As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, “Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.” And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
Acts xiii.2-3
Acts xiii.2-3
Holy Orders is the sacrament by which someone receives the grace to become a deacon or priest. The term “Holy Orders” describes what it means to have one’s life ordered in a particular way by the Spirit toward the service of others through a pastoral ministry of love, care, and teaching; making Christ known to the world; interpreting the needs of the world to the church; preaching the word of God; and administering the sacraments.
Learn more about what it means to be ordained in the Episcopal church. If you’re discerning a call to the diaconate or to the priesthood or if you have questions about what it might mean to discern such a call to Holy Orders, contact one of our priests.
Ordained people in the Episcopal Church (collectively called “clergy”) promise to be loyal to the doctrine, discipline, and worship of Christ as the church has received them, to be faithful to the canons of the Church, and to obey their bishop, and they publicly declare that all things necessary for salvation are contained in the Old and New Testaments of the Bible which is affirmed to be the word of God. Sometimes people speak of bishops as being ordained, but it’s much more appropriate to speak of them as being consecrated. Deacons, priests, and bishops all have different liturgical roles and functions as well as different roles to fulfill in the life of the church and its ministry. While a bishop certainly has a greater burden of authority than a priest or a deacon, it isn’t the case that any of the orders are greater than or lesser than another: they simply exercise different gifts. What’s more, the Book of Common Prayer sees the orders as special instances of the call common to all the baptized to bear witness to the transformative love of Jesus Christ and share in his eternal priesthood.
