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Gratitude for the Vocation of the Priesthood

Written by

Cardinal Raymond Burke

in

As we celebrate the Birth of our Lord, we are deeply conscious of the richness of the mystery of the Incarnation. Our minds will never comprehend all that the mystery means, yet God's grace gives us faith in the mystery and helps us to plumb its deep meaning. Our faith helps us to understand the essential relationship between the mystery of the Incarnation and the mystery of the Redemption. Pope John Paul II in fact often refers to the two mysteries together as the mystery of the Redemptive Incarnation.

On Christmas, we recall Christ's Birth of the Virgin Mary at Bethlehem, acknowledging that the same Christ died for us on Calvary, rose from the dead and ascended to the right hand of the Father, so that He might live for us always in the Church. At Mass on Christmas, Christ comes into our midst as really as He did at Bethlehem. He comes in His glorious Body for our spiritual healing and nourishment. The Body which He received at His conception in the womb of the Virgin Mary by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit was transformed at His Resurrection, so that He might give us Himself in the Church always and, above all, in the Eucharist. 

In the words of Pope Paul VI, the presence of Christ in the Eucharist "is called ‘real' not as a way of excluding other types of presence as if they were ‘not real,' but because it is a presence in the fullest sense: a substantial presence whereby Christ, the God-Man, is wholly and entirely present" (Pope Paul VI, encyclical letter Mysterium Fidei, September 3, 1965, Acta Apostolicae Sedis, 57 [1965], p. 764). The image of the Infant Savior in the manger, before whom we kneel in prayer on Christmas, represents the same Christ who comes to us under the veils of bread and wine to nourish us with His true Body and Blood, holy Communion, and who remains with us in the consecrated hosts reposed in the tabernacle of our churches and chapels. 

Inseparably connected with the Real Presence of Christ in the Most Blessed Sacrament is the presence of Christ in the priest who, acting in the person of Christ, renews the Sacrifice of Calvary at Mass and who also acts in the person of Christ, Shepherd and Head of the flock, when he teaches, sanctifies and governs God's holy people at every time and in every place. Writing about the wonder or amazement which should be ours before the Eucharistic Sacrifice, our Holy Father Pope John Paul II reminded us of the truth about the ordained priesthood, conferred through the Sacrament of Holy Orders:

This amazement should always fill the Church assembled for the celebration of the Eucharist. But in a special way it should fill the minister of the Eucharist. For it is he who, by the authority given him in the sacrament of priestly ordination, effects the consecration. It is he who says with the power coming to him from Christ in the Upper Room: "This is My Body which will be given up for you. This is the cup of My Blood, poured out for you." The priest says the words, or rather he puts his voice at the disposal of the One Who spoke these words in the Upper Room and Who desires that they should be repeated in every generation by all those who in the Church ministerially share in His priesthood" (Pope John Paul II, encyclical letter Ecclesia de Eucharistia, April 17, 2003, n. 5c).

The same Christ Who was born into the family of Mary and Joseph at Bethlehem, and Who died and rose from the dead for our salvation, so that He might live for us always, continues to be our Shepherd and Head through the Holy Father and the bishops with their co-workers, the priests. 

At Christmas, our deepest gratitude for the coming of Christ to us in the Sacrament of the Eucharist is also deepest gratitude for the sacrament of the priesthood, which makes possible the Holy Eucharist. Our grateful reflection upon the Real Presence of Christ with us in the Holy Eucharist leads us to thank God for Christ's pastoral presence with us through our priests and their apostolic service.

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  1. Guest Avatar
    Guest

    I read this with interest.

    What does “the mystery of the Redemption” mean? I understand that I commit sins, and hence I need pardon which can come through the suffering of Christ. However the story of Adam and Eve is not literally true. What is the current teaching of the Church on original sin? What happened originally that caused our fall?

    when I have a probem I do a Google search and look at the Catechism of the Catholic Church. I did not find much help.

    #601 speaks of “the ransom that would free men from the slavery of sin”, but does not explain this.

    Would anyone like to discuss this question?

    God bless,

    NoelFitz.
    _________________________________________________
    In necessariis, unitas; in dubiis, libertas; in omnibus, caritas
    _________________________________________________

  2. Guest Avatar
    Guest

    The beginning of an answer.

    Regarding “the mystery of the Redemption”:
    “Mystery” in this sense is a truth so deep we’ll never get to the bottom of it in this life. There are any number of Qs regarding the Redemption that the Church has answers for, but none of them are exhaustive–we can only answer them to the best of our ability, which is decidedly second best when viewed against the answer God will give in eternity. We see now as through a glass darkly–thus “mystery.” In the next life (God willing…), there will be no more mysteries, only the full light of day.

    Regarding Original Sin (OS):
    The story of Adam and Eve is not literally true only if you mean by “literally,” that there were talking snakes. It *is* literally true, if you mean “literal” in the sense that Augustine meant it in his “Literal Interpretation of Genesis,”–namely, the meaning of Scripture that the author wished to convey. Thus the literal meaning of a Scriptural passage may indeed be a metaphorical meaning if the author intended to be using metaphor.

    The current teaching of the Church on OS has not changed. The doctrine on the transmission of OS is that it’s done by generation, not by imitation–i.e., it’s something innate in us–thanks to our possessing human nature from our parents–and not the result of monkey see, monkey do. The Church cannot see how OS could be transmitted by generation if there were not first parents–whom Scripture calls Adam and Eve. Thus when the question arose some decades ago over the possibility of mankind arising from groups of pre-humans–many in those groups becoming human at the same time, not just one man and one woman–the Church said, this can’t be. Because then, you wouldn’t be able to account for the fact that *all* mankind suffers the effects of OS. If more than two became human, then the possibility exists that some of those “more” *didn’t* commit OS (only the two did, Adam and Eve). Then what became of their offspring? Are there now some walking the earth who were not conceived in OS and thus have no need of Christ’s Redemption? No! Thus first parents … whom Scripture called Adam and Eve.

    As to what the actual sin was … we can’t possibly know, except that it seems to have been a sin of pride–choosing against God’s will because your will (IYHO) is just as good as his. CS Lewis could have lived with its being the plucking of forbidden fruit from a tree. But other explanations can be offered. The right one won’t be known until the next life (God willing …).

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