The priesthood is truly a gift from God to the Church. Christ Jesus the High priest acts through his ordained Bishops and priests. It is he who calls men to share in his priesthood and in doing so enables us to receive His most precious gifts. His priests act in Persona Christi as they bring the Lord to us in the Sacraments.

It is only through the ministerial priesthood that you and I can have access to the throne of grace and receive Christ’s Body, Blood, Soul & Divinity in the Sacrament of Eucharist , the source and summit of our Christian life. This is why the priesthood is constantly under attack from the powers of darkness that seeks to destroy the priesthood and in doing so, would deny us this most precious of all gifts, Christ himself, in His unique and substantial presence.

We can take this gift so much for granted especially here in the West, where most of us have access to the Mass at least every Sunday, and in our cities every day of the week. Here through the hands and words of the priest, heaven touches earth. The veil to heaven is opened wide and we participate in the glorious worship of the Lamb just as the host of heaven bow down in adoration before the Lord of all, Jesus Christ himself. Many have given their lives in order to have access to this great Sacrament of God’s love. Priests and laity throughout the ages have died in the service of God as they have sought to enable the faithful to have access to this, the greatest gift of all. All the Sacraments are sources of Grace, and another Sacrament that we can receive frequently is the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Sadly there are many who neglect this source of grace that is a gift of God to us, restoring us to right union with God and the Church. In John 20:23 Jesus gave the power to forgive sins to the Apostles, and we through the successors of the Apostles have access to Christ’s mercy and forgiveness. When we are sick we seek out the counsel of a doctor, and when seriously ill or in an emergency we would not delay going to emergency. Why would we then fail to seek the healing Sacrament of Confession. It is here that we are healed and set free from the devastating effects of sin, especially mortal sin that destroys all sanctifying grace in the soul. If we die unrepentant in this state, we have chosen eternal separation from God, that is “Hell”. In this Sacrament of God’s love and mercy the priest in the person of Christ speaks those words of Absolution that once again restores our souls to life and makes us fit for heaven. Even if we are not aware of grave sin in our lives then this Sacrament heals the wounds of venial sin and protects the soul through grace, to resist temptation to commit mortal sin. These two Sacraments can only be administered through the Bishop and priest. We are in great need of God’s grace every day of our lives, and both these Sacraments are a source of immeasurable grace to sustain us on our journey of life.

Looking at the other five Sacraments, the priest is the ordinary minister for a number of them although an ordained Deacon can Baptize and officiate at marriages. The priest is the minister to us at times of sickness, especially where there is the danger of death and brings us the Sacrament of the sick, and is there with Holy Viaticum on our death bed.

With the Apostolic blessing for the dying we can receive a plenary indulgence which removes all temporal punishment due to sins forgiven, and prepares us for heaven.

Peter Thompson.