"Every believer is a priest, and Jesus is our only High Priest. Why would Christians need a priesthood?" Scripture answers.
Short answer: Yes. The New Testament teaches both a priesthood of all the baptized (1 Peter 2:9) and a ministry Christ gave to specific men: to offer the Eucharist ("do this in memory of me," Luke 22:19), to forgive sins (John 20:23), and to hand that ministry on by the laying on of hands (1 Timothy 4:14). Israel had the same two-level pattern. The Catholic Church's priesthood is not a rival to Christ's: it is His one priesthood, made present through His ministers.
Key verses on the priesthood
- "You will be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation." (Exodus 19:6)
- "He has allowed you and your Levite kinsmen with you to approach him, and yet you seek the priesthood too." (Numbers 16:10)
- "This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me." (Luke 22:19)
- "Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained." (John 20:23)
- "to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in performing the priestly service of the gospel of God" (Romans 15:16)
Scripture quotations are from the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), © 2010, 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
What Protestants Believe
The Protestant case rests on two biblical ideas. The first is the priesthood of all believers. St. Peter tells all Christians to be "a holy priesthood to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ" (1 Peter 2:5), and "you are 'a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation'" (1 Peter 2:9). Christ "has made us into a kingdom, priests for his God and Father" (Revelation 1:6). Martin Luther concluded in 1520 that "all Christians are truly of the spiritual estate, and there is no difference among them, save of office alone," so "a priest should be nothing in Christendom but a functionary" (Address to the Christian Nobility).
The second is the one High Priest. Hebrews contrasts the many Levitical priests, who "were prevented by death from remaining in office," with Jesus, who "because he remains forever, has a priesthood that does not pass away" (Hebrews 7:23–24). He offered "once for all when he offered himself" (Hebrews 7:27). And "there is also one mediator between God and the human race, Christ Jesus" (1 Timothy 2:5).
Protestants do not reject ordained ministry. Most ordain pastors by the laying on of hands, and Anglicans even keep the word "priest." What they deny is a priesthood that offers the Eucharistic sacrifice. So most Protestant churches have pastors or elders, not sacrificing priests. Southern Baptists confess, "Its two scriptural offices are that of pastor/elder/overseer and deacon" (Baptist Faith and Message 2000, VI). Westminster says that in the Lord's Supper "Christ is not offered up to his Father; nor any real sacrifice made at all" (XXIX.2). And the New Testament never calls a Christian minister a hiereus, a sacrificing priest.
What Catholics Actually Teach
The Catholic Church agrees: there is one priesthood, Christ's. "Christ, high priest and unique mediator, has made of the Church 'a kingdom, priests for his God and Father'" (CCC 1546). All the baptized share in it, in two ways: "The ministerial or hierarchical priesthood of bishops and priests, and the common priesthood of all the faithful participate, 'each in its own proper way, in the one priesthood of Christ.'" And: "While being 'ordered one to another,' they differ essentially" (CCC 1547).
"The ordained ministry or ministerial priesthood is at the service of the baptismal priesthood. The ordained priesthood guarantees that it really is Christ who acts" (CCC 1120). It "is in the strict sense of the term a service" (CCC 1551).
What Catholics do not teach:
- That priests offer a new or second sacrifice. "The redemptive sacrifice of Christ is unique, accomplished once for all; yet it is made present in the Eucharistic sacrifice of the Church" (CCC 1545). See Is the Mass a Re-Sacrifice of Jesus?
- That priests are a second set of mediators beside Christ. His priesthood "is made present through the ministerial priesthood without diminishing the uniqueness of Christ's priesthood" (CCC 1545).
It all points to Christ. The Catechism puts it in one line from St. Thomas Aquinas: "Only Christ is the true priest, the others being only his ministers" (CCC 1545). When a priest baptizes, absolves, or says "This is my body," Jesus is the one acting: "it is Christ himself who is present to his Church as Head of his Body, Shepherd of his flock, high priest of the redemptive sacrifice, Teacher of Truth" (CCC 1548).
The Biblical Case
1. Israel was a kingdom of priests, and still had priests
1 Peter 2:9 is itself a quotation. At Sinai, God told all Israel: "You will be to me a kingdom of priests, a holy nation" (Exodus 19:6). A few chapters later, God set apart a ministerial priesthood within that priestly people: "Have your brother Aaron, and with him his sons, brought to you, from among the Israelites, that they may be my priests" (Exodus 28:1), "a perpetual ordinance for him and for his descendants" (Exodus 28:43). The priesthood of all and a ministerial priesthood existed together. When St. Peter applies Exodus 19:6 to the Church, he abolishes ordained ministry no more than Moses did.
