Priest and Bishop: Biblical Reflections

by Raymond Edward Brown

Publisher:

Wipf and Stock

, 1999

Overview

This booklet presents Raymond Brown’s thoughts on the biblical basis of priesthood, as well as some reflections on the role of bishop. Not setting out to give a “complete, scientific treatment of the biblical background of priesthood,” he presents his intentions for compiling these reflections this way: “I have culled the Scriptures to offer material for thought at a crucial moment in the history of the Roman Catholic priesthood. With the whole Christian world looking on, we Catholics have entered a sometimes acrimonious debate with ourselves as to what should be expected of those who are in the special ministry of the Church . . . What manner of life should our priests live and work should they do?”

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Key Features

• Explores the biblical basis of priesthood
• Presents reflections on the role of bishop
• Reflects on a crucial moment in the history of the Roman Catholic priesthood

Contents

Top Highlights

“irst, when we come to the NT, we shall see that the term ‘priest’ is not applied specifically to any Christian.” (Page 5)

“But the levitical priest was born into the priesthood; he could serve as a priest because by birth he was a member of a priestly tribe and family. His calling from God was only in terms of a divine providence guiding his birth, and it is precisely in that limited sense that we must understand the reference in Heb 5:1, 4 to the ‘high priest chosen from among men … who does not take the honor upon himself but is called by God.’” (Page 7)

“The unqualified idea that the bishops are the successors of the apostles and therefore responsible for all the major decisions of the Church forces the bishops to decide authoritatively in such a variety of fields that, simply by the law of averages, many of their decisions have to be lacking in information and wisdom.” (Page 3)

“imperative that Catholics know some of the limitations of the claim that the episcopate stands in apostolic succession.” (Page 3)

“Recently in a conversation with a well-known rabbi, I mentioned that some of the Catholic religious orders whose primary work was teaching were undergoing a vocation crisis, because the young aspirants were questioning whether teaching was a proper full-time task for a priest. The rabbi literally became white and exclaimed, ‘Have you Christians lost to such an extent your roots in Judaism? Have you forgotten that a man who teaches is performing one of the most sacred of all functions, one that brings him close to God Himself?’” (Pages 11–12)

Product Details

• Title: Priest and Bishop: Biblical Reflections
• Author: Raymond Edward Brown
• Publisher: Wipf and Stock
• Print Publication Date: 1999
• Logos Release Date: 2014
• Pages: 86
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
• Subjects: Priesthood › Biblical teaching; Bishops › Biblical teaching
• ISBNs: 1579102778, 9781579102777
• Resource ID: LLS:PRIESTANDBISHOP
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-25T20:39:32Z

About Raymond Edward Brown

Raymond E. Brown was a Sulpician priest and bible scholar. He taught for many years at Saint Mary’s Seminary in Baltimore and was professor emeritus of biblical studies at the Union Theological Seminary in New York. Over his lifetime he was awarded more than dozen honorary doctorates from American and European universities and was commended by Pope Paul VI for his “learning, prudence, and Catholic regard for the Magisterium of the Church.” Brown was the author of three books in the Anchor Yale Bible series on the Gospels and Epistles of John. He died in 1998.