Common Priesthood Research Articles

We Are All Priests. The Ecclesiological Boundaries and Horizons of Martin Luther’s Common Priesthood by Roger Whittall (review)

We Are All Priests. The Ecclesiological Boundaries and Horizons of Martin Luther’s Common Priesthood by Roger Whittall (review)

«O tempo de falar chegou!» Significado e importância teológico-política do Apelo à Nobreza Cristã da Nação Alemã (12 de agosto de 1520)

The text Appeal to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation, written in August 1520, is one of Martin Luther’s most significant reforming writings (alongside On the Babylonian Captivity of the Church, from October 1520, and On the Freedom of a Christian, from November 1520, among others). This pamphlet-like text, despite addressing the pressing issues of its time, also represents a culmination in the debates about the relationship between temporal and spiritual powers (De potestate), which had fueled theological-political discourse during the Late Middle Ages. This includes, notably, discussions regarding the primacy of the council over the Pope (conciliarism), an ancient recognition that, at least since John of Paris (1273-1306) to John of Gerson (1362-1429), opposed the papal claim to the fullness of power (plenitudo potestatis papalis), not only in temporal matters but also in the internal organization and administration of the Church. The papalist interpretation transgressed an idea from Pope Gelasius in the late 5th century about the separation of the two powers or two swords: temporal and spiritual. This concept was continuously betrayed over the centuries by so-called political Augustinianism, which significantly sought support in book XIX of The City of God by Saint Augustine. However, Luther, also a (partial) reader of Saint Augustine and Saint Paul, sought to think of the Church not from the separation, opposition, or subordination of powers, but from grace and charisms (among which is the temporal dominium of a dominus in a kingdom). These are indispensable for the edification of the one Body of Christ, which is both temporal and eternal. Through this lens, all ministries, including the most humble ones, gain great spiritual value (or secularize, from another perspective). Regardless, in the wake of the indulgence controversy, Luther’s appeal urging German princes to assert their autonomy from Rome’s secular power eventually paved the way (at the cost of much dreaming and much bloodshed, it must be said) for the affirmation of the nation-states within the Holy Roman Empire. Simultaneously, through the primacy of the «common priesthood of believers» over the magisterial power of the “ordained priesthood” (potestas ordinis), this pamphlet carries a potentially very virulent, explosive, and even apocalyptic interpretation and preaching of the Scriptures (we are at the end of times, the Antichrist is at the door, etc.). Politically, this erupted soon after (1524-1525) in the fields of Germany. From a broader hermeneutical perspective, it recovers some processes of subjectivation and appropriation of «speaking places» as well as nominalist conceptions that had been gaining relevance in the 14th and 15th centuries. These processes would deepen both in rationalist modernity (from Descartes’ cogito to Kant’s Ich denken) and in fideist modernity (Jansenism, Pascal, etc.). Nevertheless, the urgent call in 1520 is to reform the Church, for «the time for silence has ended, and the time to speak has come!» («Die Zeit zu reden ist kommen»). And it is this decision of Luther to speak out that is most important to us.

How the Priesthood of All Believers Became American

Abstract: This article examines how the common priesthood or priesthood of all believers emerged from a narrow German Lutheran context and became “Americanized” in the nineteenth century. References to the common priesthood in any of its variations were seldom in early America, and the article traces how Americans in the mid-nineteenth century, especially the church historian Philip Schaff, drew on new understandings of the common priesthood in nineteenth-century Germany propagated by August Neander, among others, and applied it to the American republican context. By the end of the nineteenth century, it had gained wide currency among Protestants in America and would become a key element of American Protestant self-understanding. Lutherans drew on it as well, but many remained ambivalent about broader claims, especially as it might impinge on the authority of the ordained office. In the formulation “the priesthood of all believers,” the common priesthood continues to resonate in the twentieth century among a diverse range of American denominations from peace church Quakers to conservative Evangelicals, although interpretations of it continue to vary widely.

