Holy Orders

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Catholic deacon candidates prostrate before the altar of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles during a 2004 diaconate ordination liturgy

Holy Orders in the Roman Catholic (Latin: sacri ordines), Eastern Catholic, Eastern Orthodox (ιερωσυνη, ιερατευμα, Свештенство), Oriental Orthodox, Anglican, Assyrian, Old Catholic, Independent Catholic churches and some Lutheran churches are the three orders of bishop, priest and deacon, or the sacrament or rite by which candidates are ordained to those orders.

These Churches regard ordination as a sacrament (the sacramentum ordinis). Protestant denominations, however, have varied conceptions of the church offices, but none of them considers ordination a sacrament and some would not consider their ministries in terms of holy orders at all.

The word "order" (Latin ordo) designated an established civil body or corporation with a hierarchy, and ordinatio meant legal incorporation into an ordo. The word "holy" (sacer) refers to the Church. In context, therefore, a holy order is simply a group with a hierarchy that is set apart for ministry in the Church.

The World Council of Churches undertook a major consultation amongst its members and with the Catholic Church on Baptism, Eucharist and Ministry (BEM) published in 1982. It attempted to express the convergences that had been found over the years and seven volumes of responses compiled. As a result some churches have changed their liturgical practices, and some have entered into discussions which in turn led to further agreements and steps towards unity. There is also a major study on the church (ecclesiology) being on the question 'What it means to be a church, or the Church?' It focuses on ecclesiology and ethics looking at the churches/Church's 'prophetic witness and its service to those in need'.

Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox perspectives

Main articles: Priesthood (Catholic Church) and Bishop (Catholic Church)

The Roman Catholic Church numbers Holy Orders, which is the Sacrament that confers ordination as bishops, priests and deacons of the church, among three sacraments that create an indelible mark called a sacramental character on the recipient's soul (the other two are baptism and confirmation). Some non-Catholics, perhaps especially Anglicans, also use the term episcopal character to refer to the status of a bishop.

In the Roman Catholic tradition, the purpose of the Sacrament is to constitute a person as a minister within the Church. Deacons are ministers of service. Bishops receive the "Spirit of governance" and are successors to the Apostles. In this way, ministers and shepards are provided to the People of God.

Until 1972 the Catholic Church also had four minor orders leading up to the major order of subdeacon, which were conferred on seminarians pro forma before they became deacons. The minor orders and the subdiaconate were not considered sacraments and, for simplicity, were suppressed under Pope Paul VI as part of the implementation of the Second Vatican Council. They were, however, retained by the Eastern Catholic Churches and by Traditionalist Catholics, including papally-approved Indult priestly associations. Only the sacramental orders (deacon, priest, bishop) were retained in the Latin Rite. By canon law, the subdiaconate was included in the major orders. Previously some excluded mentioning the order of bishop, as this order was seen as the fullness of the priestly order already conferred. The total number of minor and major orders in the pre-1972 structure was always considered to be seven, the number of perfection.

Such offices as Cardinal, Monsignor, Archbishop etc., are not sacramental orders. These are simply offices and titles and thus their reception is not an instance of the sacrament of holy orders.

The Eastern Orthodox Church has two minor orders, those of reader and subdeacon. Candidates for ordination receive the clerical tonsure prior to being ordained by the laying on of hands to these minor orders. There is a distinction between the laying on of hands for minor orders (chirothesis) and that for major orders (chirotony). Those in these lesser orders are not considered clergy in the same sense as those in major orders.

Meaning of priesthood

The word derives ultimately from the Greek presbuteros meaning "elder." The Church of England sees the priesthood as both a reflection of the ancient Temple priesthood of the Jews and the person of Jesus, as does the Church of Rome. The liturgy of ordination recalls the Old Testament priesthood and the priesthood of Christ. In the words of Thomas Aquinas, "Christ is the source of all priesthood: the priest of the old law was a prefiguration of Christ, and the priest of the new law acts in the person of Christ" Summa Theologica. See Presbyterorum Ordinis for the Second Vatican Council decree on the nature of the Catholic priesthood.

