Although there is a communal dimension to our gathering for the Eucharist, remember, worship is directed toward God and not the other way around.
Regarding women's ordination, I share with you a piece I wrote in few years back. I think it still holds. Why Can’t Women Be Priests What the Church Teaches
What does the Catechism of the Catholic Church say about this?
Only a baptized man validly receives sacred ordination. The Lord Jesus chose men to form the college of the Twelve apostles, and the apostles did the same when they chose collaborators to succeed them in their ministry. The college of bishops, with whom the priests are united in the priesthood, makes the college of the Twelve an ever-present and ever-active reality until Christ’s return. The Church recognizes herself to be bound by this choice made by the Lord himself. For this reason the ordination of women is not possible.
What reasons does the Church give for not ordaining women priests?
1. No essential element of the sacraments can be changed. For example: water and the appropriate words are essential for baptism; bread and wine are the essential elemnts for the Eucharist. So, it follows that, a baptised male, ordained by a validly ordained bishop, through the laying on of hands and the prayer of constitution are required for ordination.
2. The ordination of men to the priesthood has been part of the Sacred Tradition of the Roman Catholic Church from its earliest days. According to Catholic belief, God makes Himself known in two ways: Scripture and Tradition. If scripture is silent on a matter, then tradition fills in the gap. For example, one will not find the words Trinity and purgatory in Sacred Scripture, but both these teaching are part of the Church’s belief.
3. Jesus included women in his ministry, but never called women to be apostles. The Church greatly values the dignity and contributions made by women in a variety of ministries. Some of the greatest reformers and teachers of the Church have been outstanding women. This continues in our own day.
What did Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Letter, Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, of May 22, 1994, have to say about this matter?
In order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren, I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgement is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful. How are we to receive Pope John Paul’s teaching found in his Apostolic Letter?
The Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith responded on October 28, 1995, as follows:
This teaching requires definitive assent, since, founded on the Word of God, and from the beginning constantly preserved and applied in the Tradition of the Church, it has been set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium. Thus, in the present circumstances, the Roman Pontiff, exercising his proper office of confirming the brethren, has handed on this same teaching by a formal declaration, explicitly stating what is to be held always, everywhere, and by all, as belonging to the deposit of faith.
Sacred Ordination is not a right or a matter of justice. It is a gift of a loving God to the Church for which his Son poured out his blood for the salvation of all humanity.
The central focus of the Eucharist is Christ. To dismiss the Eucharist is to dismiss Christ.
I would suggest a read on the Second Vatican Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium, December 4, 1963). There you will find beautiful teachings of the liturgy, especially the Eucharist. A more thorough teaching on the Eucharist will soon be available on this site.
Thank you for your post!
ReplyDeleteTwo questions....
What do we say, Father, if a Catholic dismisses this central focus on the Eucharist?
When the community is emphasized or the priesthood is misunderstood and set up as a status symbol as in the push for women’s ordination?
Although there is a communal dimension to our gathering for the Eucharist, remember, worship is directed toward God and not the other way around.
DeleteRegarding women's ordination, I share with you a piece I wrote in few years back. I think it still holds.
Why Can’t Women Be Priests
What the Church Teaches
What does the Catechism of the Catholic Church say about this?
Only a baptized man validly receives sacred ordination. The Lord Jesus chose men to form the college of the Twelve apostles, and the apostles did the same when they chose collaborators to succeed them in their ministry. The college of bishops, with whom the priests are united in the priesthood, makes the college of the Twelve an ever-present and ever-active reality until Christ’s return. The Church recognizes herself to be bound by this choice made by the Lord himself. For this reason the ordination of women is not possible.
What reasons does the Church give for not ordaining women priests?
1. No essential element of the sacraments can be changed. For example: water and the appropriate words are essential for baptism; bread and wine are the essential elemnts for the Eucharist. So, it follows that, a baptised male, ordained by a validly ordained bishop, through the laying on of hands and the prayer of constitution are required for ordination.
2. The ordination of men to the priesthood has been part of the Sacred Tradition of the Roman Catholic Church from its earliest days. According to Catholic belief, God makes Himself known in two ways: Scripture and Tradition. If scripture is silent on a matter, then tradition fills in the gap. For example, one will not find the words Trinity and purgatory in Sacred Scripture, but both these teaching are part of the Church’s belief.
3. Jesus included women in his ministry, but never called women to be apostles. The Church greatly values the dignity and contributions made by women in a variety of ministries. Some of the greatest reformers and teachers of the Church have been outstanding women. This continues in our own day.
What did Pope John Paul II in his Apostolic Letter, Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, of May 22, 1994, have to say about this matter?
In order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren, I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgement is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful.
How are we to receive Pope John Paul’s teaching found in his Apostolic Letter?
The Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith responded on October 28, 1995, as follows:
This teaching requires definitive assent, since, founded on the Word of God, and from the beginning constantly preserved and applied in the Tradition of the Church, it has been set forth infallibly by the ordinary and universal Magisterium. Thus, in the present circumstances, the Roman Pontiff, exercising his proper office of confirming the brethren, has handed on this same teaching by a formal declaration, explicitly stating what is to be held always, everywhere, and by all, as belonging to the deposit of faith.
Sacred Ordination is not a right or a matter of justice. It is a gift of a loving God to the Church for which his Son poured out his blood for the salvation of all humanity.
The central focus of the Eucharist is Christ. To dismiss the Eucharist is to dismiss Christ.
ReplyDeleteI would suggest a read on the Second Vatican Council's Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium, December 4, 1963). There you will find beautiful teachings of the liturgy, especially the Eucharist. A more thorough teaching on the Eucharist will soon be available on this site.