What is the significance of the indelible character of Holy Orders, and what does it mean for those ordained?

• A. Holy Orders imprint a permanent, indelible spiritual character on the soul; those ordained remain priests/deacons/bishops and cannot be reordained or undone by normal means.
• B. It is a temporary blessing.
• C. It can be removed by the bishop.
• D. It applies only to the parish priest.

Answer: (A)

The essential point is that Holy Orders imprints an indelible spiritual mark on the person, making ordination a one-time, permanent act. This mark signifies that the ordained is permanently configured to Christ in the order of bishop, priest, or deacon, and it grants them the sacred powers proper to their office. Because the character is permanent, ordination cannot be repeated and cannot be undone by ordinary canonical action. The Church may discipline the person—suspend them from exercising ministry, or even laicize them—but such measures do not erase the sacramental mark. The ordained person remains in a unique, enduring relation to the sacred ministry, even if the powers are restricted or life circumstances change; death ends the state in a practical sense, but the character itself is still a permanent spiritual reality.