A cross and a crucifix, Easter Sunday and Good Friday, pastors and priests: the parallel distinctions in each of these three dyads is worthy of reflection on this Holy Thursday, especially as they relate to the sacrament of Holy Orders.
A cross is a crucifix without the corpus of Christ. Holy that it is, in popular sentiment it tends to symbolize the glory of the Resurrection and the promise of salvation. The crucifix, on the other hand, emphasizes the bloody self-sacrifice of Jesus Christ, an execution which led to the promise of our salvation. Likewise, in our Easter Sunday joy over the Resurrection we tend to forget the agonizing price paid by Jesus on Good Friday. A similar distinction is suggested by the comparative vocations of priests and pastors. While a pastor can be a priest and vice-versa, not all pastors are priests. The role of a pastor is to counsel his flock and to lead them in prayer. The role of a priest is to propitiate God by offering sacrifice. Pastors and priests– both have vocations but different functions. Priests have a sacrificial function.
Priesthood and propitiatory sacrifice are ancient practices which can be traced back at least to Melchizedek, the high priest who blessed Abraham, and to Abraham himself who was called upon to sacrifice his only son. Today neither practice receives the level of respect it has attracted for millennia.
Holy Thursday commemorates Jesus’ institution of the priesthood and of the Eucharist. At the Last Supper Jesus linked the breaking of bread to the bloody self-sacrifice awaiting him the following day. It was then also he charged his apostles with the responsibility to ‘do this in memory of me’, a holy order which made them priests.
Jesus’ sacrifice on Calvary would be the single act that would enable the redemption of the world. Ever since, however, it has been an ongoing act in which priests – in persona Christi – replicate Jesus’ self-sacrifice when through the power of the Holy Spirit, they consecrate the bread and wine which become the body and blood of Christ. For this reason, the Mass is sometimes referred to as the unbloody sacrifice of Calvary. For this reason, also, priests participate in the effectuation of the salvation of the world, a noble calling to be sure.
As we ponder the significance of Holy Thursday, we are inclined to wonder why the number of priests in our nation has dropped so precipitously in the past several decades. Could it be due to a general misunderstanding of, or indifference to, the priestly function or, indeed, of the need for salvation itself?
Happily, there is an organization which is exploring and addressing this. The International Institute for Culture (www.iic.org) has launched a program called “The Shepherding Future Shepherds: Thank A Priest’ program located in Philadelphia (www.thankapriest.com). The initiative consists of four stages: elevate, educate, engage, and embark. It is the first stage, the elevate stage, that the ‘thank a priest’ program is underway. Readers are urged to visit the website.
On this Holy Thursday as we celebrate our Lord’s institution of the Eucharist and the priesthood, let us pray the endeavor of Shepherding Future Shepherds restores our esteem for the men called to Holy Orders.
A joyous Eastertide to all.