An Outline of an Anglican Life (Tarsitano, 1994)/Lesson Five

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Lesson Five: The Minor Sacraments is the fifth lesson of Louis R. Tarsitano's An Outline of an Anglican Life. Following the preceding lesson on the dominical sacraments (Baptism and the Holy Communion), it treats the five minor or lesser sacraments — Confirmation, Penance, Matrimony, Holy Orders, and the Anointing of the Sick — in the book's question-and-answer form, setting out for each its outward and visible sign, its inward and spiritual grace, and its proper minister, object, form, matter, and intention.

What Are the Minor Sacraments?

What are the minor sacraments?

The minor sacraments are: Confirmation; Penance; Matrimony; Holy Orders; and the Anointing of the Sick (see Article XXV, "Of the Sacraments," BCP 607, and the preceding lesson).

Why do we call them "minor sacraments"?

We call them "minor" or "lesser," not because they are unimportant, but because they are not required of all mankind for the sake of salvation, as are Baptism and the Holy Communion (the dominical sacraments).

What is the basis of the minor sacraments?

The basis of the minor sacraments is God's good will towards mankind as revealed in the Scriptures (see, for example, Psalm 65; Luke 12:6-7); the teaching and church discipline of the Apostles; the practice of the undivided Church; and the Church, today, as the Body of Christ and a Scripturally mandated instrumentality of God to administer grace to his people (see 1 Corinthians 12, especially 4-11 and 28). It denies nothing of God's absolute sovereignty or his independence of mankind to act (see Isaiah 55:8-9), to affirm as well that the Church lives under Christ's commandment to feed his lambs and to feed his sheep (John 21:15-17).

It may be helpful to consider that the dominical sacraments of Baptism and the Holy Communion are the outward and visible signs of the ultimate restoration of the members of die Church[ed 1] to the state of unfallen man (see Romans 8:18-23; Revelation 21:1-5; Revelation 22:1-5; and the collect "O merciful God," in the Order for the Burial of the Dead, BCP 334-335). In the dominical sacraments we are restored to eternal life and fellowship with our Creator. Life and fellowship were the gifts that God intended in our creation. Sin took them away. Christ makes it possible, by our incorporation into his own life as members of his Body, for us to have them again. The dominical sacraments are a foretaste" of what we shall be and possess when Christ's redemptive work is completed in us, in the resurrection of the dead. In a very real sense the mission or the Church is to provide mankind with the opportunity to "taste, and see, how gracious the Lord is" (Psalm 34:8) in this world, so that we may know him and enjoy him forever in the life of the world to come.

The minor sacraments, on the other hand, are merciful provisions for our life in a fallen world (see Psalm 23). The perfection of the work of the dominical sacraments will do away with our need for the minor sacraments. Now we need the sacramental gift of the anointing of the Holy Ghost in Confirmation, so that we may grow up in Christ and come to his eternal kingdom. Then we will have face to face, eternal fellowship with God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost (see 1 Corinthians 13:10-12).

Now we need a sacrament of forgiveness, but in the fullness of Christ we will be cured of sin and have no more sin to repent (see 1 Corinthians 15:51-57). Even though the first marriage occurred in Eden before the Fall, when Adam and Eve were joined together in fellowship with their Creator, now we need an outward and visible sign of matrimony to remind us of what marriage was meant to be, and to be the sacrament of the mystical union between Christ and his Church (Ephesians 5:22-33; the Exhortation of the Form of Solemnization of Matrimony, BCP 300). Now we must make promises because we are still capable of breaking them; then we will be beyond vows and promises because the unity of the redeemed and God will be consummated forever in the wedding feast of the Lamb (Matthew 22:30; Revelation 19:7-9; 21:1-7).

In this world we still have need of the outward sign of a representative ministry called to do the work of Christ on earth. Then we will live in the presence of our great High Priest before the throne of the Father, completely restored to the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls (Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:8-10; 10:19-25; 1 Peter 2:25). In this world, our bodies become ill, and we need the sacrament of Christ's healing. In the world to come, our resurrected bodies will be beyond sickness and beyond death (1 Corinthians 15:20-26; Revelation 21:4).

The Purpose of the Minor Sacraments

What is the purpose of the minor sacraments?

The purpose of the lesser sacraments is to lead us to Christ, as the visible word of his mercy: to aid us in living better Christian lives (Confirmation, Penance, Matrimony); to aid us in our Christian callings and states of lift (Confirmation, Matrimony, Holy Orders); and to aid us in the crises of this mortal life (Penance and the Anointing of the Sick).

Confirmation: The Anointing with the Holy Ghost

What is Confirmation?

Confirmation is the sacrament of our anointing with the Holy Ghost, gives us grace and strength to follow Christ, to grow up into the image and likeness of our Lord, and to persevere in whatever calling it pleases God to give us (see John 14:15-17,26).[1][ed 2] The word "confirmation" comes from the Latin 'to make firm." It also means "to sign" or "to seal." The English phrase "signed sealed, and delivered," used to describe the completion of a contract, express the sense of "confirmation" very well.

God always works in the unity of the Blessed Trinity. For example, at our Lord's baptism in the Jordan by John the Baptist, the heavens were opened; and is our Lord went up out of the water, the Holy Ghost descended upon him in the form of a dove, and a voice came from heaven, "Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased" (Luke 3:21-22; Matthew 3:16-17). This outward and visible sign of Christ's unity with the Father and the Holy Ghost did not make him the Son of God and the Messiah. The voice and the anointing with the Holy Ghost were the confirmation, the sacrament, the outward and visible sign, that Jesus Christ is the uncreated, eternal Son of God and the promised Messiah. Note that die names "Messiah" (Hebrew) and "Christ" (Greek) mean "the anointed one," "the chosen one."

Similarly, after Christ ascended to the Father, the Holy Ghost descended on the Apostles on Pentecost to confirm them as Christ's: as the outward and visible sign that the Apostles and those who would follow them were those whom Christ had chosen to be his Body (Acts 2:1-4, 14-21).

In the Church today, Confirmation is the outward and visible sign that those who have been baptized into Christ, in the Name of the Trinity, truly are new creatures who belong to God alone. The Holy Ghost confirms and seals this new covenant, this new relationship of grace; and provides the power to fulfill the promises made in Baptism.

