"If anyone aspires to the office of bishop, he desires a noble task." --- 1 Timothy 3: 1
To Titus he said: 'This is why I left you in Crete, that you amend what was defective, and appoint presbyters in every town, as I directed you.' --- Titus 1: 5
The whole Church is a priestly people. Through Baptism all the faithful share in the priesthood of Christ. There exists another participation in the mission of Christ: the ministry conferred by the sacrament of Holy Orders, where the task is to serve in the name and in the person of Christ the head in the midst of the community.
The ordained ministers exercise their service for the People of God by teaching, divine worship, and pastoral governance.
Since the beginning, the ordained ministry has been conferred and exercised in three degrees: that of bishops, that of presbyters, and that of deacons.
The bishop receives the fullness of the sacrament of Holy Orders, which intergrates him into the episcopal college and makes him the visible head of the particular Church entrusted to him. As successors of the apostles and members of the college, the bishops share in the apostolic responsibility and mission of the whole Church under the authority of the Pope, successor of St. Peter.
The sacrament of Holy Orders is conferred by the laying on of hands followed by a solemn prayer of consecration asking God to grant the ordinand the graces of the Holy Spirit required for his ministry. Ordination imprints an indelible sacramental character.
The Church confers the sacrament of Holy Orders only on baptized men, whose suitability for the exercise of the ministry has been duly recognized.
It is bishops who confer the sacrament of Holy Orders.