Process and sequence

The arrangement given above, "bishops, priests, and deacons" is in the reverse order of ordination. For Catholics, it is typically in the last year of seminary training that a man will be ordained to the diaconate, called by Catholics in recent times the "transitional diaconate" to distinguish men bound for priesthood from those who have entered the "permanent diaconate" and do not intend to seek further ordination. Deacons, whether transitional or permanent, are licensed to preach sermons (under certain circumstances a permanent deacon may not receive faculties to preach), to perform baptisms, and to witness Catholic marriages, but to perform no other sacraments. They assist at the Eucharist or the Mass, but are not able to consecrate the bread and wine. Orthodox seminarians are typically tonsured as readers before entering seminary, and may later be made subdeacons or deacons; customs vary between seminaries and between Orthodox jurisdictions.

At priestly ordination the bishop imposes hands upon the deacon who is by that matter and the form of the consecratory preface ordained to the priesthood.

After six months or more as a transitional deacon a man will be ordained to the priesthood. Priests are able to preach, perform baptisms, witness marriages, hear confessions and give absolutions, anoint the sick, and celebrate the Eucharist or the Mass.

For Anglicans, a person is ordained a deacon once they have completed their training at a theological college. They then typically serve as a curate and are ordained as priest a year later. Deacons must be at least 21 years old, and priests 22. Anglican deacons can preach sermons, perform baptisms and conduct funerals, but, unlike priests, cannot conduct marriages or celebrate the Eucharist. In most branches of the Anglican church, women can be ordained as priests, and in some, can be ordained a bishop. Anglican priests have to be at least 30 before they can be chosen to become a bishop.

Bishops are chosen from among the priests in churches that adhere to Catholic usage. In the Roman Catholic church, bishops, like priests, are celibate and thus unmarried; further, a bishop is said to possess the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders, empowering him to ordain deacons, priests, and- with papal consent-other bishops. If a bishop, especially one acting as an ordinary- a head of a diocese or archdiocese- is to be ordained, three bishops must usually co-consecrate him with one bishop, usually an archbishop or the bishop of the place, being the chief consecrating prelate. Among Eastern Rite Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches, which permit married priests, bishops must either be unmarried or agree to abstain from contact with their wives. It is a common misconception that all such bishops come from religious orders; while this is generally true, it is not an absolute rule. In the case of both Catholics, Eastern Catholic, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox, they are usually leaders of territorial units called dioceses. Only bishops can validly administer the sacrament of holy orders. In Latin-rite Catholic churches and also in Anglican churches, only bishops (and priests with authorisation by the local bishop) may lawfully administer the sacrament of confirmation, but if an ordinary priest administers that sacrament illegally, it is nonetheless considered valid, so that the person confirmed cannot be actually confirmed again, by a bishop or otherwise. Latin rite priest with special permission of the diocesan bishop or the Holy See can lawfully administer confirmation; every Catholic priest must administer confirmation, even without permission, to children in danger of death. In Eastern Rite Catholic Churches, confirmation is done by parish priests via the rite of chrismation, and is usually administered to both neonates and adults immediately after their baptism.

It has been discussed whether a priest with special faculties and possibly Pontifical (Papal) permission, e.g. an abbot, could validly ordain another male to the priesthood or the diaconate. The opinions of the theologians differ on this issue. Historical precedents indicate, that this may very well be true for abbots and priests in emergency situations. The matter is uncertain though, and most apostolic churches do not accept the validity of ordinations conferred by priests. Prior to the Second Vatican Council, in the Roman Catholic Church it is a point of discipline and certain faith though, that an abbot, or a regular or diocesan priest with special faculties, could initiate males to the minor orders, including to the subdiaconate.

Recognition of other churches' orders

There is mutual recognition of the validity of holy orders among the Eastern Orthodox, Polish National, Oriental Orthodox, and Old Catholic churches and the Assyrian Church of the East as they have maintained the apostolic succession of bishops, i.e., their bishops claim to be in a line of succession dating back to the Apostles, just as Catholic bishops do. Consequently, if a priest of these Churches converts to another, he is generally received as a priest without need for re-ordination. Similarly the Roman Catholic Church unconditionally recognizes the validity of ordinations in the aforementioned Eastern churches. Eastern Orthodox bishops can, and frequently do, grant recognition to the holy orders of converts who were earlier ordained in the Catholic Church (though there is much debate in Eastern Orthodoxy about this); that is part of the policy called church economy.