Thus, the Second Office of Instruction teaches that our duty as members of Christ's Church, based on our promises in Baptism, may be summarized as: "My bounden duty is to follow Christ, to worship God every Sunday in his Church; and to work and pray and give for the spread of his kingdom." The Office further explains that the Church provides "a special means" to help us do all these things:

The Church provides the Laying on of Hands, or Confirmation, wherein, after renewing the promises and vows of my Baptism, and declaring my loyalty and devotion to Christ as my Master, I receive the strengthening gifts of the Holy Spirit (BCP 291).

Unfortunately, some commentators have tried to limit Confirmation to the renewal or reaffirmation of baptismal vows by the person being confirmed. While we have seen above that renewal is part of true Confirmation, if this were all there were to Confirmation it would not be a sacrament in any sense of the word. Sacraments are blessings that God gives us: not things that we do for God. Holy Ghost does the work in Confirmation, through the Son and his Body the Church, by the commandment of the Father. In Confirmation, we are definitely asking God to do something for us, and so the bishop prays over each Person to be confirmed: "Defend, O Lord, this thy Child with thy heavenly grace that he may continue thine for ever; and daily increase in thy Holy Spirit more and more, until he come unto thy everlasting kingdom. Amen" (The Order of Confirmation, BCP 297. Whenever pronouns are highlighted in the Prater Book. as here, it indicates that they should be changed to agree with the person referred to by them; see also, Jude 24, and Colossians 1:8-11).

Some Christians have called Confirmation "the ordination of the laity" ("laity" meaning "the people of the Church").[2] If ordination is understood in its true sense, the granting of a specific state of life in which divine authority is given to perform work in God's Name, then Confirmation is the ordination of a Christian to witness to the Gospel of Jesus Christ (Acts 1:8).

The outward and visible sign of Confirmation is the laying on of hands by a bishop (accompanied is some jurisdictions of the Church by an anointing with chrism or "holy oil"). In some branches (jurisdictions) of the Church, the bishop may delegate the authority to confirm to a priest, but the authority resides with the bishop as a successor in the fullness of the ministry of the Apostles.

The inward and spiritual grace of Confirmation is the strengthening presence of the Holy Ghost, empowering Christian living and witness.

The Sacramental Administration of Confirmation

The Proper Minister is a bishop (or a priest to whom he has delegated this authority, under the canons and discipline of that branch of the Church). Note that Philip, a deacon (Acts 6:5), did not lay hands on those he had baptized in Samaria (Acts 8:12-17).[3]

The Proper Object is a baptized, but unconfirmed, person. There was only one Pentecost for the Church; there is only one Confirmation for the individual Christian. Remember, however, that this sacrament does not limit the work of the Holy Ghost. The Holy Ghost may come upon those he chooses in any way that he chooses (see Acts 10:44-48; also, John 3:8, where "wind" is a pun on the Greek word for "Spirit"). We are speaking here of a specific, sacramental administration of the Church, practiced by the Apostles, ratified by the Holy Ghost, and recorded in the Bible (Acts 8:14-20). Therefore, if a person has been validly confirmed in another branch of Christ's Catholic Church, but wishes to join the Anglican branch, he is not re-confirmed, but received in this branch in the full standing of a confirmed Christian.

The Proper Form is the laying on of hands by a bishop, accompanied b' prayer that the person to be confirmed will receive the strengthening gifts of tl Holy Ghost. The ancient list of the seven-fold gifts of the Spirit is based on the Septuagint (Greek) text of Isaiah 11:2. These gifts are: wisdom; understanding; counsel; ghostly strength (spiritual strength, fortitude); knowledge; true godliness (piety); and holy fear (the fear of the Lord) (The Order of Confirmation, BCP 297). The naming of these gifts should be included in the form.[4]

The Proper Matter is the laying on of hands by a bishop.

The Proper Intention is to do what the Apostles did and the Church still teaches as her intention: to impart the strengthening gifts of the Holy Ghost to the person being confirmed.

Penance: The Sacrament of Forgiveness

What is Penance?

Penance is the sacrament of the forgiveness of sins, from the Latin word I "regret" or "sorrow." Another name, "Confession," stresses the admission an acknowledgment of sin by the sinner himself. The name "Absolution" stresses h power of God's grace in forgiveness. It comes from the Latin word for "loosing or removing from imperfection." We get our English word "absolute," meaning "perfect," "freed from all imperfection," from the same Latin root. Thus, a penitent person who is absolved (who receives absolution) receives the authoritative assurance that he is perfectly, completely, and absolutely freed from his sins by the grace of God (see Psalm 32:1-2 and Romans 4:5-8; see also, 2 Corinthians 5:18-19).

The outward and visible sign of Penance is the confession of sin by a penitent sinner and the pronouncement of absolution by a priest or bishop. The inward and spiritual grace is God's forgiveness of sins and the grace to grow better.

How is the sacrament of penance received?

The sacrament of Penance is received either corporately (that is, with the whole Body of the Church in some place) through the General Confession and Absolution (BCP 6-7, 23-24, 75); or through a private confession made by an individual Christian to a bishop or priest, followed by godly counsel and his pronouncement of the form of absolution.

Whether received corporately or individually, the sacrament of Penance is the Church's administration of the authority granted to her through the Apostles, by Christ himself, when he said to them on the evening of the day of Resurrection:

As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. . . . Receive ye the Holy Ghost. Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained (John 20:21-23).

It is worth remembering here that the word "apostle" means in Greek "one who is sent." The force of the word is that an "apostle" is a deputy, an ambassador, a delegate who is dispatched by a king to act with his authority. The Apostles of Christ were charged with preaching and administering the work of forgiveness that the Father had sent the Son into the world to perform on his behalf. See also, Matthew 9:2-8; 2 Corinthians 2:9-10; James 5:14-15; 1 John 1:9; and the promise in Psalm 51:17.

We may, of course, always appeal to our Father in heaven, through his Son, by the Holy Ghost, for the forgiveness of our sins. Any Christian who repents his sins and prays to God for forgiveness is forgiven his sins (again, see Psalm 32; see also, Job 42:1-6; 1 John 1:9; the Comfortable Words in the Holy Communion, BCP 76; and the petition for repentance and forgiveness in the Litany, BCP 57). The sacrament of Penance is an outward and visible sign of that forgiveness, and an assurance of it within the life of the Church.

