Abstract

It was a surprise to many to read that Vatican II's document on the priesthood, 'Presbyterorum Ordinis', declared that 'priests, as co-workers with their bishops, have as their primary duty the proclamation of the Gospel of God to all'. Most would have thought that the primary duty of priests was the celebration of the sacraments, the pastoral care of the people of God, and leadership of the Christian community. This had probably been the dominant thinking since the Council of Trent, which, while never articulating a theology of priesthood, did focus on the power of the priest to confect the Eucharist, to absolve the penitent and to anoint the sick and dying, but it did begin a renewal of Catholic preaching.