Wit of lively priest (6)
I believe the answer is:
esprit
'wit' is the definition.
(esprit can mean being witty)
'lively priest' is the wordplay.
'lively' is an anagram indicator (letters get livened up or moved around).
'priest' with letters rearranged gives 'ESPRIT'.
'of' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for esprit that I've seen before include "wit from France" , "French morale as in de corps?" , "Lively and vivacious quality" , "Vivaciousness" , "Vivacity - wit" .)