Private Confession

Is there any advantage to a private confession of sins?

Yes, because private confession provides the opportunity for a penitent (one who is truly sorry for his sins because they offend God) to discuss his problems in detail with a pastor of souls, and to seek his spiritual advice. Private confession also gives a Christian with a troubled conscience an opportunity to explore the reasons for his difficulties with his confessor (the bishop or priest to whom he confesses, as to God's minister), and to receive his confessor's reassurance that God really forgives his sins and wants him to be better (compare David and Nathan, 2 Samuel 2:13).[5]

It is a venerable custom for a confessor to set a penitent a task as part of his absolution, called "a penance." A penance is an act of regret for sin, not a price paid for its forgiveness. Jesus Christ paid the entire price for the forgiveness of all sins on the cross (1 Peter 3:18). This penance may be an act of devotion, intended to strengthen the spiritual life of die penitent and his ability to resist future sins. Or this penance may be an act of restitution to the person or persons who were harmed by the penitent's sin: an apology to someone offended; repayment for something stolen; an attempt to restore the reputation of someone hurt by false witness. (See the example of Zacheus, Luke 19:1-10, when Christ forgives his sins and Zacheus responds in love. See the Second Exhortation to the Holy Communion, BCP 87. See Exodus 22:1, for the principle of restitution.)

Is private confession required of all members of the Anglican branch of the Church?

The discipline (the way of life that makes a disciple) of the Anglican Church does not require that all her members make private confessions. But the Anglican Church does encourage all her members to do so, if there is a need. For example, the Prayer Book clearly recommends a private confession when problems of conscience are preventing a member of the Church from receiving the Holy Communion (the Second Exhortation, BCP 88), and in times of sickness and troubled conscience (the Visitation of the Sick, BCP 313).

The Anglican Church, of course, also puts great value on the united, corporate confession of sins by the whole Church. Thus, a form of General Confession and Absolution is provided in all three of the Church's regular, daily services: Morning Prayer, Evening Prayer, and the Holy Communion. Note, too, that "general" does not mean "a confession of our sins in general," but united confession by, and in the presence of, the General Church.

Is a private confession truly secret?

It has been a rule without exception since the beginning of the Church that no bishop or priest discuss what he hears from a penitent in a private confession with anyone, ever (including with the person who made the confession, unless that person chooses to bring up the matter himself)- Many bishops and priest died martyrs' deaths, even under torture, rather than reveal what they heard in a private[6][ed 3]

The Sacramental Administration of Penance

The Proper Matter is a bishop or a priest[ed 4] (see the Second Office of Instruction, BCP 294, for the offices of die ministry; and see the rubrics before the absolutions, BCP 7, 24, and 75).[7]

The Proper Object is a penitent, baptized person. An unbaptized person, brought to repentance by God's grace, would seek instead the Dominical Sacrament of Baptism (review Article XXVII, "Of Baptism," and Article XVI, "Of Sin after Baptism," BCP 608, 605-606).

The Proper Form is a spoken confession of sins and the pronouncement of one of the forms of Absolution appointed by the Church, as in the Book of Common Prayer.

The Proper Matter is the physical actions of confessing the sin and pronouncing the absolution.

The Proper Intention is sorrow for sin; a desire to be forgiven by God; a will to obey Christ; and die desire to do and receive what the Church teaches as her intention: to administer and receive forgiveness of sins. A good place to begin in considering our sins is the collect for Ash Wednesday, BCP 124.

Matrimony: Christian Marriage

What is the sacrament of Matrimony?

Matrimony is Christian marriage: a life-long union of husband and wife, established by a covenant between them, and with God.[8]

There are many kinds of relationships in the world, both civil and religious, that are called "marriage," because die union of husband and wife is the most basic human relationship, established by God in the Garden of Eden (Genesis 2:18-25). The family is, by creation and God's appointment, the basis of all human societies and social structures (including nations and governments). There can be no healthy human society that does not yield priority of place to the family. All earthly happiness (and thus all unhappiness) begins in the home (the place where a husband and wife live out their covenant of love with each other, under God's sovereignty). Sin, however, has obscured the perfection of this God-given relationship; and sin is the reason for any confusion about the nature or purpose of marriage.[9]

God intends marriage as an outward and visible sign of his loving relationship with his creation (see the Song of Solomon, where a love poem is used by analogy to express God's intimate love for his people; and see Ephesians 5:22-33, where marriage is described as the sacramental sign of Christ's relationship with his Church). Further, within the unfallen relationship of Eden (and within the Christian restoration of it, by God's grace, in Matrimony), the husband is the outward sign of the Creator; and the wife is the outward and visible sign of creation (see Revelation 19:7-9).

Sin is a rebellion by creatures against their Creator, so sin is the "opposite" rnarriage: the denial of what marriage is, and of what marriage stands for.[10]

Christian marriage (Matrimony) is a Christ-commanded effort by a man and a woman to establish a life (a family) and a place (a home) where God's rule prevails even in this fallen world, so that they will recognize heaven when they go there.

Thus, we can say that the purpose of the sacrament of Matrimony is union with God; fellowship in self-sacrificing love; mutual help and comfort (strengthening); the nurture of children in God's faith and fear; and eternal salvation (see the concluding prayers and the nuptial blessing of the Solemnization of Holy Matrimony, BCP 303-304). The outward and visible sign is the exchange of vows by the bride and groom. The inward and spiritual grace is the power given by God to live as man and wife in holiness and godliness, the grace to be good parents, and the salvation of the family under God's rule.

Marriage, Celibacy, and Chastity

Must all Christians get married?

No, all Christians need not marry for the sake of salvation, but this answer needs some explanation. It is Gods stated intention that all people live in families, whether with their parents (as part of what sociologists over-describe as "an extended family") or with their spouses: For this reason shall a man leave his mother's and fathers house, and cleave to his wife (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:5; Ephesians 5:31).

Under any ordinary circumstances, a man or woman offered the blessing of a family by God is expected to receive it joyfully and sacrificially. But the Fall has distorted the perfection of God's created order. Loving husbands and wives, for example, can find themselves physically incapable of having children.

