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A Reconsideration of the Ministries of the Sacrament of Holy Orders
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 18 March 2013
Abstract
The purpose of the ministerial structures of the Church is to establish a context by which Christians continue and complete Christ's ministry. Ordained ministers ought to facilitate this in such a way as to collaborate effectively with God in the establishment of the Kingdom. A consideration of the Church's tradition, beginning with Scripture and continuing in its life of faith, suggests that no single form of ministry is normative. The ordination of Christians who make a long-term commitment to what the Church may legitimately recognize as ministry would enhance the Church's life and celebrate the sacramental character of that ministry. Consonant with Gaudium et spes the Church should abandon the distinction between secular and sacred ministry and recognize the sacramental character of ministry wherever it is practiced. Sacramental ordination to ministry is the specification and concretization of Christians' baptismal commitment.
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References
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