Seelsorgerin oder Leiterin?

Pastoral care and leadership are two central tasks of the pastoral profession. Nevertheless, their relationship to each other remains underdetermined in the theorizing of the respective sub-disciplines as well as in practical theology as a whole. This paper attempts to constructively define the relationship by understanding pastoral care primarily as a leadership task, namely as the organization and staging of pastoral care. Then he unfolds the thesis that the neglect of this ecclesial cybernetic dimension of pastoral care, but also of ecclesial cybernetics as a whole, results in a weakening of both theory and practice of the common priesthood of the believers.

The Common Priesthood of Lutherans and Catholics

English translation. The original article can be found here
 Luther insisted on the royal, common or universal priesthood of all the baptised, as the Second Vatican Council also recalled, referring to the mutual complementarity between the common and ministerial priesthood, which however differ non tantum gradu sed essentiam (cf. LG 10). These pages review the main points on the common priesthood, according to Luther's proposal and the response of the Councils of Trent and Vatican II and, as a complementary counterpoint, add the teachings of a 20th century Catholic author, Josemaría Escrivá de Balaguer, partly before and partly after Vatican II, which could be of interest for understanding the subject under discussion. The similarities and differences are thus noted here, which are conducive to the subsequent ecumenical dialogue on this subject, which is acquiring particular importance in the context of the theology of synodality.

‘Het ambt zal zijn verpersoonlijking van de gemeente’

Daniël Chantepie de la Saussaye (1818-1874) was an important theologian in the first decades after the new constitution of the Netherlands in 1848. Representing the ‘Vermittlungstheologie’ but with strong ties with calvinism and influenced by revivalism, he was vividly involved in debates about positioning and restructuring the Dutch Reformed Church. This article investigates his thoughts on church ministry. Important elements are the common priesthood of all believers (including their suffrage) and church ministry as ‘personification’ of the life of the Holy Spirit in the congregation. Comparing these thoughts with the most recent statement of the Protestant Church in the Netherlands on church ministry, a shift turns out towards a stronger ranking of it as apostolic, sharing the same vocation by Christ, and towards a privatization of church ministry as a means of the Holy Spirit besides the church communities. The typical reformed concept of ministry as ‘ministry of the Word’ is weakened.

Invitation and Encounter: Evangelizing through the Sacraments by Timothy P. O'Malley