Some people, because of sin's damage to human nature, are born incapable of marriage. Some people are prevented from marrying by the evil of their fellow fallen men; and some are so injured by the evil of others that they are rendered incapable of marriage (see Matthew 19:11-12, where "eunuch" is used to mean "a person incapable of marriage"). Imagine the difficulty to starting or maintaining a family in a concentration camp, or under the circumstances of chattel slavery. Consider the harm the perversity of our present society is doing to young people's capacity to enter into Christian marriage and God-blessed relationships.

Lastly, there are some who, like St. Paul, because of the great need of this fallen world for the work of Christ's Church, have been given a calling (vocation) from God to sacrifice the happiness of marriage for the needs of that work, and to forego marriage for Christ's sake.[11] Very often, such people take a religious vow (giving us the name "the religious" for them) to forego marriage and to live in the state of celibacy (from the Latin: "to live unmarried"). In many cases, such people form or join "religious orders," spiritual families of celibate men or women dedicated to some work for Christ (see Matthew 19:12).

In any case, all Christians, married, unmarried, or under a vow of celibacy are commanded by God to remain chaste. The proper sexual obedience of Christian to God is called "chastity" (from the Latin word for "pure"). The only sexual expression of love permitted by God is the physical and moral relationship full of love between a husband and a wife; that is, between a man and a woman,

God established the marital relationship between Adam and Eve (see Exodus 20-14, 17)- other sexual relations or actions (whether heterosexual or homosexual) are, by God's definition "sexual perversions" (a perversion or destruction of the sexual order he commands) and sins.[12]

The Sacramental Administration of Matrimony

The Proper Ministers are the bride and groom, as Adam and Eve were the human ministers of their marriage. It is the scripturally-derived rule of the Church, however, that for a marriage to be valid it must not be secret; it must not be coerced; it must not be between persons forbidden by God to marry because of their blood or family relationship; it must be free of fraud, confusion of identity, or any other impediment (barrier) that interferes with the exercise of free will by both parties; it must be performed in the presence of a bishop or priest to represent Christ's Church and to bless the marriage in God's Name; and it must be performed before at least two witnesses representing the people of the Church and society. A marriage must be recorded in the Church; and most civil jurisdictions also require a license to be issued and both civil and Church records to be kept.

The Proper Objects are a baptized, unmarried man and a baptized, unmarried woman (see Matthew 19:3-9). The canon (church) law of some branches of the Church permits a marriage when only one of the partners is a Christian, but it is much preferable for Christians to seek a husband or wife within the Body of Christ (2 Corinthians 6:14). Christianity and marriage are total commitments, and so-called "mixed marriage" introduces a danger of conflict between these commitments, since one of the spouses does not serve the Living God. St. Paul discusses the case of the conversion of husbands and wives after their marriage in 1 Corinthians 7:10-17.

The Proper Form is die exchange of vows as appointed by the Church, in the presence of a bishop or priest, and at least two witnesses. The Form for the solemnization of Matrimony begins on page 300, in the Prayer Book.

The Proper Matter is the exchange of vows and the joining of hands.

The Proper Intention is to obey God in a life-long union of body, soul, and sP'rit, as taught in the Scriptures and by the Church.

Holy Orders: The Threefold Ministry

What is the sacrament of Holy Orders?

Holy Orders is the ordination ("the ordering") of men to serve in the three orders of ministry found in the Scriptures and taught by the undivided Church: deacons, priests (presbyters), and bishops (see the Preface to the Ordinal, BCP 529).[13][ed 5] These New Testament orders correspond to die pattern of the ministry the Old Testament Church, perfecting them in Christ: levites, priests, and high priests.[14]

Under both Testaments, while the orders of ministry are distinct, specific, and defined states of life that set the ministers apart from the laity (from the "people" in general), it must be understood that these orders are representational. The men living and serving in them represent Christ, and not themselves or their order, whether to the rest of the Church or to the world. Their authority is derived completely from Christ, and not from their own personal goodness or other qualifications (see Article XXVI, "Of the Unworthiness of the Ministers, which hinders not the effect of the Sacraments," BCP 608). The efficacy of their administrations depends solely on Christ, and not on themselves.

At the same time, it must be said that it is a wonderful thing to be delegated by Christ to exercise his spiritual authority on his behalf in the service of his Church (see 1 Timothy 3:1).[15] This authority, however, always resides in Christ, and is granted through his Church, to the minister. Thus, the Church has the responsibility of examining and testing: the call of a man who presents himself for the ministry; his knowledge of the Faith; and his dedication to Christian obedience. No man may serve in the ministry without the Church's approval and commission (see Article XXIII, "Of Ministering in the Congregation," BCP 607).

Just as Christ is the Shepherd and Bishop of our souls who brings Gods order to our lives (1 Peter 2:25); the ministry of bishops, priests, and deacons is to bring holy order to the life of the Church, by the authoritative preaching of the Word of God, the administration of the Sacraments, and pastoral care. The name "holy orders" for this sacrament, thus, refers both to the Church's commission to serve, and to the purpose of that service.

The orders of deacon, priest, and bishop are the means that Jesus Christ has provided for the sacramental life of his Church: the outward and visible sign of his continuing care for the members of his Body, by means of the members of his Body set aside for this purpose (see 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4:11-16).

The outward and visible sign of Holy Orders is the imposition (laying-on-of-hands) of a bishop (Acts 6:1-6; 1 Timothy 4:14, 5:22; 2 Timothy 1:6).[16] The inward and spiritual grace is the grace of the Holy Ghost to do the work of a deacon, priest, or bishop (see the Ordinal, the forms for making, ordaining, and consecrating deacons, priests, and bishops, beginning BCP 529).

Is a man changed by his reception of this sacrament?

Yes, because ordination is the establishment by grace of a state of life, a man ordained to be a deacon, priest, or bishop remains a member of that order for life (see Mark 1:17-18; John 21:17-18; 1 Timothy 2:3-7, 4:14). A man may be ordained to a higher order, but he can never be re-ordained or un-ordained. In the case of Church discipline, the Church removes the authority of a disciplined minister to function in his office (to practice his ministry), but he remains a member of his order nevertheless. Remember, it is God, by the power of the Holy Ghost, through his Son and his Son's Church, who ordains. And God's standard is, "Thou art a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek" (Psalm 110:4).