2. Korah's rebellion: a holy people does not make every member a priest
Korah and his allies confronted Moses and Aaron: "You go too far! The whole community, all of them, are holy; the LORD is in their midst. Why then should you set yourselves over the LORD's assembly?" (Numbers 16:3). Moses answered the Levite Korah: "He has allowed you and your Levite kinsmen with you to approach him, and yet you seek the priesthood too" (Numbers 16:10). God's judgment followed, and Israel was given a reminder "that no unauthorized person, no one who was not a descendant of Aaron, should draw near to offer incense before the LORD, lest he meet the fate of Korah and his faction" (Numbers 17:5). St. Jude still held up those who "perished in the rebellion of Korah" as a warning to Christians (Jude 11). This is not a charge that Protestants share Korah's motives; most sincerely want to honor Christ alone. The point is the argument: "all of us are holy" was never a reason to reject a priesthood God Himself appointed. "No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was" (Hebrews 5:4).
3. Christ gave the apostles a sacred power the rest did not receive
At the Last Supper, speaking to the Twelve, Jesus took bread and said, "This is my body, which will be given for you; do this in memory of me" (Luke 22:19). The Body "given for you" and the "new covenant in my blood, which will be shed for you" (Luke 22:20) is the language of sacrifice, and He told them to do it. And Christians have an altar to eat from: "We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat" (Hebrews 13:10).
On Easter night He sent them with His own mission: "As the Father has sent me, so I send you." Then "he breathed on them and said to them, 'Receive the holy Spirit. Whose sins you forgive are forgiven them, and whose sins you retain are retained'" (John 20:21–23). St. John frames the scene around the Twelve (the next verse notes that Thomas, one of the Twelve, was absent), and the Catholic Church reads it as a commission to the apostles and those who succeed them, not a general gift to every believer. See Why Do Catholics Confess Sins to a Priest?
St. Paul calls it a ministry entrusted: God "has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation," so "we are ambassadors for Christ, as if God were appealing through us" (2 Corinthians 5:18–20), "stewards of the mysteries of God" (1 Corinthians 4:1).
4. St. Paul calls his ministry priestly service
St. Paul writes that God's grace made him "a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in performing the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering up of the Gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the holy Spirit" (Romans 15:16). The word behind "performing the priestly service" is the Greek verb hierourgeō, "to minister in sacred things," used only here in the New Testament. It belongs to the same family of "sacred" words (hieros, hieron) as hiereus, priest. The NABRE note says Paul "sees himself as apostle and benefactor in the priestly service of the gospel" (note on Romans 15:14–33). To be precise: the offering Paul names here is the Gentiles themselves, not the Eucharist, so this verse alone does not prove a sacrificial priesthood. What it shows is that an apostle described his own office in the language of the altar, which is exactly what Protestants say the New Testament never does.
5. The apostles handed this ministry on by the laying on of hands
St. Paul and St. Barnabas "appointed presbyters for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, commended them to the Lord" (Acts 14:23). St. Paul reminds Timothy of "the gift you have, which was conferred on you through the prophetic word with the imposition of hands of the presbyterate" (1 Timothy 4:14) and cautions him, "Do not lay hands too readily on anyone" (1 Timothy 5:22). He tells Titus to "appoint presbyters in every town, as I directed you" (Titus 1:5). See What Is Apostolic Succession, and Why Does It Matter?
These presbyters had sacred work: "Is anyone among you sick? He should summon the presbyters 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" (James 5:14–15). Not any believer: the presbyters.
6. The prophets foresaw new priests in the age of the nations
Isaiah ends with God's promise: "I am coming to gather all nations and tongues" (Isaiah 66:18), and then, "Some of these I will take as priests and Levites, says the LORD" (Isaiah 66:21). Interpreters differ on whether "these" are Gentiles or exiled Israelites. Either way, God foresees new priests in the age of the gathered nations.
Objections Answered
(a) "1 Peter 2:9 makes every believer a priest. A special priesthood is unnecessary."
At its strongest: St. Peter calls the whole Church "a royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9). If every Christian is a priest, a separate priestly class is a return to the Old Covenant.
Answer: The Catholic Church affirms every word: all the baptized are priests (CCC 1546). But St. Peter is quoting Exodus 19:6, said of a people that also had Aaron's priesthood (Exodus 28:1). A common priesthood never ruled out a ministerial one; Korah's rebellion shows exactly that (Numbers 16:3; Hebrews 5:4). Luther himself kept an "office." Scripture says that office offers the Eucharist (Luke 22:19), forgives sins (John 20:23), and anoints the sick (James 5:14–15), conferred by the laying on of hands (1 Timothy 4:14). That is a priesthood, whatever it is called.