Reviewed by: Invitation and Encounter: Evangelizing through the Sacraments by Timothy P. O'Malley Roland Millare Timothy P. O'Malley Invitation and Encounter: Evangelizing through the Sacraments Huntington, IN: Our Sunday Visitor, 2022 121 pages. Paperback. $15.95. The Church continues to suffer from a precipitous decline in the number of people receiving each of the sacraments. There is no shortage of commentary upon the state of the current sacramental crisis that plagues the Church. One of the most common explanations has been the popular notion that many of the faithful have been sacramentalized but not evangelized. In Invitation and Encounter: Evangelizing through the Sacraments, Timothy O'Malley presents a counter thesis: the sacraments are "always evangelizing, because they make available the salvation offered by Jesus Christ to the Church and to the world" (11). O'Malley offers the personalist view of sacramental theology that contends the sacraments are encounters with Jesus Christ and His love. O'Malley draws upon an array of theologians throughout his work to weave a unity between sacraments and evangelization, [End Page 323] including Thomas Aquinas, Gregory of Nazianzus, Marc Ouellet, Gary Anderson, Joseph Ratzinger, Sara Butler, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and John Paul II. The most prominent author cited throughout is the nineteenth-century theologian Matthias Scheeben, who articulated the unity between the human and divine actions of Jesus Christ, which will have implications for our encounter with Christ in the sacraments: "The humanity of Christ is able to operate in a supernatural manner within itself, and also to perform acts which are of supernatural benefit to all creatures and to achieve much that in itself can be effected only by the infinite power of God. Thus the humanity of Christ can communicate to others the supernatural life which it possesses itself" (17). Contrary to the Pelagian tendency that would empty the sacraments of their efficacy by emphasizing the work of the individual, O'Malley highlights succinctly how each sacrament is first and foremost a work of Jesus Christ, who evangelizes and forms us. Baptism, confirmation, and holy orders (chapter two) transform our identity as priests of Christ. Once again, Scheeben posits that "the character of the members of Christ's mystical body must consist in a seal which establishes and exhibits their relationship to the Logos; their character must be analogous to the hypostatic union and grounded upon it" (36). Baptism bestows the grace of divine filiation, enabling us to become sons and daughters in the Son. confirmation strengthens and deepens this identity and "orients us toward mission" (48). Holy orders enables men to act in the person of Christ the Priest or Christ the Servant, so they may serve the common priesthood through a "total, self-giving love and service" (55). Holy orders is not about power, but service to assist the faithful to realize their own identity, given in baptism and confirmation. The reflections on the mystery of the Eucharist (chapter three) build upon the notion of identity to focus on our creation for sacrificial worship. Citing St. Thomas (Summa Theologiae, III, q. 73, a. 4), O'Malley notes that the Eucharist is a movement between the past, present, and future. Every celebration of the Eucharist is a remembering of what has been wrought for humanity in the past (salvation history), which effectively brings about the unique sacramental [End Page 324] presence of Christ here and now, to prepare us for the immediate future and for the eschaton. The heart of worship is sacrifice, which is defined by a love that transforms all of space and time. Consequently the "new worship" of the Eucharist according to Benedict XVI in Sacramentum Caritatis "cannot be relegated to something private and individual, but tends by its nature to permeate every aspect of our existence" (73). The Eucharist becomes the very form for how all believers should live their lives as a reflection of Christ's presence, sacrifice, and communion. Marriage, like the Eucharist, is instituted to transform the mundane world (chapter four). O'Malley summarizes marriage's transformation well: "The day-to-day mission of loving one's spouse, raising children, and participating in social life may become an efficacious sign of divine love...

The Pietist Revival’s Implications for Church Ministry in the Post-Pandemic Church

This article contends that the Pietist revival of the seventeenth century provides a “usable past” that the contemporary church, currently reeling from the global Covid-19 pandemic, can learn from. It chronicles how the Pietist movement was born out of major disruption, rediscovered vital Biblical emphases and methods such as the common priesthood doctrine, the spiritual giftedness of all God’s people, and small-group spiritual formation. Such emphases inspired many Pietists to improve the church’s moral and spiritual life, ameliorate society’s most pressing social problems, and evangelize their neighbors and new people groups. This article closes by exploring how Pietism’s most vital emphases and methods might be appropriately applied in the post-pandemic church. The goal is that the post-pandemic church will emerge healthier and more vibrant than the contemporary and pre-pandemic church.

For the Renowal Theology of Sacramnetal Priesthood

The sacrament of priesthood within the whole space of the development of the Church and its presence in civilisation is one of the key issues. It proves its meaning as well as the necessity of undertaking an ongoing reflection in the context of challenges resulting from the civilisation development. Theology of priesthood is also an essential aspect that has a multi-dimension character and, as such, is a subject of various fields of theology as well as non-theological ones. A reflection upon its relation to a common priesthood of all the faithful, resulting from the sacrament of Baptism, comes into special importance nowadays. Present-day challenges resulting from the development of culture post-modernity require a clear and precise drawing of the essence of sacramental priesthood. The Sacrament of Orders which defines the character and charisma of the called one brings the inseparable sacramental bond with the Christ the Highest and the Only Patriarch. We can find a proper charismatic identity of priesthood in this relation. The other dimension of this charisma is the mission, in which a priest acts in persona Christi. The dual charismatic dimension makes a proper way of making out and understanding the identity of a priest. It means that a priest cannot be substituted in his vocation and the authority which he receives in The Sacrament of Holy Orders and the unity with his bishop. Properly understood and made out identity needs the competent preparation and formation of the candidates to the priesthood, those who have already received Orders and those who are responsible for it alike. All dimensions of formation must be properly integrated. The essential integrating element in the process of ongoing formation is specific priestly spirituality. It means that the fact who a priest is, and then what his mission is, results from the unity of a priest with Christ. The already mentioned civilisation challenges require permanent studies of the ways and methods of the formation. This way the process of formation defends itself from naturalistic or spiritualistic one-sidedness, which a present Pope Francis reminded of, when he said about two “subtle enemies of sanctity”, which are “a present-day Gnosticism” and “a present-day Pelagianism".