Some Anglican churches, unlike Protestant churches, claim to maintain apostolic succession although this is not even recognised by evangelical Anglicans. The succession of Anglican bishops is however, not universally recognized. The Catholic Church judged Anglican orders invalid when Pope Leo XIII in 1896, wrote in Apostolicae Curae that Anglican orders lack validity because the rite by which priests were ordained was not correctly performed from 1547 to 1553 and from 1558 to the 19th century, thus causing a break of continuity in apostolic succession. Leo XIII condemned the Anglican ordinals and deemed the Anglican orders "absolutely null and utterly void". Eastern Orthodox bishops have, on occasion, granted "economy" when Anglican priests convert to Orthodoxy. Changes in the Anglican Ordinal since King Edward VI, and a fuller appreciation of the pre-Reformation ordinals suggest that the correctness of the enduring dismissal of Anglican Orders may be questioned. In order to reduce doubt concerning Anglican apostolic succession, since the 1930 Bonn agreement many Anglican bishops have been consecrated by bishops of the Old Catholic Church whose holy orders are recognised by the Holy See. However this "restoration" would according to Catholic understanding only be possible, if the Old Catholic bishops involved would use a consecratory preface which used either the words "fullness of Thy ministry" or "fullness of the priesthood", or words similar to these expressions. Therefore, all Anglican clergymen who desire to enter the Roman Catholic Church are still re-ordained, at least conditionally, but often even absolutely.

Catholics do not recognize the validity of ordinations of ministers in Protestant churches that do not maintain the apostolic succession. It also does not recognize the apostolic succession of (high church) Lutheran Protestant denominations.

Anglicans accept the ordinations of those denominations in full communion with the Anglican Communion such as some Lutheran denominations. They may preside at services requiring a priest if one is not available.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) accepts the legal authority of clergy to perform marriages but does not recognize any other sacraments performed by ministers not ordained to the Latter-day Saint priesthood. Although the Latter-day Saints, who developed from private revelations and Protestantism, do claim a doctrine of a certain spiritual apostolic succession, it is significantly different from that claimed by Catholics and is not recognized by the Holy See.

Marriage and holy orders

The rules discussed in this section are not considered to be among the infallible dogmas of the Catholic Church, but are mutable rules of discipline. See clerical celibacy for a more detailed discussion.

Married men may be ordained to the diaconate as Permanent Deacons, but in the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church generally may not be ordained to the priesthood. In the Eastern Catholic Churches and in the Eastern Orthodox Church married deacons may be ordained priests, but may not become bishops. Bishops in the Eastern Rites and the Eastern Orthodox churches are almost always drawn from among monks, who have taken a vow of celibacy. They may be widowers, though; it is not required of them never to have been married.

In some cases widowed permanent deacons have been ordained to the priesthood. There have been some situations in which men previously married and ordained to the priesthood in an Anglican church or in a Lutheran Protestant church have been ordained to the Catholic priesthood, sometimes sub conditione (conditionally), and allowed to function much as an Eastern Rite priest but in a Latin Rite setting; however, this may only happen with the approval of the priest's Bishop and a special permission by the Pope.

Anglican clergy may be married and may marry after ordination.

Chastity and celibacy

There is a difference between chastity and celibacy. Celibacy is the state of not being married, so a promise of celibacy is a promise not to enter into marriage but instead to consecrate one's life to service (in other words, "married to God"). Chastity, a virtue extolled by Scripture and the Apostolic Fathers, is the state of sexual purity; for a vowed celibate, or for the single person, chastity means the avoidance of sex. For the married person, chastity means the practice of sex only with the spouse, and can carry the expectation of intercourse with the spouse that is open to reproduction.

Traditionally, celibacy was the male counterpart to female virginity. Implying that the celibate was not only not married, but that he had never been married. That usage is no longer common today.

Other concepts of ordination

Ordination ritual and procedures vary by denomination. Different churches and denominations specify more or less rigorous requirements for entering into office, and while the process of ordination is likewise given more or less ceremonial pomp depending on the group. Many Protestants still communicate authority and ordain to office by having the existing overseers physically lay hands on the candidates for office over them.

