian understanding?  To understand this we need to understand Christian understanding of sacrifice.  It has nothing to do with sacrificing a victim to appease and satisfy God.  St. Paul speaks of Christ emptying himself of all divine prerogatives in the gift of himself to the world.  In other words, sacrifice means giving of oneself in service to others.  That is why the letter to the Hebrews calls Christ a priest.  Christ is the ultimate priest because he gave everything for the salvation of the world.

The first letter of Peter speaks of the whole Christian community as a royal priesthood.  As sharers in the priesthood of Christ, all who are baptized are called to live lives of sacrifice.  That is, lives of service, respect, and compassion for others.  The priesthood of the faithful was another name for Christian discipleship.  It is this love that we call Christian sacrifice.

The ordained priesthood is to be in service to the baptismal priesthood.  The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “the ministerial priesthood is at the service of the common priesthood.  It is directed at the unfolding of the baptismal grace of all Christians.”

According to the Council document on priests, the priest is to be of service to the priesthood of the baptized by preaching the good news that Jesus brought and by the sacramental ministry “within and not above the Christian community, especially in the liturgical presiding over the Eucharist”.

More next time.

Smile, God Loves You,

Father Clay