Holy Orders
The Sacrament of Holy Orders is according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church “the sacrament of apostolic ministry.”(For a full discussion of Holy Orders see CCC paragraphs1536-1600) “Ordination” comes from the Latin word ordinatio, which means to incorporate someone into an order. The word order in the Roman empire meant to describe an established civil body, especially a “governing body”. So the Church adapted this understanding to their “governing” leadership. There were many Orders in the early Church: the …