“In the Church of Christ, there is only one priesthood and one sacrifice. It is the priesthood of Jesus and the sacrifice of the Cross. The entire Church of Christ is a “royal priesthood” (1 Pet 2.4). The ordained clergy of the Church exists to manifest and realize the unique priesthood of Jesus in the community which is the “body of Christ” (1 Cor 12.27).” (Fr. Thomas Hopko)
“All Christians are priests in Christ…In baptism we all are anointed with grace as priests in the Kingdom of God; for the spiritual Kingdom is also the spiritual priesthood. Moreover, as the body of Christ, we have a priestly ministry to the world, fulfilling the very priesthood and intercession of the Lord Himself…” (Orthodox Study Bible, Titus 1:5-9, 1 Peter 2:9)
“We are each ordained. Contrary to what most lay people think, ordination is not reserved for the clergy. Baptism and chrismation are rites of ordination for every believer into the “royal priesthood.” See I Peter 2:9) by God to be stewards of His spiritual gifts, seen and unseen, material and immaterial, physical and mystical.” (Benjamin D. Williams)
“The most fundamental action that we can offer towards Divine Providence (and thus towards the Divine Energies) is to give thanks, always, everywhere and for all things – or give thanks as much as our heart allows. As we offer thanks, from the heart, we unite ourselves with the gracious Providence of God. In doing this, our “doing” is indeed the energies of our existence, and they rightly express the true heart of each of us. For we were created to give thanks: it is the substance of our priesthood. We are all created to be priests of creation before God, through giving voice to the thanks that is rendered by all creation.” (Father Stephen Freeman)
“Priesthood is the core quality that we lose when we lose our humanity…losing of one’s priesthood is equivalent to the loss of one’s humanity; priesthood is an essential element of humanity. We aren’t just created “in the image of God,” no; we are created in the image of Him who is the express image of the Father – I mean, in the image of Christ. Moreover, we are made in the image of Christ resurrected, but also crucified. Christ is a priest, He is the priest, He is the one whose whole mode of being in the world is to offer himself and the world to God the Father in the Holy Spirit upon the cross, for the life of that very world…we reactivate the priesthood within a man or within a woman or within a child through the sequence of Beauty, Goodness, and Truth.” (Timothy G. Patitsas)
“The word “priest” means “offeror” and, according to the Church, all human beings, clergy and laity, are supposed to be offerors in that we should offer our lives and all we have first to God because they are God’s.” (Sacramental Living)
“In baptism we all are anointed with grace as priests in the Kingdom of God; for the spiritual Kingdom is also the spiritual priesthood. Moreover, as the body of Christ, we have a priestly ministry to the world, fulfilling the very priesthood and intercession of the Lord Himself…” (Orthodox Study Bible, 1 Peter 2:9)
“God has not left to chance who will be part of a unique body of people, a group who will serve Him, a royal priesthood. Believers are transformed not only internally (1 Peter 2:5), which describes us as being made into a “holy priesthood” but also externally. We are a priesthood that functions in a ruling capacity, as kings. a holy nation. Believers are a unified group of people who are set apart for God’s use. special people. God protects those whom He has adopted into His family.” (Foundation Study Bible,1 Peter 2:9)
“All Christians are priests in Christ...everybody is equally a priest before God, everybody is equally called…we are called to imitate Christ throughout our lives…” (Orthodox Study Bible, Titus 1:5-9, D. Stuart Briscoe, Christopher Flesoras)
“God wants us to be aware always of the people next to us. It’s not enough to work honestly and industriously, for Christ calls us to be a priesthood of believers who willingly take responsibility for those who are our neighbors.” (Bruce Larson)
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