When Is the Exact Moment a Man Becomes a Priest?

A listener named Carl calls into the show and asks, “During an ordination, when is the exact moment that a deacon becomes a priest?”

Father Dave explains, “I think what you are asking is when is the sacramental moment? … Matter and form are what make a Sacrament. The matter is the laying on of hands of the bishop onto the head of those being ordained. Coupled with the form, which are the words of the consecration prayer. The way the rite of ordination is described is that after the bishop lays hands on those being ordained, so will all of the priests who are present line up one-by-one and do the same.”

Father Dave further describes this process: “This is usually either done in complete silence or with gentle chanting. This allows for the full experience of the coming down of the Holy Spirit. It is also something that is so stark that we would not typically do in our modern world, having 10 minutes of something happening visually in silence. After this, the bishop prays the ordination prayer, which is the form. It is this whole moment: the laying on of the hands and the ordination prayer.

“Because sacramentally, we would say, if he lays his hands on his head for 10 seconds, at the end of that 10 seconds is he a priest? No. Because it is that and the consecration prayer that affects the Sacrament. So, is it at the very end of the consecration prayer, period, amen, and now he’s a priest? Well, I suppose, if we had to say that, sure, but the idea is that it is both of those together that make the Sacrament. The moment, I will say it’s a moment, but in this case, it is a long moment. Certainly, we can be confident that after that they are in fact priests.”

Carl also asks about the part of ordination when the men lay prostrate on the floor. Father Dave explains that this happens before the actual ordination moment, “The reason why we do this is because we are praying right before the Sacrament happens, we are asking for the intercession of all the saints in Heaven.” (Original Air 5-16-18)

Photo credit: Cardinal Joseph Tobin, C.Ss.R, the Archbishop of Newark, laying hands on Ryan Casey at his ordination to the priesthood, May 19, 2018, at Saint Paul the Apostle in New York City. Photo by Joe Jenkins.