Ordination of a Priest in Roman Catholic

I remember that when I was a child, serving as altar boy, we attended a priest ordination in our community. The ceremony they held was no longer clear to me. This time when I heard that a deacon was soon to profess his faith, I went to Currimao church to catch a glimpse of that ceremony again. This was my second time to witness it. Fr. Lloyd was the candidate or ordinand. I already met him prior to his ordination.

Ordination is a religious process by which individuals are consecrated to become clergy in order for them to perform various religious rites and ceremonies. The ceremony varies by religion and denomination. Ordination is a sacrament. It is likened to marriage of a couple. But for the priests they have to marry the Lord so they say. Once they become a priest, they will be forever priest.

The affair was well attended by the members of the clergy, guests, relatives of the ordinand and other parishioners. Bishop Utleg celebrated the mass. Then the ordinand genuflected before the bishop. Later the candidate prostrates himself before the altar. He lied down in prone position. Prostration is a way to place the body in prone position. It is an act of submissiveness to God. The ordinand donned another set of vestments or liturgical garments assisted by his parents. The bishop imposed his hand on the head of the candidate followed by all the clergymen one by one.

When the ceremony came to its end, all the members of the clergy embraced one by one the new priest to welcome him to the priesthood.