Article II: On the Secondary Minister of Celebration

S. Th. III, q. 82, a. 1, 2, 5, 6, 7 and 8; q. 78, a. 1 and 4; q. 83, a. 1, ad 3.

330. Thesis. All priests, and priests alone, are secondary ministers properly so called in the sacrifice of the altar (can. 802), as being the only ones designated by Christ in the Apostles through the words: Do this in commemoration of Me. - It is of faith from Lateran Council IV, c. 1 and Trent, sess. 22, c. 1 and can. 2, and from the doctrine of faith concerning the sacrament of Order.

Thus against certain Gnostics, even admitting women, and against the Waldenses, who judged all pious men apt, and against Lutherans and Calvinists saying that all baptized Christians are priests.

It is proved: 1. From the universal and perpetual practice of the Church, which is found testified by the Fathers, such as Ignatius, to the Smyrnaeans, VIII, 1; Justin, 1 apol., 65; Origen, in Num. hom. IV, 3; Cyprian, ep. 5 and 63; Eusebius, dem. ev. IV, 3; Chrysostom, de Sac. III, 4; Jerome, ep. 146; Ambrose, in Ps. XXXVIII, 7; L. de Sacr. IV, 4; Augustine, C. D. XVI, 22; XVII, 17; and it was confirmed by the Councils of Nicaea I, can. 18; Lateran IV, c. 1; Florence, decree for the Greeks; Trent, sess. 22, c. 1, can. 2; sess. 23, c. 1 and 4, can. 1.

2. By the reason which St. Thomas brings, q. 82, a. 1: "This sacrament is of such great dignity that it is not confected except in the person of Christ. But whoever does something in the person of another, this must be done by a power conceded by that one. Therefore, just as to the baptized there is conceded by Christ the power of receiving this sacrament, so to a priest, when he is ordained, there is conferred the power of consecrating this sacrament in the person of Christ. For by this he is placed in the rank of those to whom it was said by the Lord (Luke XXII, 19): Do this in commemoration of Me. And therefore it must be said that it is proper to priests to confect this sacrament."

The power of a priest consists in the indelible character of order, whence he validly consecrates even if he is evil, heretical, schismatic, suspended, excommunicated, degraded: for a priest does not consecrate in his own name and by his own power, but in the name of Christ, in whose person he acts as minister, and by the power of God Himself. Nor does someone cease by this very fact to be a minister of Christ, because he is evil. Cf. Council of Trent, sess. 7, can. 12; sess. 23, c. 4, can. 4; Council of Constance, sess. 8, prop. 4 and art. 22.

331. Several priests can consecrate and sacrifice together. - Not indeed as partial causes, whether on the part of the form, of which each would pronounce a part, or on the part of power, as if no one had sufficient power for consecrating alone but only all together; but as total causes, each of which effects the consecration, provided that they pronounce all the words of the form, and their intention is borne to the same instant at which all have completed the form, so that together they posit one sign. Therefore it does not suffice that "several priests validly concelebrate the sacrifice of the Mass, if only one of them utters the words This is My body and This is My blood over the bread and wine, while the rest do not utter the words of the Lord, but with the celebrant knowing and consenting, have and manifest the intention of making his words and actions their own." But "from the institution of Christ, he alone validly celebrates who pronounces the consecratory words." Response of the Congregation of the Holy Office, May 23, 1957.

In the Latin Church concelebration is licit only in the ordination of priests and in the Mass of the consecration of bishops (can. 803), and otherwise gravely prohibited; but in the Eastern Church it is still in use. Let concelebrants take care that they finish the words together (at least morally) with the principal celebrant, and that they have at least the implicit intention of consecrating not before him but together with him; for this the intention of doing in the better way, or of doing what the Church intends, suffices.

332. In what way the priest is a true minister of the sacrifice. - The minister of the sacrifice is he upon whose will the oblation and immolation of the victim depends, and who wills it in honor of God. But

1. at the will of the priest, placing the matter and form with due intention, Christ becomes present and is unbloodily immolated;

2. the priest wills this immolation in honor of God at least implicitly: for he who wills to do what Christ does or what the Church intends, implicitly wills to offer sacrifice in honor of God, because Christ and the Church intend this.

But if a wicked priest did not will to sacrifice, yet with a predominating will nevertheless wished to consecrate, he would not offer in his own name, but only in the name of Christ and the Church.

333. What is required in a priest so that as minister of Christ he may licitly sacrifice. - That a priest may licitly consecrate and sacrifice, it is further required that he be in the state of grace, regularly to be recovered from a preceding confession in the case of sin, that he be bound by no censure, irregularity, or canonical impediment, and that he exist fasting from midnight (can. 807 and 808), as was already explained in n. 271 and 281.

A priest celebrating in mortal sin does not seem to commit several distinct sins, namely an unworthy confection, ministration by an unworthy person, ministration made to an unworthy person, and unworthy reception, but one sin, because all those things are ordered to one sacrifice; although the sin is so much graver because it contains several malices.

334. In what sense the Church and the faithful are said to offer the sacrifice. - The Church and the faithful are called offerers, not indeed in the proper or ministerial sense, insofar as the oblation and immolation of the victim and its ordering in honor of God would depend upon their will, but improperly, insofar as they concur in the sacrificial oblation and immolation or participate in the intention of honoring God, and thus are morally united to the priest.

1. They can participate in the intention of honoring God, joining their will to the will of Christ and of the priest:

a) by implicit and habitual will, as the Church does: for Christ offers Himself for the society of the Church, of which He is head, and the priest, by designation of the Church, offers the sacrifice in the name of the whole Church, i.e., of all the faithful (even infants);

b) more perfectly by explicit and actual will, by uniting one's intention to the intention of Christ and of the priest;

c) better, by assisting at the sacrifice and externally manifesting the internal intention;

d) best finally, by assisting and at the same time communicating: for thus they most fully become participants in the sacrifice and manifest their assent to it, confessing that the sacrifice is offered for them and that the victim, Christ, has been immolated for them (I Cor. X, 18).

2. They can concur externally in the sacrifice:

a) by asking or procuring that the sacrifice be celebrated, for example by furnishing a stipend, making a foundation, etc.;

b) by furnishing the things necessary for the sacrifice, such as vessels, vestments, lights, bread, wine, etc.;

c) by serving at the altar, especially as deacon.

The cooperation is greater the nearer it is objectively to the sacrifice, or the more perfect the disposition with which it is subjectively furnished.

335. Protestants object from I Pet. II, 9: "But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood," whence they say that all are priests and can offer sacrifice as such.

Resp. All are a royal priesthood in an improper sense, I concede; in the proper sense, I deny. For according to the context the faithful ought to offer spiritual victims to God, as Peter himself explained, v. 5; or, as Paul says, Rom. XII, 1, to present their bodies as a living victim to God; therefore they are priests according to analogy. - But if sometimes they are said to offer the sacrifice itself of the altar, they do this through the mediation of priests, as was explained.