(b) "Hebrews says Jesus is the one High Priest and His priesthood does not pass away."
At its strongest: Jesus "has a priesthood that does not pass away" (Hebrews 7:24). "When there is a change of priesthood, there is necessarily a change of law as well" (Hebrews 7:12). He "offered one sacrifice for sins, and took his seat forever at the right hand of God" (Hebrews 10:12).
Answer: The Catholic Church agrees. Catholic priests are not "another priest" (Hebrews 7:11) offering another sacrifice. Christ's one priesthood "is made present through the ministerial priesthood without diminishing the uniqueness of Christ's priesthood" (CCC 1545). And it is ongoing: "he lives forever to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). The "change of priesthood" in Hebrews 7:12 is from Aaron to Christ, and the same letter says Christians have "an altar" (Hebrews 13:10) and leaders who "keep watch over you and will have to give an account" (Hebrews 13:17).
(c) "The New Testament never calls Christian ministers hiereus (priest). It calls them presbyteroi (elders)."
At its strongest: The New Testament has a word for a sacrificing priest, hiereus. It uses it for Jewish and pagan priests, for Christ, and for all believers, but never for an apostle, bishop, or presbyter. Church leaders are presbyteroi, elders (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5); the NABRE note on Titus even says episkopos and presbyteros "refer to the same persons." The apostles had the word and did not use it.
Answer: The fact is true: no New Testament text calls a Christian minister hiereus. But a missing word does not erase a present reality. While the Temple stood, hiereus meant a Temple or pagan priest, and the apostles had reason to avoid the confusion. What matters is what these ministers did. They were told to "do this" with the Body "given for you" (Luke 22:19), served at "an altar" (Hebrews 13:10), forgave sins (John 20:23), and St. Paul used the priestly verb hierourgeō for his work (Romans 15:16). Even English "priest" comes from presbyteros, through Late Latin presbyter and Old English preost (Etymonline). And the earliest Christians soon called the ministry priestly: the Didache calls Christian prophets "your high priests" and says bishops and deacons render "the service of prophets and teachers," and the Apostolic Tradition asks for the bishop "the Spirit of high-priesthood" (see below). The Church named what Christ gave.
(d) "There is one mediator, Christ Jesus. A priest stands between me and God."
At its strongest: "For there is one God. There is also one mediator between God and the human race, Christ Jesus, himself human" (1 Timothy 2:5). Why go through a man?
Answer: Catholics affirm 1 Timothy 2:5 without qualification (CCC 1545). A priest is not a second mediator; he is the instrument of the one Mediator, like the apostles through whom God was "appealing" (2 Corinthians 5:20). God chose to work through human ministers: St. Paul's "priestly service of the gospel" (Romans 15:16), the presbyters who anoint the sick (James 5:14). The question is not whether God works through men, but which ministry Christ established.
The Early Church Agrees
- Pope St. Clement I (St. Clement of Rome) (Letter to the Corinthians, c. AD 96) points to the ordered ministry of the Old Testament: "For his own peculiar services are assigned to the high priest, and their own proper place is prescribed to the priests, and their own special ministrations devolve on the Levites. The layman is bound by the laws that pertain to laymen" (ch. 40). He traces the ministry to Christ: "The apostles have preached the gospel to us from the Lord Jesus Christ," and they "appointed the first fruits [of their labours], having first proved them by the Spirit, to be bishops and deacons" (ch. 42). They provided "that when these should fall asleep, other approved men should succeed them in their ministry" (ch. 44).
- The Didache (late 1st or early 2nd century) calls the Eucharist a sacrifice: "But every Lord's day gather yourselves together, and break bread, and give thanksgiving after having confessed your transgressions, that your sacrifice may be pure" (ch. 14). It calls Christian prophets "your high priests" (ch. 13), and says bishops and deacons "also render to you the service of prophets and teachers" (ch. 15).
- St. Ignatius of Antioch (c. AD 107–110), bishop of Antioch within living memory of the apostles, describes a threefold ministry: "your bishop presides in the place of God, and your presbyters in the place of the assembly of the apostles, along with your deacons, who are most dear to me, and are entrusted with the ministry of Jesus Christ" (Magnesians 6). The Eucharist belongs to that ministry: "Let that be deemed a proper Eucharist, which is [administered] either by the bishop, or by one to whom he has entrusted it" (Smyrnaeans 8).