The Sacrament of Confirmation and the Common Priesthood of Believers: The Study of the Relation with Regard to the Specific Context of the Czech and Slovak Churches

The article asks a question about the link between the comprehension of believers of their common priesthood and the authentic place of confirmation within Christian initiation, enabling one to participate in the tria munera Christi. First of all, the author explains the role of the term, ‘common priesthood’ in the theology of the sacrament of confirmation and its origin in Christ, the only perfect High priest of the New Testament and in the priestly nature of his body, the Church as it is presented by the universal magisterial documents since the Second Vatican Council. This reality is manifested in unity and order of the Christian initiation. A following part describes how this feature has not been included in the Czech and Slovak instructions and episcopal documents and explores a local praxis. The unity of the three sacraments is understood in a superficial manner, and their order is underestimated or doubted in this area; however, pastoral needs and a link between confirmation and the age of adolescence is determining. In consequence, the faithful cannot perceive the signs referring to the reality of common priesthood and the effects of confirmation are reduced. The last part tries to answer the question what can be done to renew the authentic place of confirmation in local communities in order to enable believers to grasp their participation on Christ’s threefold office in a better way.

Protestantismo y Concilio Vaticano II: una original tesis de Alberto Methol Ferré

Durante buena parte de los últimos 500 años, católicos y protestantes han vivido ajenos unos de otros, cuando no llenos de mutua hostilidad. No obstante, un cambio profundo se operó con el Concilio Vaticano II. El pensador latinoamericano contemporáneo Alberto Methol Ferré considera que la Iglesia católica se había colocado, inicialmente, a la defensiva frente a dos grandes desafíos de la Modernidad –la Reforma y la Ilustración–, pero modificó su postura a partir del Vaticano II, asumiendo lo más valioso de ambas tradiciones. En este artículo se analizará la tesis de Methol Ferré para el caso de la Reforma Protestante, en especial en los temas referidos a la Iglesia y el bautismo, el laicado y al sacerdocio común de los fieles.

Inspired by New Testament Priesthood

This paper gives a detailed exegetical study of priesthood in the New Testament as gleaned from the Letter to the Hebrews, Paul’s authentic letters, the Letters of later Pauline Communities, and the pastoral letters of Peter and Titus, with reference to the Gospels of Mathew and John as well as Revelation. Clearly for the New Testament writers, priesthood is not a cultic affair, but rather the living out of Christ’s one and only self-sacrifice for others. The author then contrasts the way in which ministries administered by a variety of people in the New Testament came to be accumulated in the ordained priesthood of the contemporary Catholic Church. Priests can actualise the priesthood as co-workers in a communion, realising their ministry in collaboration, both among themselves (ministerial priesthood), and with the laity (common priesthood), all contributing their specific gifts to the Body of Christ. And so Christ can be fully present and active in church and society. He concludes by noting that this vision is not far from the transforming vision of a community church as has been propagated by the Lumko Pastoral Institute.Â

Dykasteria ds. Laikatu, Rodziny i Życia Geneza, zadania i struktura

Sobór Watykański II dowartościował rodziny i świeckich i ich apostolstwo, podkreślając, że świeccy stanowią Kościół – wspólnotę Ludu Bożego, uczestniczą w potrójnej misji Chrystusa, są obdarowani łaską kapłaństwa wspólnego i mają właściwe sobie powołanie. Na kanwie tego nauczania Jan Paweł II ustanowił Papieską Radę Świeckich i Papieską Radę ds. Rodziny, które papież Franciszek przekształcił w Dykasterię ds. Laikatu, Rodziny i Życia. Dykasteria ta kieruje współczesnym apostolstwem świeckich i rodzin w całym Kościele.