Vocation and the Offices of the Church

What is a vocation?

A "vocation" is literally "a calling" to a particular state of life, given by God to every Christian (see the analysis of the Tenth Commandment, BCP 289). A Christian must fulfill his calling from God (see the Book of the Prophet Jonah). Those in the Church who do not belong to one of the clerical orders are called "the Lay Order." Every order is necessary for the completeness and welfare of the Church, as is every vocation (1 Corinthians 12:14-25).

Two common confusions should be mentioned here, First, the expression of personal opinions about religion is not preaching, even if done by a priest or bishop (Galatians 1:8-9). Preaching is an official act of the Church, and it can only be done by a priest or bishop, or by someone licensed by the bishop to preach (see 1 Corinthians 1:20-25). The Lay Order (as are the clerical orders in their private lives and communications) is called to witness (the Greek word "martyr" means "a witness") by living, working, praying, and giving for the spread of God's kingdom, not to preach.

The second confusion is that the work of the Church belongs to the clergy alone. This belief is a heresy called "clericalism." The clergy may not usurp the laity's right (and need) to work for Christ in his Church; and the laity may not yield their responsibilities to the clergy. One especially evil modern form of this heresy is the idea that only work performed in clerical vestments is Church work.

What is the office of a bishop?

"The office of a Bishop is, to be a chief pastor in the Church; to confer Holy Orders; and to administer Confirmation" (Second Office of Instruction, BCP 294).[17]

What is the office of a priest?

"The office of a Priest is, to minister to the people committed to his care; to preach the Word of God; to baptize; to celebrate the Holy Communion; and to pronounce Absolution and Blessing in God's Name" (Second Office of Instruction, BCP 294).

What is the office of a deacon?

"The office of a Deacon is, to assist the Priest in Divine Service, and in his other ministrations, under the direction of the Bishop" (Second Office of Instruction, BCP 294). Notice that the intention of the Prayer Book in these definitions is that the authority of any lower order is included in the next higher order.

The Conferring of Holy Orders

The Proper Minister for the ordination of a deacon, priest, or bishop is a bishop. In the case of the ordination of a priest, the other presbyters present join with the bishop in the laying on of hands. When a bishop is consecrated, it is customary since at least the Council of Nicaea for three or more bishops to join in the laying on of hands, as a sign and a safeguard of the Apostolic Succession (continuity) of bishops.[18] When necessary, one bishop can certainly and validly ordain another.

The Proper Object is a baptized and confirmed man who has not been ordained to that order already, called by God, and examined by the Church. The discipline of the Church requires that a man to be consecrated a bishop have been ordained a priest first; and that a man to be ordained a priest be made a deacon first.

The Male Character of Holy Orders

A woman cannot receive Holy Orders. The orders of the Church come to us through the Apostles, who were chosen from the Body of the disciples by Christ himself to serve the Church and to represent him personally, not only spiritually, but physically as well. The representative nature of the ministry requires that a man serve as the outward sign of the commandment of the Father and the service of the Son. The male nature of the ministry is a sore point for some, but only because they do not understand that the orders are Scriptural, rather than man-made, offices. It is God's created order that the priesthood serves, and not the political theories of any age.

In the Old Testament, from Adam on, the representative priesthood is male and patriarchal (based on male heads of families as spiritual leaders). The Aaronic priesthood of the Old Testament is made up of the male members of the priestly family, without any slight to the dignity of female members. Women are forbidden by the New Testament to preach or to have spiritual authority over men (see 1 Corinthians 11:1-16, 14:34-35; 1 Timothy 2:9-15). The New Testament also specifically requires bishops, priests, and deacons to be men (and husbands): 1 Timothy 3:2,12; Titus 1:5-7. Note that the English word "priest" is a shortened form of the Greek word "presbyter," meaning "an elder," used for ministers.

Furthermore, sex does affect a sacrament. We have seen that Matrimony can only be between a man and a woman, and that any other combination of partners is sinful. It has been precisely the same anti-scriptural people who refuse to accept the patriarchal order of the priesthood who have gone on to argue that homosexuals may be "married."

There are some vocations that are given to one sex and not to the other by God. Only a woman can be a mother, or serve others as a mother can. The "office of motherhood" is, in fact, the Biblical equivalent of "priesthood" for women. In the same way, only a man can be a father, or a deacon, or a priest, or a bishop. A woman who goes through an "ordination" service does not receive that order, and all her administrations are invalid (except for what a baptized woman is permitted to do).

Finally, ordination to the ministry of the Church is not a right for anyone, male or female, seminary graduate or not.[19] None of us has any rights before God, to demand a vocation from him. Only those called by God through his Church have the authority to minister. To act otherwise is to sin. The intelligence the moral character, the sincerity, or the academic qualifications of women are not in question here: only their claim of a "right" to minister against the Word of the Scriptures. See Numbers 16, for the terrifying story of Korah and Dathan, who decided that they had a "right" to minister, regardless of God's choice of Aaron and his male descendants. The earth opened up and swallowed them.

Matter, Form, and Intention in Holy Orders

The Proper Matter is the laying on of hands.

The Proper Form is the laying on of hands by a bishop, accompanied by the prayers appointed by the Church to ask that God will give the Holy Ghost to the man being ordained for service in the office of deacon, priest, or bishop.

The Proper Intention is to make a deacon, priest, or bishop in the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Jesus Christ, according to the will of God as revealed in the Scriptures and taught by the Church.

The Anointing of the Sick

What is the sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick?

This sacrament consists of the anointing with oil and (or) laying on of hands by a bishop or priest, as the outward and visible sign of the healing power of God, both physical and spiritual, given as God determines is most expedient for the person receiving it (see Mark 6:13; James 5:14-15).[20]

Why is this sacrament sometimes called "Extreme Unction"?

Unction means "an anointing with oil." "Extreme" means "at the end." When the name was coined, it was quite common for most illnesses to have the potential to be fatal, so that this "last anointing" was the final sign of grace the Church could offer her members.

