St. Clement who was the third to succeed Peter as Pope of Christ’s Church, wrote in this letter to the Corinthians: “To the priests a proper place is appointed, and.. the layman is bound by the ordinances of the laity.” It is astounding that as far back as the year 107 that one of the first encounters of the order of “priest”, or presbyter, is mentioned among the orders of the clergy.
In his letter to the Symyrnaeans, St. Ignatius of Antioch, Bishop and Martyr and disciple of the apostle John (110 AD) writes of the Priesthood:
“The sole Eucharist you should consider valid is one that is celebrated by the bishop himself, or by some person (presbyter/priest) authorized by him. Where the bishop is to be seen, there let all his people be; just as wherever Jesus is present, we have the Catholic Church…This is the way to make certain of the soundness and validity of anything you do.”
In Matthew 18:18-19 we read: “Amen, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever, you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Thus Jesus passes on the Priesthood to his apostles.
A priest is referred to as “Father” because that is how the early Church addressed themselves as spiritual leaders. 1 Cor. 4:15 states, “I became your father in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” In 1 Thes. 2:11 Paul reminds the Thessalonians he has “treated each one as a father treats his children.” In Mt. 23:9 Jesus says, “Call no one on earth your father.” Jesus is telling us we have but One Father in heaven, one source of truth. This title can be abused and Jesus is thus warning his apostles. Christ then chose His apostles as “spiritual guides” to Our Father. Priests serve as spiritual guides (Fathers) to their communities.
The Church can trace itself back to the Apostles and the ordination of Priests: “Let the bishop be ordained after he has been chosen. When someone pleasing to all has been named, let the people assemble on the Lord’s Day with the presbyters (priests) and with such bishops as may be present. All giving assent, the bishops shall impose hands on him, and the presbytery shall stand in silence (2). When the presbyter is to be ordained, the bishop shall impose his hand upon his head while the presbyters touch the one to be ordained” (Hippolytus of Rome [ad 200]).
“The Levitical priesthood would be replaced by Jesus by His own priesthood and His own priests. Through the providential mystery of God the ancient temple where sacrifices were performed by the Levitical priests was destroyed in 70 AD by the Romans, never to be rebuilt! Thus the new priests would be priests of the New Covenant according to the order of Melchizedek, priests who act in the person of Jesus Christ himself.” (Catholic Answers to Protestant Questions, p. 119)
It is interesting to note that only the Levitical priests could eat the “bread of the presence” which was holy bread. David was also a priest of the order of Melchizedek. The first man to be called priest in the Bible (Gen. 14:18) and that was Melchizedek, who is both king and priest. (Gen. 14: 17-20) He does not offer a bull or a goat or a lamb but he offers bread and wine! This sacrifice of bread and wine was connected by Jewish tradition with the Bread and Wine of the Presence. Yet in 1 Samuel 21:1, 3-6, we see the priest give David the Bread of the Presence (after they proclaimed they were pure) Take this to the New Testament where one Jesus refers to the Bread of the Presence when in Mat. 12: 1-6 the Pharisees criticize Jesus and his disciples for plucking grains of wheat on the Sabbath and he responds “Have you not read what David did, when he was hungry, and those who were with him: how he entered the house of God and ate the Bread of the Presence, which it was not lawful for him to eat nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?” Jesus is thus justifying this by saying David was a priest according to the order of Melchizedek and thus He too is from King David, a priest and King and his followers, like David’s are priests according to the order of Melchizedek who offered bread and wine! Jesus is pointing out that David was guiltless because he was a priest and so too He and His followers are priests. Jesus is the new David, as a priest and King. He also shows his disciples as priestly men who could work on the Sabbath, just as the priests were allowed to do who offered the Bread of Presence (Lev. 24: 5-7,8) Finally, Jesus in the passage of the plucking Jesus declares He is the New Temple when he states “Something greater than the Temple is here” (Mat. 12:8).
Of the many roles of the Priest, one is that of the Anointing of the Sick (also known as extreme unction). In James 5:14-15 we read: “Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters (priests) of the church, and they should pray over him and anoint (him) with oil in the name of the Lord, and the prayer of faith will save the sick person, and the Lord will raise him up. If he has committed any sins, he will be forgiven.” Note that the power of this sacrament through the hands of the priest will also forgive sins.