Sacrifice as the Key to Understanding the Difference and Relationship Between the Priesthood of the Baptized and of the Ordained

Sacrifice as the Key to Understanding the Difference and Relationship Between the Priesthood of the Baptized and of the Ordained Matthew J. Albright (bio) I. Introduction A precise understanding of the common priesthood of the baptized, both in relationship to Jesus Christ and vis-à-vis the ministerial priesthood of the ordained, continues to elude us, as evidenced by the appearance of a modern clericalism and novel attempts at sharing the duties of ordained priest with the laity. The common priesthood and the hierarchical priesthood both descend from divine origin and are rooted in Scripture and Tradition. Yet, in response to the emphasis placed on the common priesthood by the Fathers of the Second Vatican Council—in stark contrast to the historical experience in some places of a heavily cultic priesthood distant from the laity—there has been a frenzy of disparate interpretations. Some of these have stripped both ordained ministry and the universal call to holiness offered to all the baptized of their unique connotations. Rooted in the Old Testament and fulfilled in the life of the Church, the Priesthood of Jesus Christ himself becomes the source of the Christian understanding of priesthood and of the two manifestations of priesthood in the Church. The centrality of the life and ministry of Jesus, particularly his sacrifice on the Cross, is the core of the identity and experience of priesthood. Both in the sacred liturgy and in the life of costly discipleship, the sacrifice of Christ is manifest for the baptized and the ordained. The celebration of Christ’s sacrifice in the Eucharistic liturgy and the living out of the sacrificial dimension of discipleship is the key to understanding the priesthood of the baptized and of the [End Page 310] ordained. Properly understood, both priesthoods mutually support and nourish one another for the complete flourishing of the whole Body of Christ. In liturgy and in life, the disciple is defined by his sharing in the sacrifice of Christ. Pope Francis has been clearly emphasizing the importance of a personal encounter with Jesus as the foundation for all we are and do as a Church. To the members of the Society of Jesus gathered at the Church of the Gesù in Rome for the feast day of Saint Ignatius, Pope Francis delivered a homily using the emblem of the Society—the monogram IHS—to illustrate “the centrality of Christ for each one of us and for the whole Company, the Company that Saint Ignatius wanted to name ‘of Jesus’ to indicate the point of reference.”1 Jesus Christ is the point of reference for the life of the whole Church, for the life of every disciple and, in a particular way, for our understanding of priesthood. The Christian life is an encounter with Christ. Living the common and ministerial priesthoods is possible only when we understand the priesthood of Christ in which both find their origin. Pope St John Paul II spoke to the bishops of the northwest region of the United States on October 9, 1998 about the foundational role of the priesthood for understanding the proper role of the faithful in the sacred liturgy: “The sharing of all the baptized in the one priesthood of Jesus Christ is the key to understanding the Council’s call for ‘full, conscious and active participation’ in the liturgy (Sacrosanctum Concilium, 14).”2 This is true not only for liturgical participation but for the whole Christian life. Our sharing in Christ’s life, in particular his priesthood, defines how we live out the call to discipleship and our own individual vocations. We will see how Jesus builds on the ancient priesthood and leaves behind a new participation in his eternal priesthood that is manifest in the life of the Church. II. Priesthood in the Old Covenant God spoke to his faithful people from ages past through the Patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; Moses and the Judges; the [End Page 311] Kings David and Solomon; in various and sundry ways through the prophets. In the Old Testament, “we can distinguish two forms of the reality of the priesthood.”3 First, “the non-specialized exercise of priestly functions” is “carried out by the...

