Ordination

The act of recognition by the church of a particular person's calling to, and the setting apart and public commissioning of that person by the church for, the work of Christian ministry. It is assumed that this act of congregational affirmation is conseqential to, and serves only to confirm, the inward and personal calling of the Holy Spirit.

The verb 'ordain' (translating the Hiphil of the Hebrew labash) is used only 3x in the Bible to descibe the consecration of Aaron and his sons for the ministry of priesthood (Exo 28:41; 29:9, 35; NIV, ESV, NET, NRS, RSV). Though neither the noun nor the verb is used in this sense in the New Testament, the practice is patterned after Christ's appointment of his disciples to the ministry, and especially of the church in Antioch in their setting apart Barnabas and Saul for the work of evangelism.

In Protestant churches, a person so ordained is often recognized by some titles, usually 'Reverand.'

Ordination carries an altogether different significance in the Roman Catholic Church, in which it is held as one of the seven sacraments. There is no concept of "the priesthood of all believers" in the Catholic Church. Priesthood belongs to an altogether different class of existence from ordinary members; ordination to the priesthood, therefore, signifies a special means of grace that takes the participant to a different level of relationship with God.