Holy Orders

The Sacrament of Holy Orders

"Holy Orders is the sacrament through which the mission entrusted by Christ to his apostles continues to be exercised in the Church until the end of time…It includes three degrees of order: episcopate, presbyterate, and diaconate" (CCC 1536). Deacons, priest and bishops are essential to the Catholic Church because we believe that they continue the work begun by the apostles.

Who Receives Holy Orders?

The Church confers the sacrament of Holy Orders only on baptized men (viri), whose suitability for the exercise of the ministry has been duly recognized. Church authority alone has the responsibility and right to call someone to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders. (CCC 1598)

In the Latin Church the sacrament of Holy Orders for the presbyterate is normally conferred only on candidates who are ready to embrace celibacy freely and who publicly manifest their intention of staying celibate for the love of God's kingdom and the service of men. (CCC 1599)

The Second Vatican Council reminds us that the mission of ordained clergy, while unique, is interrelated to the mission of the lay faithful:

Though they differ from one another in essence and not only in degree, the common priesthood of the faithful and the ministerial or hierarchical priesthood are nonetheless interrelated: each of them in its own special way is a participation in the one priesthood of Christ. The ministerial priest, by the sacred power he enjoys, teaches and rules the priestly people; acting in the person of Christ, he makes present the eucharistic sacrifice, and offers it to God in the name of all the people. But the faithful, in virtue of their royal priesthood, join in the offering of the Eucharist. They likewise exercise that priesthood in receiving the sacraments, in prayer and thanksgiving, in the witness of a holy life, and by self-denial and active charity. (Lumen Gentium 10)

The Congregation of Holy Cross

We are an apostolic religious congregation composed of two distinct societies of religious brothers and religious priests “bound together in one indivisible brotherhood.”

Throughout our history, our mission has been to share in the Church’s mission by working as educators in the faith. In all of our ministries, whether schools, parishes, or other works of missionary outreach and social justice, we serve side-by-side with our collaborators through educating hearts and minds and building communities of the coming kingdom.

Today, the Congregation of Holy Cross consists of over 1,200 perpetually professed religious brothers and religious priests. Through our vowed religious life, our apostolic work, and our conviction that “the cross is our only hope,” we strive to be men with hope to bring in the 16 countries in which we live and serve.