Is the male-only priesthood a discipline or essential to the nature of being a priest? Sr. Vassa (again unflinchingly taking up a contentious topic by climbing up the ladder to the highest platform and then jumping into the deep end head first) dives right in and says there is no reason beyond personal preference to not have female clergy. You know, when people ask me about women in priesthood, they say, 'Sister, why can't women be priests?' And I say, 'Women CAN be priests. We don't WANT them to be priests.' Because you see, God can do anything, and the Church, by divine authority, uh, can do anything, but, the Church doesn't want to - and that's a legitimate reason. What I don't like is when we TRY to pretend that there are other reasons for this, because it's legitimate not to want something, and there are reasons not to want this - right? - but, we shouldn't pretent that there's some... reason, that, for example, the maleness...
Question: I know that with concelebrating priests only one priest does the prothesis. Does the same normally apply to concelebrating bishops? Or does this vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction?
ReplyDeleteProperly it is my understanding that one person does the proskomedia and others may do commemorations after that. "It is allowed to take particles from Prosphoras for the living and the departed right up to the Great Entrance" according to one guide, but I doubt they were doing this that long. :)
DeleteAt a hierarchical divine liturgy the bishop (or bishops) will make commemorations with the prosphora just prior to the Great Entrance. This is different from proskomedia, which is the service when the preparation of the lamb takes place, and is usually done by a priest before the bishop arrives. A Bishop can also do these commemorations before liturgy begins, but at most hierarchical services the bishop only arrives with the greeting and vesting and liturgy beings immediately.
Delete