The Offices of Christ, Lumen Gentium and the People's Sense of the Faith

Abstract

The article examines the historical origins of the notion of Christ's threefold office as priest, prophet and king as applied to the church, highlighting the seminal contribution of John Calvin. After an initial reception into Catholic theology in the nineteenth century, it is Vatican II's document Lumen gentium which first receives the trilogy into official Catholic teaching in a significant way. The author examines issues that need addressing in any reconstructed theology of, in particular, the “prophetic office” and proposes that future ecumenical dialogue with Protestants on the three offices may provide opportunities for further Catholic reception of this Protestant framework.