Some scholars derive the name Extreme Unction from the Latin phrase in extremis, meaning "in great pain or danger." Whether or not this is the case, this sacrament strengthens our faith in God, that he will heal us or give us the strength to bear our illness (and that our illness is being used for our benefit: see Romans 8:28). The Anointing of the Sick is also a sign of the forgiveness of our sins, since illness entered the world through sin. But the spiritual qualities of this sacrament must not be emphasized at the expense of God's physical blessings: God does cure sickness, by a variety of means, including the ministrations of the Church.

The Sacramental Administration of the Anointing

The Proper Minister is a bishop or priest; or a deacon, if he has been so licensed by the bishop.

The Proper Object is a baptized person who repents his sins and places his trust in God.

The Proper Form is the laying on of hands or anointing with oil, accompanied by the prayers appointed by the Church for the defeat of Satan and all Weakness, for the forgiveness of sins, and for the healing of the sick (BCP 320).

The Proper Matter is the laying on of hands, or the anointing with olive oil that has been blessed (set aside) for that purpose.

The Proper Intention is to do what the Church Scriptures; and to heal and receive healing in Gods Name.[ed 6]

Notes

  1. ↑ For a discussion of the history and rite of Confirmation, see W. K. Lowther Clarke, "Confirmation," in Clarke and Harris, Liturgy and Worship, 443-457. See also, Procter and Frere, A New History, 602-607; and E. L. Parsons and B. H. Jones, The American Prayer Book: Its Origins and Principles (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1937), 242-246. Mant's BCP with Notes, provides an interesting set of comments from various Anglican divines, as well as offering Scriptural citations warranting the various sentences of the rite, 386-394.
  2. ↑ See Clarke and Harris, Liturgy and Worship, 444, for Confirmation as the ordination of the laity.
  3. ↑ Mant quotes Dean Comber on the minister of Confirmation: "The person who doth confirm is a bishop, to which order the ancient church did always reserve the dispensing of this rite, because the apostles only did this, Acts viii. 14; and therefore the bishops are highly obliged to take care that all in their dioceses, who need and desire it, may not want the opportunity of coming to it" (Mant, BCP with Notes, 386).
  4. ↑ Bishop Sparrow, Rationale of the Book of Common Prayer, writes about the prayer for the gifts of the Spirit: This is a prayer, that God would strengthen the baptized with "the Holy Ghost the Comforter, " whom they had in their baptism received as a sanctifier. These two ways, to omit others, we are taught in holy Scripture, that the Holy Ghost may be received: as a sanctifier and cleanser in holy baptism, Tit. iii.5, "He saved us by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost:" and after baptism we may receive Him again as a comforter and strengthener. The apostles, who received Him the first way in baptism, are promised to receive Him the second, John xvi.7; Acts 1.8: which was performed Acts ii.4, when "they were filled with the Holy Ghost" (in Mant, BCP with Notes, 390).
  5. ↑ Canon XIX of the Church of Ireland (1634) makes this case for private confession, if any should scruple to receive the Holy Communion: And to this end the people are often to be exhorted to enter into a special examination of the state of their own souls; and that finding themselves either dull or much troubled in mind they do resort to God's ministers to receive from them as well advice and counsel for the quickening of their dead hearts and the subduing of those corruptions whereunto they have been subject, as the benefit of Absolution likewise for the quieting of their consciences, by the power of the keys which Christ hath committed to His ministers for that purpose (in More and Cross, Anglicanism, Selection 230, 38).
  6. ↑ If there is any doubt about how seriously the Church takes the confidences and welfare of her people, it might be well to refer to the bishop's exhortation to those about to be ordained priests in the Ordinal. It reads, in part: Have always therefore printed in your remembrance, how great a treasure is committed to your charge. For they are the sheep of Christ, which he bought with his death, and for whom he shed his blood. The Church and Congregation whom you must serve, is his Spouse, and his Body. And if it shall happen that the same Church, or any Member thereof, do take any hurt or hindrance by reason of your negligence, ye know the greatness of the fault, and also the horrible punishment that will ensue (BCP 540).
  7. ↑ Dr. Matthew Hole, Practical Discourses on the Liturgy, writes about the absolution appointed in the Prayer Book for Morning Prayer: It is here to be noticed that the minister does not presume to pardon or absolve in his own right, nor to publish absolution in his own name, but only in the power or name of God, saying, "He pardoneth and absolveth:" where the word "He" refers to Almighty God at the commencement of the Absolution. It is also to be noticed, that this declaration is not absolute and without limitation: it is confined to such only as "truly repent, and unfeignedly believe his holy Gospel. " But then, as the minister pronounces pardon only to the penitent, so does he declare it to all that are so. It is not withheld from any that are qualified to receive it: but it is pronounced by authority of Almighty God. . . (in Mant, BCP with Notes, 12).
  8. ↑ For a history of matrimony and the rite, see Procter and Frere, A New History, 608-622. The discussion in Clarke and Harris, Liturgy and Worship, 458-471, is interesting but rather scholastic. See also, Parsons and Jones, American Prayer Book, 247-253.
  9. ↑ The 1662 Prayer Book of the Church of England makes a number of matters clearer in its Form for the Solemnization of Matrimony than in the shortened form of the service derived from it and found in the American Prayer Book (BCP 300-304). Especially telling is the reminder that God instituted marriage "in the time of man's innocency," as is also the long Scriptural exhortation that concludes the order. The notes in Mant, BCP with Notes, 395-408, are uniformly fascinating, if too involved to go into here.
  10. ↑ The idea of sin as the "opposite" of marriage is made clearer by God's use of the image of divorce as a punishment against Israel for her sins in Jeremiah 3:8. Sinfulness against the Lord is also symbolized by the prostitution of Gomer, Hosea's wife (Hosea 1-3).
  11. ↑ Understood correctly, St. Paul's statements in 1 Corinthians 7:7-9, simply concur with our Lord in Matthew 19, and with this doctrine of married and celibate vocations. When Paul writes, "it is better to marry than to burn" (v. 9), "to burn" means "to burn with desire or need" (see Arndt and Gingrich, under purpoo). While "to burn" can mean illicit lust (e.g., Romans 1:27), here the matrimonial desire is legitimate and God-given. Strangely, Paul is often accused of being anti-love, or at least anti-sex; but here we see him arguing that the only proper reason for marriage is a God-given need of one person for another, conducive to the spiritual goals of marriage.
  12. ↑ It is necessary, here, to elaborate upon the issue of homosexuality, given the propagandizing in favor of it by the secular culture. First, God is the Creator, so it is his absolute right to declare the purposes and uses of his creation. Second, homosexuality is not the only sexual behavior forbidden by God, but all sexual activity outside of a godly marriage. Third, homosexuality is equally condemned by the New Testament as the Old (see Leviticus 18:22; Romans 1:24-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9). Fourth, false-love and lust are not "other forms of love," but forms of idolatry, since they worship a standard other than God's. Fifth, mankind is fallen, so God did not create men and women to be homosexual; homosexuality is part of original sin, not created human nature. Sixth, a claim that homosexuality is rooted in genetics (proved or not) is no more a justification of homosexuality than a genetic basis for alcoholism would justify drunkenness. While there might be additional temptation for such people, temptation is not a reason to sin (1 Corinthians 10:1-13). Seventh, our Lord dealt with "the genetic problem" in Matthew 9:12; being born a eunuch (genetic cause) or being made a eunuch (social, psychological cause) is not a release from the law of marriage. Eighth, homosexuality is simply one sin among many. It is our purpose as the Church to glorify God by administering God's grace for the overcoming of all sins.
  13. ↑ For a brief history of the ministry and the rite of ordination, see Parsons and Jones, American Prayer Book, 267-286; Procter and Frere, A New History, 648-675. For a more complicated history, see W. K. Firminger, "The Ordinal," in Clarke and Harris, Liturgy and Worship, 626-682.
