Ordination

Talk with your Priest or Bishop

Those seeking to become deacons, or priests, Independent Reformed Catholic Church must satisfy the ordaining or receiving bishop of their suitability and readiness for ministry.

1. All Ordination applicants must be of the age of twenty one (21) years or older.
2. I pledge in all truthfulness that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior and that I am called of God to be a priest/deacon.

While there are normal and usual requirements, any or all of them may be waived at the discretion of the bishop. The bishop in turn must consider the guidance and opinions of the other bishops and the church as a whole.

Bishops are admonished to exercise care in discerning the suitability and readiness of applicants for ordination. All too often, ill-prepared candidates to independent churches have been accepted for Holy Orders and become ineffective (and in some cases counterproductive and downright scandalous) clergy.

At the same time, we do not want our bishops to be bound by legalism. Requiring many years of seminary training has not prevented mainstream churches from being saddled with lazy priests, poor homilists, ambitious bishops and child molesters among their clergy.

You must be Christian first and foremost, we expect clergy (like the Apostles) eloquence need not apply. We expect our clergy not only to believe in Jesus as the living Son of God, but also to have acted upon that belief by giving their lives to Christ. That means a conscious effort to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, adopting His attitudes and (inasmuch as possible) following His example. All of us fall into sin occasionally, but those who are habitual, unrepentant, public sinners are not suited for ordination.

Nor those who practice lewdness, homosexuality, pornography, polygamy etc., or who support beliefs that are contrary to acceptable and established true Christianity.

This in turn requires that one be as familiar as possible with the One we are to emulate. That One being Christ. This requires familiarity with the Scriptures, especially the Gospels. Applicants should have gone beyond just reading the Gospels to a deep and prayerful study of them, absorbing the words of Christ and reflecting on their application to our lives and the lives of those to whom we minister. Whether this was done in a seminary is not the issue, what is important is that our clergy have an insight into the mind of God through familiarity with the words and actions of Jesus.

You must be catholic (meaning "universal")

Secondly, since we are a catholic church, applicants should be "catholic" Christians. That means that in addition to the common Christian beliefs contained in (for example) the Nicene Creed, applicants should have an appreciation for the Apostolic Succession, should believe that the seven sacraments are a means used by God to impart grace, and should believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist. (Note that this does NOT require acceptance of the legalistic formulations in the relatively recent Roman Catholic doctrine of trans-substantiation.) Since one of the primary duties of clergy is the administration of the sacraments, there's no sense becoming a priest if one does not believe that sacraments can really "do" anything.

Likewise, why become a priest if one believes that it does not make any difference and that it does not empower one to make Christ present for His people at the Mass? Likewise, it would be hypocritical to seek the sacrament of Holy Orders if one believes that.

You must be called

The third requirement is that this catholic Christian person has received and accepted a call to the ordained ministry. There are many wonderful ways for Christians to serve God's people in "un ordained ministry." This includes teaching, volunteering a soup kitchens, counseling, even preaching. While opportunities for preaching are greatly expanded by ordination, they exist for others as well. A desire to preach, by itself, should not be considered a good reason for ordination beyond the Diaconate.

The office of deacon is valued highly in the church. It predates the Christian priesthood and should in no way be considered subordinate or inferior. It is different. Those who feel they are being called to ministry must at some point decide if they are being called to ministry as a priest, a deacon, or a layperson. Just because some churches require you to be a priest in order to do almost anything in the church doesn't mean we have to follow that same practice ... and we don't. Being a counselor, for example, requires lots of education, training, and experience, but it doesn't require Holy Orders.

The call to ordained ministry as a priest or bishop is essentially a call to administer the sacraments and to evangelize.” Go therefore and make disciples of those in all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." Unless one has a desire to celebrate Mass for God's people, she or he should not seek the priesthood.

You must be trained

The 4th requirement is sufficient training so that the candidate is equipped to properly, reverently, and inspirationally celebrate Mass, perform weddings and funerals, deliver outstanding homilies, and administer the sacraments.

This is the one requirement that cannot be done by correspondence. The candidate must convince the bishop, usually by demonstration, that she or he is ready to perform these duties. This requirement can be at least partially fulfilled by submitting a videotape of the candidate preaching a couple of homilies and performing various liturgical functions. We put more emphasis on preaching or homiletics than is usually the case in other churches. The focus of the Mass is the altar, not the pulpit. It is on Jesus, not the celebrant. We owe our people accomplished and powerful preachers.

Candidates for the priesthood must have their own Sacramentary and Lectionary, and must know how to use them. We suggest that candidates for the priesthood do some private "practice Masses" to become familiar with the rubrics, the page-turning, and the flow of the Mass. They should be ready to celebrate their first public Mass immediately following ordination.

These then are the basic four requirements for clergy in the IRCC:

1. They must be Christians;
2. They must be universally Christian;
3. They must be called to the ordained ministry;
4. They must be adequately trained for their duties in the church.

When the ordaining bishop determines that these requirements have been met, then it is time to plan for the ordination celebration.

Where?

We generally prefer that ordinations take place with the worshipping community of the candidate. As in the early church, we see a community putting forward candidates to minister amongst them. The clergy come from the people; they are not chosen by the hierarchy and imposed upon a local congregation. In a real sense, it is the people who ordain. The bishop merely ratifies their choice and administers the sacrament.

There are cases, however, where the candidate has no worshipping community, but will be building one from scratch after ordination, perhaps in a new location (like a missionary would). In such cases, ordination can take place at a suitable location chosen by the bishop. The candidate (or candidates) for ordination are encouraged to bring friends and family to support them.

When?

Most ordinations (like weddings) are performed on Saturday (and for most of the same reasons). Many are performed Sunday morning at the principal Mass of the host parish. It's up to the host parish and the ordaining bishop.

What?

The candidate must have certain items - some of which are needed in the ordination ceremony, and others which are needed for their continuing ministry. Ask the ordaining priest or bishop for more information.