Making Sense of History: Henri-Irénée Marrou’s Theological Scope

Henri-Irenee Marrou is a well-known French historian, who lived between the years 1904 and 1977. He specialized in late Antiquity and early Middle Ages, and wrote extensively about the Fathers of the Church, particularly St. Augustine. Among his works are De la connaissance historique, in which he examines history and its challenges; Theologie de I'histoire, which analyzes the global problems of history and time from the point of view of a Christian historian; Histoire de I'education dans I'Antiquite; and Decadence romaine ou Antiquite tardive. The aim of this article is to describe Marrou's vision of the meaning of history, a vision that takes its fundamental elements from his Catholic faith, but is also shaped by his personal commitments as a citizen in his own time and place.To achieve this aim, I have studied his Theologie de I'histoire, but also some other of his writings, especially L'ambivalence du temps chez Saint Augustin and his article Tristesse de l'historien. After a short introduction sketching Marrou's life and work, I will explain his critiques to those who forget the eschatological dimension of faith and to some philosophers, who pretend to know the laws of history or, on the contrary, think that history is nonsensical. Secondly, I will develop the main lines of Marrou's arguments: the responsibility in the building of the civitas terrena; the coexistence of good and evil in this world; and the renewal of eschatology. In all of these, the influence of Augustine's teachings is clear and acknowledged by Marrou. 1. Introduction: The Man and His Work Understanding human beings involves, as Henri-Irenee Marrou often repeated, the ability to achieve a sympathetic understanding of them. This implies developing genuine friendships, inserting oneself into the vital circumstances of a friend's life, and from that point trying to understand his or her actions and choices. Marrou was, as his disciple Pierre Riche rightly defined him, an historien engage, (1) a committed man. He was committed to his faith, his homeland, and his profession, which he always perceived as a forum for serving the truth. Because of this, I shall begin by saying a few words about how these various commitments influenced his work. The first aspect that should be pointed out is that he was a Christian; more specifically, a Catholic who sought to live out his life in a manner consistent with his faith and who was troubled by the vicissitudes that his Church was experiencing at the time. Referring to his Theologie de I'histoire, he stated that the book was no more than a simple meditation on the second plea in the Lord's Prayer: 'Thy Kingdom come.'Yes; although we repeat them so often, do we really know what these words mean? (2) This work, written immediately after the Second Vatican Council, develops some of the key issues discussed at that assembly: The nature of the Church as the People of God, together with a recognition of its community-based features (without abandoning the personal dimension of the relationship with God) and the role played by the laity in the Church and the common priesthood of the faithful; as well as the links between Church and culture. Soon after we begin reading Theologie de I'histoire, it strikes us that we are being given a glimpse into the author's private thoughts, and that he is not only posing questions about the fate of his civilization and the meaning of this never-ending flow of cultures throughout history, but also, above all, about how he, as a Christian, should live if he is to use his own life to help build the City of God: This is not about producing a new treatise on apologetics; before seeking the conversion of others, which is always easy (at least on paper), one should strive to convert oneself. At the doctrinal level, one should first ask oneself what one's profession of faith means and, most particularly, if this can shed light on one's path (and how this can happen) and guide one's conduct through the dense and ominous jungle that is history. …