Methodist churches

The American Methodist model is an episcopal system loosely based upon the Anglican model and was first devised under the leadership of Bishops Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the late 18th century. In this approach, an elder (or "presbyter") is ordained to word (preaching and teaching), sacrament (administering Baptism and the Lord's Supper), order (administering the life of the church and, in the case of bishops, ordaining others for mission and ministry), and service; a deacon is someone who is ordained to word and service.

In the United Methodist Church, for instance, seminary graduates are examined and approved by the Conference Board of Ordained Ministry and then the Clergy Session, at which time they are accepted as "probationary members of the conference" and then commissioned by the resident Bishop to full time ministry. This is referred to as receiving "deacon's orders," and probationary ministers hold the title of deacon. (Before 1996, the graduate was ordained as a transitional deacon at this point, a provisional role which has since been done away with; the order of deacon is now a separate and distinct clergy office in the United Methodist Church.) After serving the probationary period consisting of a minimum of two years, the probationer is then examined again and either continued on probation, discontinued altogether, or approved for ordination. Upon final approval by the Clergy Session of the Conference, the probationer becomes a full member of the Conference and is then ordained as an elder or deacon by the resident Bishop. This commonly known as receiving "elder's orders;" and probationer is known as an elder minister.

At the present time, the British Methodist Conference does not have bishops but just the two distinct orders of presbyter and deacon.

Presbyterian churches

Presbyterian churches, following their Scottish forebears, reject the traditions surrounding overseers and instead identify the offices of bishop (episkopos in Greek) and elder (presbuteros in Greek, from which the term "presbyterian" comes) because the two terms seem to be used interchangeably in the Bible (compare Titus 1.5-9 and I Tim. 3.2-7). Their form of church governance is known as presbyterian polity. While there is an increasing authority with each level of gathering of elders ('Session' over a congregation or parish, then presbytery, then possibly a synod, then the General Assembly), there is no hierarchy of elders, and each elder has an equal vote at the court on which they stand.

Elders are usually chosen at their local level, either elected by the congregation and approved by the Session, or appointed directly by the Session. Some churches place limits on the term that the elders serve, while others ordain elders for life.

Presbyterians also ordain (by laying on of hands) ministers of Word and Sacrament (sometimes known as 'teaching elders'). These ministers are regarded simply as Presbyters ordained to a different function, but in practice provide the leadership for local Session.

Some Presbyterians identify those appointed (by the laying on of hands) to serve in practical ways (Acts 6.1-7) as deacons (diakonos in Greek, meaning "servant"). In many congregations, a group of men or women is thus set aside to deal with matters such as congregational fabric and finance, releasing elders for more 'spiritual' work. These persons may be known as 'deacons', 'board members' or 'managers', depending on the local tradition. Unlike elders and minister, they are not usually 'ordained', and are often elected by the congregation for a set period of time.

Other Presbyterians have used an 'order of deacons' as full-time servants of the wider Church - but who, unlike ministers, do not administer sacraments or routinely preach. The Church of Scotland has recently begun ordaining deacons to this role.

Unlike the Episcopalian schemes, but similar to the United Methodist scheme described above, the two Presbyterian offices are different in kind rather than in degree since one need not be a deacon before becoming an elder. Since there is no hierarchy, the two offices do not make up an "order" in the technical sense, but the terminology of Holy Orders is sometimes still developed.

Congregationalist churches

Congregationalist churches implement different schemes, but the officers usually have less authority than in the presbyterian or episcopalian forms. Some ordain only ministers and rotate members on an advisory board (sometimes called a board of elders or a board of deacons). Because the positions are by comparison less powerful, there is usually less rigor or fanfare in how officers are ordained.

Latter Day Saint Movement

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has a relatively open priesthood, ordaining nearly all adult males and boys of the age of twelve and older. Latter-day Saint priesthood consists of two orders: the Melchizedek and Aaronic. The offices, or ranks, of the Melchizedek order (in roughly descending order) include apostle, seventy, patriarch, high priest, and elder. The offices of the Aaronic order are bishop, priest, teacher, and deacon. The manner of ordination consists of the laying on of hands by one or more men holding at least the office being conferred while one acts as voice in conferring the priesthood and/or office and usually pronounces a blessing upon the recipient. Teachers and deacons do not have the authority to ordain others to the priesthood. All church members are authorized to teach and preach regardless of priesthood ordination so long as they maintain good standing within the church. The church does not use the term "holy orders."