  14. ↑ St. Clement of Rome (c. 95) describes the ordained ministry and the laity in perfected Old Testament terms: Since all this is clear, and we have gazed into the depths of Divine knowledge, we are bound to perform in due order all that the master bade us accomplish at their proper seasons. He ordered that the offerings and services should be performed at their appointed times and seasons, not at random and without order; and also by his own supreme will he himself appointed the place and the ministers of their performance, that all might be done according to his good pleasure and so be acceptable to his will. Therefore they that make their offerings at the appointed seasons are acceptable and blessed, for in following the ordinances of the master they do not err. To the high priest are given his special ministrations, a special place is reserved for the priests, and special duties are imposed upon the levites, while the layman is bound by the ordinances concerning the laity (Epistle to the Corinthians, xl, in Bettenson, Documents, 62-63). On the significance of the bishop, as a chief pastor, Ignatius of Antioch (c. 112) writes: Let that be considered a valid Eucharist over which the bishop presides, or one to whom he commits it. Wherever the bishop appears, there let the people be, just as wheresoever Christ Jesus is, there is the Catholic Church (Epistle to the Smyrnaeans, c. viii, in Bettenson, Documents, 64). We can see from these sub-apostolic fathers that the ministry of the Church is representative of Christ, who is the personal perfection of the Old Testament ministry. Christ's one sacrifice for sin, once offered, ended the Old Testament sacrifices (see the tearing of the Temple veil, Matthew 27:51, proclaiming the end of that sanctuary; see Hebrews 9:11-14; 1 Peter 2:25). Now Christ is our great High Priest, and deacons, priests, and bishops are his ministers and representatives, even when officiating on behalf of Christ and his Body in the offering of the sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving (see Hebrews 13:15). When St. Paul writes "they which wait at the altar are partakers with the altar" (see 1 Corinthians 9:13-14), he is arguing that the New Testament ministry has replaced the Old Testament ministry, and is now to receive the ministry's share of the offerings (compare Leviticus 2:3, 6:16). This does not mean, however, that the character of the New Testament ministry is the same as that of the Old. New Testament ministers do not offer a sacrifice for sin; this work is already accomplished by Jesus Christ. The New Testament ministry is, therefore, a much higher calling than the Old Testament priesthood, since salvation is accomplished in Christ, whereas it was only promised in the Old Testament. It may also be well to deal with a confusion in terms here. The term "priest," referred to in the Ordinal and in the Book of Common Prayer, is a linguistic shortening of the Greek word presbuteros or "presbyter," literally "an elder." Both priest and presbyter are used interchangeably by the Prayer Book (see the Letter of Institution of a Minister, BCP 569, where both terms are used). This is not the same Greek word used to describe the Old Testament "priesthood": hiereus. Jesus Christ is the hiereus, the archiereus (high priest) of the New Testament, and none other (see Hebrews 9:11). Our ministry, by Christ's commandment, administers the blessings and benefits of Christ's sole sacrificial priesthood. It is unfortunate that our English language obscures these important facts by translating both hiereus and presbuteros with the word "priest." At the same time, the connection of the two terms in English is probably a testimony to the completeness of the conversion of the Angles and Saxons to Christianity, so that they could only understand the Old Testament ministry as a foreshadowing of the New Testament ministry founded in Christ Jesus.
  15. ↑ Important insights into the Anglican understanding of the pastoral office can be gained by reading George Herbert's definition of a pastor, at the beginning of the First Chapter of The Countrey Parson, 217: A pastor is the deputy of Christ for the reducing of man to obedience to God. This definition is evident, and containes the direct steps of pastoral! duty and auctority [authority]. For, first, man fell from God by disobedience. Secondly, Christ is the glorious instrument of God for the revoking [recalling] of man. Thirdly, Christ being not to continue on earth, but after Hee had fulfilled the work of reconciliation to be received up into heaven, He constituted deputies in His place; and these are priests. And therefore St. Paul, in the beginning of his Epistles [Romans 1:1], professeth this; and in the first to the Colossians [Colossians 1:24-29] plainly avoucheth [avows, asserts] that he fib us that which is behinde of the afflictions of Christ in his flesh, for his Bodies sake, which is the Church.' Wherein is contained the complete definition of a minister. Out of this chartre [charter] of the priesthood may be plainly gathered both the dignity thereof and the duty: the dignity, in that a priest may do that which Christ did and by His auctority and as His viceregent; the duty, in that a priest is to do that which Christ did, and after His manner, both for doctrine and life.
  16. ↑ One needs to remember that the Church is the living Body of Christ, so that some genuine historical variety is found in the outward signs of the minor sacraments, including ordination. For example, Part 1.10 of The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus reads: "On a confessor, if he has been in bonds for the name of the Lord, hands shall not be laid for the diaconate or the presbyterate, for he has the honour of the presbyterate by his confession. But if he is to be ordained bishop, hands shall be laid on him" (trans, and ed. Burton Scott Easton [London: Cambridge University, 1934; 1962 Archon reprint], 39, notes 81-82).
  17. ↑ St. Jerome (c. 345-420) offers an interesting account of the setting aside of the bishop as chief pastor in the early Church: Hence a presbyter is the same as a bishop, and before ambitions came into religion, by the prompting of the devil, and people began to say: 'I belong to Paul: I to Apollo; I to Cephas', the churches were governed by the direction of presbyters, acting as a body But when each presbyter began to suppose that those whom he had baptized belonged to him, rather than Christ, it was decreed in the whole Church that one of the presbyters should be chosen to preside over the others, and that the whole responsibility for the Church should devolve on him, so that the seeds of schism should be removed [Translator's note: Jerome cites Philippians 1:1-2; Acts 20:17,28; 1 Peter 5:1-2] (In Epistolam ad Titum, 1.1,5; in Bettenson, Later Fathers, 189).
  18. ↑ Apostolic Succession ought not to be reduced to a mere list of episcopal consecrators and their antecedents. This approach is liable to the condemnation given to other sorts of genealogies (see 1 Timothy 1:4; Titus 3:9), and is a product of the mechanistic cast of so much of nineteenth century thought. Bettenson offers this quote from Hegisippus (c. 175), via Eusebius, as the "first extant use of the technical term": "The Church of Corinth remained in the right doctrine down to the episcopate of Primus at Corinth. I had converse with them on my voyage to Rome, and we took comfort together in the right doctrine. After arriving in Rome I made a succession down to Anicetus, whose deacon was Eleutherus. To Anicetus succeeded Soter, who was followed by Eleutherus. In every succession and in every City things are ordered according to the preaching of the Law, the Prophets, and the Lord" (Bettenson, Documents, 67-68). The purpose of succession, then, is the orderly transmission of lawful authority and the protection, not of the episcopate itself, but of the right doctrine and the welfare of the Church, under the authority of the Scriptures.
  19. ↑ The words "clergy" and "clerical," in reference to those in Holy Orders, comes from the Greek word kleros, which means a "lot," "that which is obtained by lot or divine grace" (see Arndt and Gingrich, s.v.; and Psalm 16:7, BCP 358; Acts 1:28). Admission to the ministry is by divine call and the Church's testing of that call. The Scriptures give us examples of the disasters that followed when someone demanded a share in the ministry, despite Gods call of someone else. In Numbers 12, Aaron and Miriam murmur against Moses, and Miriam is made a leper. In Numbers 16:1-32, Korah and Dathan assert their "right" to minister, and the earth swallowed their congregation. A plague followed later. In 1 Samuel 15, Saul makes up his own rules for sacrifice and worship, and is deprived of his kingdom. Finally, sometimes Deborah (Judges 4 and 5) is suggested as a model for a female ministry, since she judged Israel. And yet, when we read the Scriptural account, we find that Deborah was raised up "a mother in Israel" (Judges 5:7), not a king, a general, or a priest. Her spiritual task was to recall the men of Israel to their God-given duty, not to supplant them in it.
  20. ↑ For a general discussion of the form for the anointing of the sick (BCP 320), see Parson and Jones, American Prayer Book, 254-259. For a very technical discussion, see Charles Harris, "Visitation of the Sick," Clarke and Harris, Liturgy and Worship, 472-540. See Procter and Frere, A New History, 625-626, for a comparison of the present form with the 1549 Prayer Book. The 1549 rite, which demonstrates the logic of the administration admirably, reads in part [spelling modernized for clarity]: As with this visible oil thy body is outwardly anointed: so our heavenly father almighty God, grant of his infinite goodness, that thy soul inwardly may be anointed with the holy ghost, who is the spirit of all strength, comfort, relief, and gladness. And vouchsafe for his great mercy (if it be his blessed will) to restore unto thee thy bodily health, and strength, to serve him, and send thee release of all thy pains, troubles, and diseases, both in body and mind. And howsoever his goodness (by his divine and unsearchable providence) shall dispose of thee: we, his unworthy ministers and servants, humbly beseech the eternal majesty, to do with thee according to the multitude of his innumerable mercies, and to pardon thee all thy sins and offences, committed by all thy bodily senses, passions, and carnal affections . . . (First and Second Prayer Books, 264-265).

