The Doctrine of the priesthood of Christ as seen by Christian writers of the first two centuries

Abstract

The Old Testament prophesied the priesthood of Christ. His priesthood will be following the rule of Melchizedek. Christ is priest, not by birth, but by his calling and qualifications. The fulfilment of the prophecy is recorded in the New Testament: he is priest, even high priest. The priesthood of the coming Messiah had been believed by the Jews, the Samaritans, and the Qumran commmunity. For them the Messiah should be both king and priest. The Old Testament provided the basis for the Jewish conviction that their Messiah would be a kingly priest. The idea of a Messianic redeemer was popular among the Samaritans and especially among the Jews. The expectations for such Messiah grew stronger when the Jews were afflicted by enemies. But the Jews rejected Jesus as their Messiah because he did not meet their expectations. For the first-century societies of Eastern Mediterranean, priesthood had very important role. In both paganism and the Jewish religion priesthood was dominant. The priesthood with its duties and privileges, formed the background to the Christian concept of the priesthood. The Early Church believed in the priesthood of Christ, as it revealed in the New Testament. The Epistle to the Hebrews is the only New Testament book that clearly describes the priesthood of Christ. This epistle contains a clarification on the priesthood of Christ to its addressees. The Epistle to the Hebrews was a teaching and an exhortation for this community. Non-canonical testimonies of Christ's title as high priest appear in the writings of the Early Church Fathers. For Ignatius of Antioch, Clement of Rome, and perhaps also for Papias of the first-century Church Fathers, the priesthood of Christ was not. a new doctrine. This doctrine was also well understood by Polycarp, Clement of Alexandria, Justin Martyr, and Origen of the second century. Pseudepigraphal writings also bear their witness. Thus, for the Early Church, the priesthood of Christ was "our confession." -Summary