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Presbyterorum Ordinis, the Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, is one of the documents produced by the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council

The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII in 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI in 1965....
. Promulgated by Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI

Pope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and monarch of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978....
 on December 7, 1965, it had been earlier approved by the assembled bishops by a vote of 2,390 to 4. The title means "Order of Priests" in Latin, and is taken from the first line of the decree, as is customary for such documents in the Catholic Church.

  • Preface (1)
  • The Priesthood in the Ministry of the Church (2-3)
  • The Ministry of Priests (4-11)
    1. Priests' Functions (4-6)
    2. Priests' Relationships with Others (7-9)
    3. The Distribution of Priests, and Vocations to the Priesthood (10-11)
  • The Life of Priests (12-21)
    1. The Vocation of Priests to the Life of Perfection (12-14)
    2. Special Spiritual Requirements in the Life of a Priest (15-17)
    3. Aids to the Life of Priests (18-21)
  • Conclusion and Exhortation (22)


    • sts are sacrament
    Sacrament

    A sacrament, as defined in Hexam's Concise Dictionary of Religion is "a rite in which God is uniquely active." Augustine of Hippo defined a Christian sacrament as "a visible sign of an invisible reality." The Anglican Book of Common Prayer speaks of them as "an outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible Grace." Examples of sacram...
    s of faith
    Faith

    Faith is the confident belief in the truth of or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing. It is also used for a belief, characteristically without proof....
    , prefigured in the person of Melchizedek
    Melchizedek

    Melchizedek is an enigmatic figure twice mentioned in the Tanakh, also known as the Old Testament. Melchizedek seems to be the King of Salem, and priest of the Most High, in the time of the biblical patriarch Abram....
    , and must themselves be dispensers of a life other than earthly life; they must not seek to please men but rather must follow Christian doctrine and life and strive always for holiness and voluntary poverty.






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    Presbyterorum Ordinis, the Decree on the Ministry and Life of Priests, is one of the documents produced by the Second Vatican Council
    Second Vatican Council

    The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, or Vatican II, was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It opened under Pope John XXIII in 1962 and closed under Pope Paul VI in 1965....
    . Promulgated by Pope Paul VI
    Pope Paul VI

    Pope Paul VI , born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini , reigned as Pope of the Roman Catholic Church and monarch of Vatican City from 1963 to 1978....
     on December 7, 1965, it had been earlier approved by the assembled bishops by a vote of 2,390 to 4. The title means "Order of Priests" in Latin, and is taken from the first line of the decree, as is customary for such documents in the Catholic Church.

    Contents

    1. Preface (1)
    2. The Priesthood in the Ministry of the Church (2-3)
    3. The Ministry of Priests (4-11)
      1. Priests' Functions (4-6)
      2. Priests' Relationships with Others (7-9)
      3. The Distribution of Priests, and Vocations to the Priesthood (10-11)
    4. The Life of Priests (12-21)
      1. The Vocation of Priests to the Life of Perfection (12-14)
      2. Special Spiritual Requirements in the Life of a Priest (15-17)
      3. Aids to the Life of Priests (18-21)
    5. Conclusion and Exhortation (22)


    Highlights

    Priests are sacrament
    Sacrament

    A sacrament, as defined in Hexam's Concise Dictionary of Religion is "a rite in which God is uniquely active." Augustine of Hippo defined a Christian sacrament as "a visible sign of an invisible reality." The Anglican Book of Common Prayer speaks of them as "an outward and visible sign of an inward and invisible Grace." Examples of sacram...
    s of faith
    Faith

    Faith is the confident belief in the truth of or trustworthiness of a person, idea, or thing. It is also used for a belief, characteristically without proof....
    , prefigured in the person of Melchizedek
    Melchizedek

    Melchizedek is an enigmatic figure twice mentioned in the Tanakh, also known as the Old Testament. Melchizedek seems to be the King of Salem, and priest of the Most High, in the time of the biblical patriarch Abram....
    , and must themselves be dispensers of a life other than earthly life; they must not seek to please men but rather must follow Christian doctrine and life and strive always for holiness and voluntary poverty. Deriving authority from Christ
    Christ

    Christ is the English language term for the Greek meaning "the anointing", which is a title given to the Reigning Messiah in the given age of the Zodiac....
     within the hierarchical church, priests provide the ministry by which the spiritual sacrifice of the faithful is made perfect, in union with the sacrifice of Christ. Their own spiritual sacrifice is key, including the celebration of the mystery of the Holy Eucharist
    Eucharist

    The Eucharist, also called Holy Communion or Lord's Supper and other names, is a Christianity sacrament commemorating, by consecrating bread and wine, the Last Supper, the final meal that Jesus Christ shared with his disciples before his arrest, and eventual crucifixion, when he gave them bread saying, "This is my body", and wine...
     — the greatest task of priests — and the recitation of the Divine office (see Breviary
    Breviary

    A breviary is a liturgical book of the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church containing the public or canonical prayers, hymns, the Psalms, readings, and notations for everyday use, especially by, bishops, priests, and deacons in the Divine Office ....
    ), the voice of the Church, together with Christ, making intercession. Prayer
    Prayer

    Prayer is the act of communicating with a deity or spirit in worship. Specific forms of this may include praise, requesting divine providence, confessing sins, as an act of reparation or an expression of one's emotional expression....
    , example, and penance enable the church to exercise a true motherhood toward all souls who are to be led to Christ, irrespective of nationality, blood, or time. Priests must help the faithful to know and love the liturgy
    Liturgy

    A liturgy is the customary public worship done by a specific religious group, according to their particular traditions. The word may refer to an elaborate formal ritual such as the Eastern Orthodox Divine Liturgy and Mass , or a daily activity such as the Muslim salat and Jewish Jewish services....
    , and for their own part must ever strive to perfect their knowledge of divine and secular affairs. Perfect and perpetual continence is suitable for the priesthood in many ways, and prefigures the world to come, in which the children of the resurrection
    Resurrection

    Miraculous resurrection of one sort or another has been a recurrent theme or central doctrine of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, and other Abrahamic religions....
     neither marry nor take wives. The dispenser of the mysteries of God can see himself in the man who sowed his field, of whom the Lord
    Jesus

    Jesus of Nazareth , also known as Jesus Christ, is the central figure of Christianity and is revered by most Christian churches as the Son of God and the Incarnation ....
     said: "then sleep and rise, night and day, and the seed should sprout without his knowing" (Mk
    Gospel of Mark

    The Gospel of Mark is the second of the four canonical gospels in the New Testament and was probably the first of the three synoptic gospels to be written....
     ).

    External links

    • The full text in English is available at the Vatican website.