Editorial Notes

  1. ↑ The text of the 1994 printing contains a number of typographical errors. Those preserved here as printed include: "die" for "the" (passim); "b'" for "by"; "tl" for "the"; "Prater Book" for "Prayer Book"; "'P'rit" for "spirit"; "states of lift" for "states of life"; "rnarriage" for "marriage"; "from the Latin word I"; "the admission an acknowledgment"; and "stresses h power". A few readings have been corrected where the intended word is unambiguous: "licensed" for "\"censed"; "by" for "°Y"; "explore" for "explore!"; "God" for "i God"; "to" for "to'"; "our" for "out" ("provisions for out life"); "Note, too," for "Not< too,"; and "that work," for "that work>".
  2. ↑ No footnote marker appears in the printed text for the author's note on the history and rite of Confirmation; the reference is placed here, at the head of the Confirmation discussion, as its most likely position.
  3. ↑ The printed text breaks off mid-sentence here ("in a private"); it is preserved as printed. The author's note on the seal of confession is referenced at this, its most likely, position.
  4. ↑ As printed. The parallel lists in this lesson suggest the author intends "The Proper Minister is a bishop or a priest".
  5. ↑ No footnote marker appears in the printed text for the author's note on the history of the ministry and the rite of ordination; the reference is placed here as its most likely position.
  6. ↑ As printed; the sentence appears to be truncated in the 1994 printing (compare the Proper Intention of Confirmation above: "to do what the Apostles did and the Church still teaches as her intention").

Source: Louis R. Tarsitano, An Outline of an Anglican Life (Classical Anglican Press, 1994). Reproduced on AnglicanWiki by permission of Classical Anglican Press.

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