How does a Catholic priest end up with the power to forgive sins but no other people do? This is what became our sacrament of Holy Orders, where a priest is ordained by someone who was ordained by someone…all the way back to the apostles. If you know which bishop ordained your local priest, you can see who ordained whom dating back hundreds of years! There is a long line of history that allows our priests to celebrate the Mass and forgive sins. The Catholic priest acts in the person of Christ, speaking with Jesus present behind his words, while the Lutheran pastor relays the message as an ambassador of Christ.