Holy Orders

The sacrament by which bishops, priests, and deacons are ordained to serve Christ and His Church.

What it is. Through Holy Orders, the mission Christ entrusted to His apostles is handed on. By the laying on of hands and the prayer of consecration, a man is ordained a deacon, priest, or bishop, and configured to Christ to serve His people: above all by preaching the word and making the sacraments present. This is the unbroken apostolic succession by which the Church is fed in every generation.

Why celebrate it. Holy Orders exists for the sake of everyone else. It is not a promotion but a self-gift: through the ordained, Christ continues to teach, forgive, and offer the Eucharist. Without this sacrament there would be no Mass, no absolution, no continuity with the apostles. To celebrate an ordination is to celebrate that Christ has not left His Church without shepherds, but keeps His promise to remain with her until the end of the age.