- The Apostolic Tradition (traditionally dated to early 3rd-century Rome and attributed to St. Hippolytus, though many scholars today regard it as a composite church order of debated date and origin) gives the prayer for ordaining a bishop. It asks that he "serve as thy high priest without blame, ministering night and day," "to offer thee the gifts of thy holy church," "And by the Spirit of high-priesthood to have authority to remit sins" (ch. 3, trans. B. S. Easton). High priesthood, offering, forgiveness of sins: all there.
- St. Cyprian of Carthage (Epistle 62, c. AD 253) roots the priest's work entirely in Christ's: "For if Jesus Christ, our Lord and God, is Himself the chief priest of God the Father, and has first offered Himself a sacrifice to the Father, and has commanded this to be done in commemoration of Himself, certainly that priest truly discharges the office of Christ, who imitates that which Christ did" (ch. 14).
Conclusion
Scripture does not set the priesthood of all believers against an ordained priesthood. Israel had both. Christ gave both: a royal priesthood to all the baptized, and to the apostles and those they ordained the power to offer His Body and Blood and to forgive sins. The earliest Christians recognized it at once. And the Catholic Church teaches it in a way that exalts Christ: He alone is "the true priest."
If you are Protestant, you already honor Christ as the one High Priest. Now ask where the ministry He gave the apostles is found today.
Come home. The ministry Christ gave His apostles, to offer His Body and Blood and to forgive sins in His name, is still given to His people today, handed on by the laying on of hands in the Catholic Church. That gift depends on a validly ordained priesthood, which is why the Catechism teaches that communities from the Reformation "have not preserved the proper reality of the Eucharistic mystery in its fullness, especially because of the absence of the sacrament of Holy Orders" (CCC 1400). Christ did not found many churches. He founded one, on St. Peter and the apostles (Matthew 16:18), and that Church is the Catholic Church. "It is through Christ's Catholic Church alone, which is the universal help toward salvation, that the fullness of the means of salvation can be obtained" (CCC 816). If you are a baptized Christian, you already share "a certain, although imperfect, communion" with her (CCC 838). Every truth you already hold is a call to the rest of the way. Christ is calling you into the Catholic Church.
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FAQ
If all Christians are priests, what is different about an ordained priest? Both share in Christ's one priesthood, but they "differ essentially" (CCC 1547). The baptized offer "spiritual sacrifices" with their lives (1 Peter 2:5); the ordained priest acts for Christ the Head in the sacraments, offering the Eucharist and forgiving sins (Luke 22:19; John 20:23), "at the service of the common priesthood" (CCC 1547).
Are Protestant pastors priests? Many are faithful servants of Christ. But in communities without apostolic succession, the sacrament of Holy Orders is absent, which is why they "have not preserved the proper reality of the Eucharistic mystery in its fullness" (CCC 1400). Christ's priesthood, offered in its fullness, is found in the Catholic Church.
Why do Catholics call priests "Father"? Because spiritual fatherhood is biblical. See Why Do Catholics Call Priests "Father"?
Sources
Scripture (NABRE, bible.usccb.org): Exodus 19:6; Exodus 28:1, 43; Numbers 16:3, 10; Numbers 17:5; Isaiah 66:18–21 and note; Matthew 16:18; Luke 22:19–20; John 20:21–23; Acts 14:23; Romans 15:16 and note on 15:14–33; 1 Corinthians 4:1; 2 Corinthians 5:18–20; 1 Timothy 2:5; 1 Timothy 4:14; 1 Timothy 5:22; Titus 1:5 and note; Hebrews 5:4; Hebrews 7:11–12, 23–27; Hebrews 10:12–14; Hebrews 13:10, 17; James 5:14–15; 1 Peter 2:5, 9; Jude 11; Revelation 1:6.
Catechism of the Catholic Church (vatican.va): 816, 838; 1120; 1400; 1545–1548, 1551.
Church Fathers and early church orders: Clement of Rome, Letter to the Corinthians 40, 42, 44 (newadvent.org); Didache 13–15 (newadvent.org); Ignatius of Antioch, Letter to the Magnesians 6; Letter to the Smyrnaeans 8 (newadvent.org); The Apostolic Tradition of Hippolytus 3, trans. B. S. Easton (1934) (Project Gutenberg); Cyprian of Carthage, Epistle 62.14 (newadvent.org).
Protestant sources: Martin Luther, Address to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation (1520) (Hanover College); Westminster Confession of Faith XXIX.2; Southern Baptist Convention, Baptist Faith and Message 2000, Article VI.
Other: hierourgeō (Strong's 2418); "priest," Online Etymology Dictionary.