The Priesthood of Baptism

One of the great gifts that God bestows upon his children when we are baptised is that of a sharing in the priesthood of Christ. All the baptised have received this grace. But what is it? 

The priesthood common to all who are baptised is a real participation in the priesthood of Christ. It is the ability to worship God in spirit and in truth. It is the ability to take the things of this world, indeed, of our inner world, and direct them to the glory of God. It is the freedom to walk in the light and direct all our thoughts, words and deeds towards God. In short, it is the ability to live and act in this world according the mind and heart of Jesus.  Consequently, it is an essential element of our discipleship in the Lord. As Christians we are empowered to sanctify the day, to become the voice of praise for nature. We are gifted with the ability to transcend the here and now. Our common priesthood enables us to call upon the Father to bless and protect us. It enables us to intercede for others.

So, our common priesthood is rooted in Christ and always ordered toward the worship of God. Hence, the greatest act of our common priesthood is to participate in the Eucharistic Celebration each Sunday.

When  we gather in church for Mass on Sunday. We do so as God's people: a priestly people, a prophetic people, a kingly people. We come freely in order to join the prayer of Christ and of the Church. We come to unite our minds and hearts as one people for the praise and glory of God. That is why it is so important to participate in the Mass. Participation cannot and must not be reduced to "doing things" or having special "roles" or ministries. Participation, as Our Lord Jesus tells us, comes from the heart. It is in spirit and in truth that we can truly participate in the Mass. Hence the importance of the attitudes with which we attend the Holy Sacrifice. Hence the importance of the preparation that we undertake in order to take part in this heavenly banquet. Hence the importance of conversion and of listening to God's words. The Sunday Mass is the source and summit of all our priestly actions.

Christ and I: A relationship of love?

The need for love in prayer. At times, we find that our prayers just seem to rattle along. We say them in the morning, we say them at night. We go to Mass on Sundays. We do our best to fulfill our duty as creatures. And yet, it seems as if we are just ticking boxes. Our relationship with Christ is very vague. He seems to be more of an idea than a person. He seems to be more of a reference point than a friend. He seems to be so very distant.

It is important that we examine our prayerlife. We need to develop our relationship with The Lord Jesus. It has to be a relationship of love, of friendship and of obedience.

What can we do to improve our relationship with Christ? We need to ask Him for the grace to enter into a loving relationship. We need to take charge of our life, get our priorities straight and set aside time to get to know Him.

We come to know Him by reading the Gospels and reflecting on His life on earth. We get to know Him, by contemplating His kindness and goodness. We get to know Him by speaking with Him and listening to Him. To do this we need to set aside quality time for prayer. This means that we need to introduce silence into our lives. How can we hear the Lord who speaks in the silence of our hearts if we are full of noise! How can we draw closer to Him if, having Him really present in the Eucharist, we never make the effort to go and be with Him for a time!

Pope Benedict has this wonderful reflection that I would like to share with you:

The Risen Lord passes through the closed doors and enters the place where the disciples are, and greets them twice with the words: "Peace be with you". We continually close our doors; we continually want to feel secure and do not want to be disturbed by others and by God. And so, we can continually implore the Lord just for this, that he come to us, overcoming our closure, to bring us his greeting: "Peace be with you". This greeting of the Lord is a bridge that he builds between heaven and earth. He descends to this bridge, reaching us, and we can climb up on this bridge of peace to reach him. On this bridge, always together with him, we too must reach our neighbour, reach the one who needs us. It is in lowering ourselves, together with Christ, that we rise up to him and up to God. God is Love, and so the descent, the lowering that love demands of us, is at the same time the true ascent. Exactly in this way, lowering ourselves, coming out of ourselves, we reach the dignity ofJesus Christ, the human being's true dignity.

Homily, St Peter's Basilica, 15 May 2005