Kapłaństwo wspólne w celebracji Eucharystii

The secular believers through baptism are incorporated into Christ’s priesthood. We are talking about the common priesthood of all the baptized. As “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God” (1 Peter 2: 9) they are destined for divine worship, for conscious and active participation in the liturgy of the Church, for sharing the sacrifice of the Eucharist, for the sacramental life, for prayer, for thanksgiving, for testimony of life and active love. Reborn in Baptism, anointed with the Holy Spirit, as a spiritual house and a holy priesthood they are called to offer spiritual sacrifices by all Christian works. By participating in the dignity of the priesthood, which enables them to make a real sacrifice, that is Jesus Christ and to connect with it the sacrifice of their own lives, through those they become agents of grace and give true worship to God. Specific Eucharistic assembly reveals the Church as the Mystical Body of Christ, where It is the head of the body, the congregation are individual members. In the liturgy of the Eucharist, Christ fulfils his head function by gathering the believers through the hierarchy and sanctifies them. He makes them a holy person, that is the Church, and together with it he gives glory to his Father. He makes it also in the common prayer of praise to God the Father (cf. SC 83). The whole congregation in communion with Christ is the subject of the liturgy of the Eucharist. Liturgy is therefore the work of Christ and the Church, and He is the principal operant as the sole mediator between God and men. In the liturgy of the Eucharist as the common activity of the whole priestly Body of Christ, the common priesthood of the people of God is realized. The believers in virtue of their common priesthood join in the sacrifice of the Eucharist (cf. SC 10). The Eucharistic assembly embodies the common priesthood and by active participation in the liturgy of the Eucharist it performs specific assembly functions, as well as the functions performed by some members of the congregation. Lively awareness of the people of God, gathered for the celebration of the Eucharist, their participation in the priesthood of Christ, protects liturgy from clericalisation, where the celebrant does everything from the beginning to the end. Active participation in the Eucharist, growing out of the common priesthood, makes a living community of the Eucharistic assembly.

The Memory of Baptism in the Introductory Rites of the Holy Mass

Sprinkling with water as a sign of covenant and purification is rooted in the Old Testament. Although Christians accepted the biblical symbolism of water, sprinkling with it in the liturgy encountered resistance. In ancient times that reluctance resulted from the similarity of sprinkling to pagan rites, in the Middle Ages and during the Reformation from the danger of treating this rite in the liturgy as a repetition of baptism. The rite of sprinkling initially had no connection with the liturgy of the Mass, later it became the rite preceding the Mass (Asperges) and it was of purifying and penitential character. The development of the introductory rites in the Mass led to the formation of the penitential act among them, which in the post-Tridentine Missal took the form of the Confiteor. The post-conciliar Missal of Paul VI included Asperges in the introductory rites of the Mass providing for the possibility of replacing the penitential act on Sunday with Asperges, and at the same time treating it as the memory of baptism. The analyses of the subsequent editions of the post-conciliar Missal indicate, among others, the connection of Asperges with the liturgy of baptism during the Easter Vigil. The prayers of Asperges also highlight the baptismal character of the common priesthood of the faithful. The service which completes the rite of Missal Asperges is Vespers of Resurrection Sunday connected with the sprinkling of baptismal water.

Allgemeines Priestertum und ordiniertes Amt, Ehrenamtliche und Berufstätige: Ein Vorschlag zur Strukturierung verwickelter Debatten

Abstract Common Priesthood and Ordained Ministry, Volunteers and Professionals: A Proposal for Structuring a Complex Debate. Today there are many on regarding the definitions of and relations between different actors in the church, whereby often the related discourses are ignored. A tendency for reduction to the classic debate on the relations between the common priesthood and the ordained ministry can be observed, which ignores a theological reflection about the modern phenomena of volunteering and professionalism. The article proposes a four-fold plan for describing relationships, and discusses how understanding can be improved.

From state church to faith community: an analysis of worldly and spiritual power in the Church of Sweden

The aim of this article is to discuss the current legislation, and power structures in and between different levels of the Church of Sweden in terms of church–state relations and secularisation, with the help of theories from sociology of religion and ecclesiology drawn from José Casanova, Grace Davie and Avery Dulles. With themes from Lutheran theology, including the two regiments and the common priesthood of all believers, we analyse the current legislation and power structures from the perspective of the so-called ‘dual line of responsibility’. The underlying hypothesis is that the structures of the former state church are still deciding the power structures in the Church of Sweden. This creates obscurity concerning the role of the church in public society and negatively affects the ecclesiastical development of the church now that it has lost its earlier status as a state church.

