Hebrews chapter 5 states that God appoints all priests. Even Jesus, the pioneer of our faith and Head of the Church, was appointed. In turn, Jesus chose His apostles and urged, "Ask the Harvest-master to send labourers." Therefore the hallmark of the priesthood is being "chosen by God."

The essential function of priests is the celebration of Mass which is the re-enactment of the Last Super. Then the only ones present with Jesus were the "chosen" - no other disciples, men or women! God indeed acted purposefully. Therefore the exclusion of women and ninety nine per cent of men from the priesthood is divine design.

The risen Christ rewarded loyalty by appearing first to a woman. But Mary Magdalene was not placed in the apostolic position vacated by Judas.

Jesus did not come to revolutionize the political and social structures. If He did, the first "ism" He would have challenged would have been the colonialism of the Romans. Not only were they foreigners but, even worse, they were pagans. Jesus however stated "My kingdom is not of this world" and "the poor will always be in your midst."

In our vocation to serve God, we all have different roles to play. "God has set each member of the body in the place where He wanted it to be." (1Cor 12:18) In the nation of priests (Exo 19:6), God consecrated Aaron and sons as "My priests" (Exo 28:1) Thus the priestly function is unique and reserved for God's use -- "Render to God the things that are God's." As we know, the exclusively female nuns are the consecrated to God as "brides of Christ." At the same time, just as the Church is the Bride of Christ, all her members, men and women individually, are also brides of Christ. But this similarity does not allow men to partake in the nunhood.

The Old Covenant favoured Jewish males, with circumcision being the seal. The New Covenant of Christ, requiring Baptism, makes no distinction between men and women be they Jews, Gentiles, free or slaves. But no distinction does not mean no distinctiveness in God's design.

Are priests superior to the laity? Yes, there is no doubt about it in their supreme sacramental services, e.g., in the Confession and the Holy Eucharist. But this is not so in many other aspects. Abraham, Elijah and Moses were not priests. The highest honour in creation, human and angelic, is bestowed upon Mary. She towers over priests, prophets and popes. Mother Teresa too is a saint of saints. These examples illustrate the non-sacramental equality between priests and the laity. 1 Pet 2:9 states that we are now a "royal priesthood," co-equal with the consecrated priestly ministry but set aside for other roles. It is recognized that the world would have been in a worse state spiritually if there were not so many dedicated nuns praying and working as God's awesome channels of grace.

Mary is not only the Mother of God, but also the Mother of the Church. Yet in the countless visits She has made to us through the saints and mystics in history, not once did this great God-appointed messenger call for female ordination. Yet She often mentioned the unsurpassable virtues of repentance and obedience among us.

Vision and direction originate from the head. Christ is the Head and the Church is the Body. Christ directs through the Magisterium. Therefore we, members of the Body, should recognize the importance of always being "Christ-centred."

I am glad to see the following letter published in the Toronto Catholic Register on April 20, 1998. Written by a woman, it affirms the Magisterium's decision against female ordination:

"I affirm that Catholicism, amongst all religions, gives the greatest respect and spiritual advancement to women. Mary is the Mother of the Church and Queen of Heaven. Modern saints, like Mother Teresa, Bernadette of Lourdes, and Therese of Lisieux, were women. Jesus Himself visited Sister Faustina this century with the Divine Mercy message. That more women than men attend Church services attests to the greater spiritual legacy that will come our way. I certainly love and support the Church as it is."

Finally, we have to agree with Jesus that "the labourers are few." This does not give us the liberty of appointing our own workers. We are, however, required to pray to the "Harvest-master," do what we can to respond to or foster vocation, and trust in divine providence. It appears that we would have had more than enough priests if everyone called by God had responded accordingly. Thus our real problem is not so much "lack of priests among us," but simply "lack of response as a community to God's call".