Ordination

I always try to attend a sacerdotal or diaconate ordination because of the rites that trace its origins into Biblical times. There is always a sense of joy at witnessing the transformation of a man into a minister of God, a singular gift of grace that not all are honored to receive. The ordination into the priesthood is an affirmation of God’s presence in the Church and a confirmation of His promise to be with the Church till the end of time.

When the Bishop summons the ordinand, the person to be ordained, at the start of the ordination rites, the ordinand replies “Here I am” which evokes the Biblical story of the boy Samuel being called by God and he replied, “Here I am”. By the way this is the motto of Bishop Vicente M. Navarra who presided over the ordination rites last Tuesday. The Latin of this response is “Adsum.”

There were three ordinandi – Rev. Dominic Derramas of Airport Subdivision, Rev. Norman Egay of Pontevedra and Rev. Jess Elmer Ebro of Victorias and the Bishop summoned them one by one. I will not detail the ordination rites but only those that we usually see but not know their significance or origin.

The most solemn part is the laying of the hands by the Bishop, the “imposition” of the Holy Spirit that trace back to Apostolic times, signifying the passing on of the priesthood. Only a bishop can ordain. Not a dozen priest can pass on this priestly character that traces back to imposition from the Apostles. The bishop, as the unbroken successor of the Apostles alone has this authority and jurisdiction.

Here the line of the priesthood dating the Biblical times is passed on and never broken. A priest is a priest forever “according to the order of Melchizedek”, the priest-king of Salem who blessed Abraham after winning a battle and serving him with wine and bread.

Melchizedek is the archetype of the priesthood of Christ.

The ordinand thus receives an indelible mark that cannot be erased even if he left the priesthood and gone to another station in life. Only his faculties and jurisdiction are taken away from him but never his priesthood.

Symbolizing the unity of the clergy, the other priests present also lay their hands on the ordinand in effect creating a relationship, a bond of brotherhood among the clergy that had been the hallmark of their priestly life.

Another beautiful moment is when the ordinand prostrates on the floor and the bishop and the congregation kneel as the choir intones the Litany of the saints, invoking thus the prayer and blessings of holy men and women from the time of the Apostles.

Another part is when the ordinand kneels before the bishop and take a vow to “respect and obey” him and his successors. This vow of obedience is renewed every year during Holy Thursday known as the Mass of the Holy Chrism. No Masses are held anywhere except at the Cathedral where the oil of the Holy Chrism is consecrated.

The Holy Chrism is used for the anointing of the person to be baptized, another for consecration of priests and bishops and also the sick and the dying. The tradition of anointing dates to the time of the prophets when the kings were not crowned but anointed to signify that the person had been chosen by God to rule govern their people.

This tradition was carried through the centuries when kings were also anointed during coronation, signifying as well that they had been chosen to rule.

One of the wonderful moments in the ordination is the anointing of the hands of the ordinand with the Holy Chrism. The bishop anoints both hands with the sign of the cross and then clasps the hands or closes the palms and ties the hands with a piece of white cloth. This is just a practical way of insuring that the sacred oil does not drip to the floor.

The oil is later removed with bread and a lemon to completely remove it from the hands. Why bread and not just water and soap?

The reason is that the oil is sacred and thus cannot be just cleaned away and the water thrown out. The bread absorbs the oil and the lemon removes the odor from the hands. Then his hands are cleaned with soap and water. The bread is kept and later disposed not by just throwing it anywhere but burned or dissolved completely so that the character or element of bread is lost.

At the end of the Mass the bishop asks the ordinand to bless him and kisses his hands. The other priests and the faithful follow. These are emotionally touching moments.

The ordination is usually for two hours, but because last Tuesday we had three the rites were longer.*

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