---
title: "What is Holy Orders?"
url: "https://seekabove.com/answers/what-is-holy-orders"
description: "Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission Christ gave his apostles is carried on in the Church through bishops, priests, and deacons. By the laying on of hands and the prayer of consecra…"
published: "2026-06-05"
updated: "2026-06-05"
category: "The Sacraments"
scripture: ["Luke 22:19", "John 20:21-23", "Acts 6:6", "2 Timothy 1:6"]
catechism: "CCC 1536, 1538, 1547, 1554, 1581"
---

# What is Holy Orders?

## Short answer

Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission Christ gave his apostles
is carried on in the Church through bishops, priests, and deacons. By the laying
on of hands and the prayer of consecration, a man is configured to Christ to
serve God's people — teaching, sanctifying, and shepherding in Christ's name.

## Full explanation

When Jesus founded the Church, he did not leave it leaderless. He chose apostles,
shared his own authority with them, and told them to continue his work — to
preach, to baptize, to forgive sins, to "do this in remembrance of me." Holy
Orders is the sacrament that hands that commission forward, generation after
generation, so that the Church in every age still has shepherds who act with the
authority Christ gave, not authority they invented for themselves.

The sacrament has three degrees. **Bishops** receive its fullness: a bishop
stands in the line of the apostles, can ordain others, and is responsible for an
entire local church. **Priests** are co-workers of the bishop, ordained to
celebrate the Eucharist, absolve sins, anoint the sick, and care for parishes.
**Deacons** are ordained not to the priesthood but to service — assisting at the
liturgy, proclaiming the Gospel, baptizing, witnessing marriages, and leading
works of charity. All three are conferred the same way: a bishop lays his hands
on the man in silence and prays the prayer of consecration.

The most important thing to grasp is what ordination actually does. A priest does
not simply take a job, the way someone is hired as a manager. He is changed — an
indelible mark is set on his soul that can never be erased, which is why ordination
is never repeated. Because of that change, when a priest stands at the altar or
hears a confession, he acts *in the person of Christ*: it is really Christ who
offers the sacrifice and Christ who forgives, working through the priest as an
instrument. The man remains a sinner like everyone else, but the sacrament does
not depend on his personal goodness; it depends on Christ.

A useful image is an ambassador. An ambassador's words carry the weight of his
country, not because he is personally impressive, but because he has been
officially sent and authorized to speak for someone greater than himself. Strip
away the office and his opinions are just his own. The ordained minister is like
that: through Holy Orders Christ authorizes him to act and speak in his name, so
that the Good Shepherd keeps shepherding his people through human hands.

This is also why ordination is fundamentally about service, not status. The model
is Christ washing his disciples' feet. The authority is real, but it exists to
give life away, not to lord it over anyone.

## Why this matters

Holy Orders is the reason the sacraments remain available at all. Without
ordained ministers there is no Eucharist, no absolution in confession, no
anointing of the dying. The sacrament guarantees that Christ's saving work is not
locked in the past but reaches people today through ordinary men who have been set
apart to make him present. It assures believers that the grace they receive at the
altar does not rest on a particular priest's holiness, but on Christ acting
through him.

## Common misunderstanding

People often assume a priest is essentially a religious professional — a kind of
trained employee who runs services and gives talks. But ordination isn't a career
credential; it changes who the man *is*, configuring him to Christ for life.
Relatedly, some think a bad priest can't give valid sacraments. The Church teaches
the opposite: because Christ is the one who acts, a validly celebrated sacrament
is genuine even when the minister is unworthy. The sinner's failings are real and
serious, but they don't empty the sacrament of Christ's power.

## Scripture connections

- **Luke 22:19** — at the Last Supper Jesus commands the apostles to "do this,"
  entrusting them with the celebration of the Eucharist.
- **John 20:21-23** — the risen Christ sends the apostles as the Father sent him
  and gives them authority to forgive sins.
- **Acts 6:6** — the apostles lay hands on the first servants of the community,
  the gesture at the heart of ordination.
- **2 Timothy 1:6** — Paul reminds Timothy of the grace given him "through the
  laying on of hands," showing ordination handed forward as a gift.

## Church teaching references

- CCC 1536, 1538, 1547, 1554, 1581
- The Second Vatican Council (Lumen Gentium 28) describes priests as co-workers of
  the bishops who share in Christ's one priesthood for the service of the people
  of God.

## Reflection question

When you think about the priests, bishops, or deacons in your own life, how might
seeing their office as service rather than status change the way you pray for them?