A PRIEST IN THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK”: THE USE OF PSALM 110 IN HEBREWS 7 AND THE IDENTITY OF THE AFRICAN CATHOLIC PRIEST

The presence of so many Old Testament citations in the New Testament demonstrates the continuity of divine revelation in both testaments while also emphasizing the novelty of the New Testament. This can be seen in the theological development of priesthood from the Old Testament to the New Testament, as illustrated by the reference to Psalm 110 in Hebrews 7. In recent years, there has been a flood of critical questions about the meaning of the Catholic priesthood and its continued viability. This has rekindled interest in the biblical understanding of the priesthood and its identity. The understanding of Jesus Christ's priestly identity and how that priesthood relates to actual priestly practice is central to the current questions. It has long been customary to refer to an individual Catholic priest as a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek (see Ps. 110:4). This Psalm is used by the author of Hebrews in his argument about Jesus' Priesthood (Heb. 5:6). According to the mainline traditional Old Testament Israelite priesthood, as represented by the Aaronic-Levitical order, Jesus is not qualified for the priesthood. So he uses this Psalm in his argument, anchoring Jesus' priesthood on Melchizedek's. This article examines the nature of Christ's unique priesthood, which is said to be in the order of Melchizedek, using narrative critical analysis of biblical exegesis.

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