The real meaning of "in persona Christi"

You’ve probably heard the saying “in persona Christi” applied to priests. It’s a Latin phrase that very nicely sums up who and what a priest is. Translated, it means “in the person of Christ.” How that’s understood makes all the difference in the world.

For some, “in persona Christi” means that the priest merely represents Jesus before the people. Others believe it means that the priest simply performs actions that are Christ-like. The true meaning of the phrase, however, is far deeper than we can imagine without the gift of faith. For it means nothing less than that a priest, in a certain metaphysical sense, is Jesus.

Don’t take that to mean that when a man is ordained he somehow becomes divine like our Lord. No, as any priest will tell you, he retains his humanity just like the rest of us – complete with the inclination toward sin that afflicts us all.

Rather, at his ordination, a man’s soul is mystically transformed and given a permanent mark – also called a “character” – that empowers him to do for the People of God what ultimately only Jesus can do, most notably change ordinary bread and wine into the Lord’s body and blood, and forgive our sins in the Sacrament of Confession.

The next time you’re looking at a priest as he’s celebrating Mass or one of the other sacraments, try to see with the eyes of faith who is really standing before you – Jesus Christ!