Do you know you are a priest, a prophet and a king?

We took on these roles at baptism, where we were joined to Christ and called to share in his mission of making God known and loved. Being active participants in Christ’s mission on earth and sharing in his threefold ministry should change everything! Whether we are grocery shopping or talking to our coworkers, we have a duty to build up God’s kingdom on earth. But how?

Intercede for others

As sharers in the priesthood of Christ, we are called to offer prayers and sacrifices on behalf of others. St. Thérèse of Lisieux offers a beautiful example of this. Throughout her day, she would offer God everything – a hurt feeling, picking up a little pin off the floor, or smiling when she didn’t feel inclined – as little sacrifices for the conversion of sinners. Like Thérèse, we can intercede for others by praying for them and by offering up the ordinary work of our day.

Our baptismal priesthood is exercised wherever we find ourselves, not just at church. An important way we live our baptismal priesthood is to be present in and notice persons and circumstances around us that need God’s help and provision. Then, we’re called to lift these needs up to God in prayer as individuals and as members of the Body of Christ when we pray together with the assembly for the needs of our world and our community at Mass. By our intercession for the needs around us, we extend the power and presence of Christ, who constantly intercedes for all humanity at the right hand of the Father. (CCC 667)

Witness to truth

Although we sometimes think of prophets as those who foretell the future, prophets also bring God to the world by speaking his truth and standing up for the vulnerable. Fueled with God’s love, St. Giuseppe Moscati (who died in 1927 and was canonized in 1987) witnessed to Christ in his daily life as an Italian doctor and researcher. He viewed his practice of medical science as a way of alleviating suffering, not as a way of making profits; he refused to charge the poor for his services. He exercised the prophetic aspect of his baptismal vocation by practicing heroic charity.

We, too, are called to bear witness to God’s truth in our lives, and there are many ways we do this! For one person, it might look like praying grace before meals when out to dinner at a restaurant; for another, refraining from gossip. Professionally, do our values match our business practices? No matter where God has brought us in life, we can bear witness to Gospel truth and Gospel values.

Servants of love

In baptism, we received a share in the kingship of Christ. When we think of kings, we think of those who exert power or rule over others. But Jesus warns us not to use our power and influence to “lord it over” others, but rather, to serve (see Mt. 20:25-28). On earth, Christ models kingship by healing the sick and serving the poor. Recently canonized, the young St. Pier Giorgio Frassati (1901-25) offers a poignant image of servant-leadership. Born to a prestigious and wealthy family in northern Italy, he discretely gave his money away to the poor and dedicated his time to caring for the sick through the St. Vincent De Paul Society. Like Pier Giorgio, we also are called to lead through service.

But more broadly, living our baptismal kingship to a fuller extent might require us to step back and take stock of the ways we exert influence over others and consider how to bring it more in line with Christ’s model of servant leadership. For example, if we are the higher-earning spouse in our marriage, do we allow our spouse to have equal input on financial decisions, or do we claim more authority in decision making? Any time we have power to assert ourselves but humbly set that aside in order to love and serve another, we are extending Christ’s reign of love.

As we unpack the depths of our baptismal identity, we see that daily living provides countless opportunities to manifest Christ in our actions. Indeed, living as priest, prophet and king provides a roadmap to our personal holiness and making Christ more tangibly present in our world.