Eucharistic Concelebration: From Symbol to Reality (review)

Reviewed by: Eucharistic Concelebration: From Symbol to Reality Sean O. Sheridan T.O.R. Eucharistic Concelebration: From Symbol to Reality by Guillaume Derville. Montreal: Wilson & Lafleur, Ltée, 2011. In Eucharistic Concelebration: From Symbol to Reality, Monsignor Guillaume Derville considers Eucharistic celebration as part of the new "Liturgical Movement" that Pope Benedict XVI has encouraged. Derville divides his work into three chapters. The first chapter is entitled "A Historical View of Eucharistic Concelebration" (7-39). Although Derville gives a very brief overview of the historical concept of Eucharistic concelebration, he devotes the majority of this chapter to the teachings on concelebration of the Second Vatican Council and the relevant post-conciliar documents. As should be anticipated, he focuses on the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy Sacrosanctum concilium (17-27), primarily articles 57 and 58 granting permission for concelebration, and the concept of the communion of priesthood with the episcopacy as addressed in the decree Presbyterorum ordinis (27-32). In this chapter, Derville briefly reviews the important post-conciliar documents on concelebration, e.g., the instructions Eucharisticum Mysterium (32-33), Inæstimabile Donum (35) and Redemptionis sacramentum (36), the 1970 and 2000 Institutio Generalis Missalis Romani (IGMR) (34, 35), and the declaration In celebratio Missae (34-35). He also briefly addresses canon 902 of the 1983 Code of Canon Law and canon 700 of the Code of Canons for the Eastern Churches (37-38). Derville concludes chapter one with the invitation to reflect on how concelebration is a sign of unity of the ministerial priesthood and the conditions under which concelebration is appropriate. (39). He considers these questions in greater depth in chapter two. Derville entitles the second chapter "Unity of the Priesthood: Reality and Representation" (41-58). Having introduced the relevant documents in chapter one, Derville reflects on them more closely in chapter two and also [End Page 311] provides a discussion of Saint Thomas Aquinas' Question 82, Article 2 of the Summa theologiæ. Thomas Aquinas noted that "the Eucharist is the Sacrament of unity of the Church" (42) and pointed to concelebration at the Mass of priestly ordination. "[I]n the same way that the Apostles ate with Christ during the Last Supper and that day received the power to consecrate, so those who have just been ordained concelebrate with the bishop who ordains them" (43). In addition to considering these texts to analyze the unity of the ministerial priesthood, Derville addresses the topic of "presbyterate and brotherhood", including the role of the ministerial priesthood to be at the service of the common priesthood (52-56). Derville entitles the third chapter "Configuration of the Priest to Christ in Eucharistic Celebration: Some Theological-Pastoral Considerations" (59-95). In this chapter, Derville considers the manner and circumstances under which concelebration should occur. For example, he discusses the portions of the Eucharistic liturgy in which the concelebrant actively participates, where a concelebrant should be located in relationship to the altar of sacrifice, and the vestments he should wear (63-84). Derville concludes this third chapter with a discussion directed to the priest who is contemplating whether or not to concelebrate. Derville poses two questions to the priest about how he might participate in the Eucharist: "[F]irst, what happens to the reality that is made present, that is with the Eucharist, which makes present the Paschal mystery (including the sign and the dignity of the celebration in its essential aspect of prayer and worship)? Second, is my action oriented towards service and the good of the people?" (88-89). Throughout the text, Derville supports his observations and comments with an abundance of official ecclesiastical documents as well as various commentators on the texts. While he references only a handful of the works that commentators originally published in English, this work makes accessible to an English speaking audience the numerous works of the foreign language commentators that he considers. With its ample sources, this work would be of particular relevance to those persons interested in liturgical law, but should also be useful for all priests as they consider both the sign and action of Eucharistic concelebration. [End Page 312] Sean O. Sheridan T.O.R. The Catholic University of America School of Canon...