Community of Christ

Community of Christ has a largely volunteer priesthood, and all members of the priesthood are free to marry (as traditionally defined by the Christian community). The priesthood is divided into two orders, the Order of Aaron, and the Order of Melchisedec (commonly known as the Aaronic priesthood or Aaronic Order; and the Melchisedec priesthood or Melchisedec Order). The Aaronic order is the “lesser priesthood” and the Melchisedec order is the “greater priesthood.” The Aaronic order consists of the offices of deacon, teacher and priest. The Melchisedec Order consists of the offices of elder (including the specialized office of seventy) and high priest (including the specialized offices of evangelist, bishop, apostle, & prophet). The Melchisedec priesthood is also commonly termed the “high priesthood,” but as noted, not all members of this priesthood are actually high priests. Paid ministers include “appointees” and the general officers of the church, which include some specialized priesthood offices (such as the office of president, reserved for the three top members of the church leadership team). As of 1984, women have been eligible for priesthood, which is conferred through the sacrament of ordination, by virtue of the laying-on-of-hands. While there is technically no age requirement for any office of priesthood, there is no automatic ordination or progression as in the LDS Church. Young people are occasionally ordained as deacon, and sometimes teacher or priest, but generally most priesthood members are called following completion of post secondary school education. Priesthood offices are not generally termed “orders of priesthood,” but certain offices constitute orders. For example, all bishops belong to the Order of Bishops. All evangelists belong to the Order of Evangelists. Other offices belong to quorums (seventies and high priests) or councils (apostles). The three presidents of the church form the First Presidency, which is sometimes termed council, and other times termed quorum. Deacons, teachers, priests and elders do not belong to permanent bodies, but may organize local quorums for all members of a given office within a particular city or region. In March 2007 a woman was ordained for the first time to the office of president.

Non-traditional organizations

The non-authoritarian religious denominations, such as the Universal Life Church, prefer to empower their clergy by minimizing the impediments to those that feel the calling to make a spiritual connection to the cosmos. Reducing the barriers to performing religious ceremonies these denominations encourage those who within the general population to realize spiritual experience. By enabling friends or relatives to perform ceremonies like marriages, organizations that offer online ordination demystify and integrate religious understanding into lives of the otherwise nonreligious public.

Ordination of women

The Roman Catholic Church does not ordain women to any of the orders and has officially declared that it does not have authority to ordain women as priests or bishops. Ordaining women as deacons, however, appears to remain a possibility, but not in any sacramental sense of the diaconate. Many Orthodox, Old Catholic, Anglican and Protestant churches ordain women, but in many cases, only to the office of deacon or deaconess. Whether the Catholic Church historically ordained, or simply "set apart," women as deaconesses is a matter of theological and historical investigation. Various branches of the Orthodox churches, including the Greek Orthodox, currently ordain woman as deaconesses. Some churches are internally divided on whether it is scripturally permissible to ordain women. When one considers the relative size of the churches (1.1 billion Roman Catholics, 300 million Orthodox, 590 million Anglicans and Protestants), it is a minority of Christian churches that ordain women. Protestants constitute about 27 percent of Christians worldwide and most which do ordain women have only done so within the past century.

In some traditions women may theoretically be ordained to the same orders as men. In others women are restricted from certain offices. The Church of England (in the Anglican Communion), for example, does not permit the consecration of women as bishops. Similarly, in some Protestant denominations, women may serve as assistant pastors but not as pastors in charge of congregations. In some denominations women can be ordained to be an elder or deacon. Some denominations allow for the ordination of women for certain religious orders. Within certain traditions, such as the Anglican and Lutheran, there is a diversity of theology and practice regarding ordination of women.

The Roman Catholic Church, in accordance with its understanding of the theological tradition on the issue, and the definitive clarification of the issue found in the encyclical letter Ordinatio Sacerdotalis (1994) written by Pope John Paul II in 1994, officially teaches that it has no authority to ordain women as priests and thus the possibility of female priests is unlikely in the foreseeable future if ever, even íf the majority of Roman Catholics were to be in favour.

Ordination of homosexuals

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See also Homosexuality in the Roman Catholic priesthood and Homosexuality and Christianity

The Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches is the most prominent American denomination with an official stance allowing non-celibate gays and lesbians to be ordained. Smaller denominations, like the Liberal Catholic Church and the Swedenborgian Church of North America also do so. The United Church of Christ, because of its decentralized model, allows such ordinations out of default since there are no official denomination-wide stances on doctrine. In the Episcopal Church USA bishops in some dioceses ordain non-celibate gays and lesbians, while those in others do not; the ordination of homosexuals is highly controversial in the wider Anglican Communion. Most of the mainline Protestant denominations, such as the Presbyterian Church USA, the Moravian Church, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church (ELCA), are openly discussing the issue. The United Church of Canada and the Uniting Church in Australia already welcome gays and lesbians in permanent partnerships in the ordained ministry. The United Methodist Church has also been discussing the issue for many years, but its official position continues to deny ordination to "Self-Avowed Practicing Homosexuals." In theory, a homosexual who is celibate is a fit candidate for ordination within the United Methodist Church, but in practice this rarely happens.

Controversy associated with the consecration of Gene Robinson to the order of bishop in the Episcopal Diocese of New Hampshire, and the planned consecration of Jeffrey John (who was to be ordained Bishop of Reading) in the Church of England, led to the formation of the Eames Commission by the Archbishop of Canterbury, spiritual head of the Anglican Communion. Its findings, published as the Windsor Report, recommended that the consecration of individuals in same-sex relationships as bishops cease, although it conspicuosly avoided discussing gays and lesbians ordered as priests and deacons. In response, the Episcopal Church placed a moratorium on confirming the consecrations of all bishops.

The ordination of gays and lesbians is not a new thing, but their open ordination has come to light. In the past, ordinands who were gay or lesbian did not admit their sexuality, and were ordained. Upon the ordination of Gene Robinson, Episcopal Bishop J. Neil Alexander of the Diocese of Atlanta said he voted for the ordination because Robinson was open about his sexuality and honest, whereas in the past known gay clergy were ordained to the episcopate only because they lied about it.

In many churches this is a very volatile issue, as is the ordination of women in many churches. It is not likely that a resolution will be swift. Within mainline churches the Confessing Movement has been a vehicle for the opposition to the ordination of non-celibate gays and lesbians.

The Roman Catholic Church allows the ordination of men who have, in the past, experienced same sex attraction, but only on the condition that they have lived without engaging in homosexual culture or acts for several years and can be psychologically verfied as having their same-sex attraction under control. Previously ordination of these homosexually inclined males was strictly forbidden, even though this discipline was often not observed by local bishops after the 1960s.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints only ordains men to the priesthood that have covenanted not to have sex with anyone besides their wife. Some gay men have chosen to remain celibate, while others have chosen to get married. However, a man must be married in order to become a bishop, regardless of orientation. Transgenders who were born men may only receive the priesthood if they have not had, and are not planning to have an operation.(1999 Church handbook.) Women are not ordained to the priesthood.

Print resources

• Campbell, Dennis. Yoke of Obedience, 1988. ISBN 0-687-46660-1
• Oden, Thomas. Pastoral Theology: Essentials of Ministry, 1983. ISBN 0-06-066353-7
• Willimon, William. Calling & Character: Virtues of the Ordained Life, 2000. ISBN 0-687-09033-4
• Willimon, William. Pastor: The Theology and Practice of Ordained Ministry, 2002. ISBN 0-687-04532-0

External links

• Old Catholic Vocations Website - Retrieved October 12, 2007.
• Priesthood - Catholic Sacrament of Holy Orders - Ordination - Retrieved October 12, 2007.
• The Steps to Orders in The United Methodist Church - Retrieved October 12, 2007.
• Elder's Orders in the UMC: The Disciplinary Questions and Sample Answers - Retrieved October 12, 2007.

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