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JamesG
Guest
this gay priest lacks the virtue of humility.
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Ortho
Guest
Is the virtue of humility necessary for a priest to do his job well?
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YinYangMom
Guest
A priest must strive to be Christ to his flock.
Yes, humility is necessary.
As for whether or not a gay priest can do his job well, you are asking if the gay priest can perform the functions of non-gay priests. Ask instead whether or not he has the correct spirit. No, he lacks total obedience to the magesterium. I would say the same about priests who embrace euthanasia and artificial birth control too…if there are any out there…they, too, would not be worthy to lead a parish because they would be teaching against the magesterium. And that is one critical function the gay priest, or the rebellious non-gay priest lacks which keeps him from performing his job well.
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Ortho
Guest
If they lack total obedience to the magesterium and are not worthy to lead a parish, why doesn’t the Vatican dismiss them?
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legeorge
Guest
I find it disturbing that he refers to The Church, the Catholic Church, founded on earth by Jesus Christ Himself, as a “human institution”. Hello! After that, nothing he says has much validity. What were the seminaries doing in the late 60’s and 70’s anyway?? 
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Tantum_ergo
Guest
“The Vatican” does not micromanage. The bishop for this priest is the one who should be acting, first.
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G_S
Guest
One of the odd things he said needs to be challenged. The Church is not a human institution. The Christ, the Son of the Living God said, “I will build my church.” The church is not simply the assembly of believers but the Body of Christ, with Christ himself as the head. The church is, in fact, the only divinely established institution or society. Certainly full of humans but founded by Christ and inextricably incorporated into his divine life.
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Ortho
Guest
error
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goofyjim
Guest
I agree that the Sacrifice of the Mass is not the place for this to be discussed. But I also agree it is not always possible for a homosexual to stop being homosexual in temptation. Let’s stop beating up on every person who comes out of the closet because they are in a catch22. If they do nothing they’re condemned for just being homosexual even though celibate. If they try therapy they are forced to expend alot of money which they may not have. If they are not truthful about having had some temptations then they are condemned for being “deceptive”. There are some who just can’t win for either side of this issue and want to ignore both sides. My judge is God and He loves me as I am now and I don’t believe I will burn in hell if I never totally conquer all my temptations. That is what purgatory is for, if I’m not already there folks. These threads on sexuality seem like broken records.:banghead: :twocents:
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rlg94086
Guest
I understand your frustration goofyjim, but the real problem is not with a “homosexual” who “comes out”, but is still celibate. If a priest wanted to discuss the disorder of same-sex attraction; explained that it is something he has grappled with; explained that the proper response for anyone with SSA is to live a celibate life; then I don’t think most Catholics would have a problem.
The problem is with priests and others in the Church who teach that homosexual acts are okay and people who live active homosexual lives should be accepted Catholics. It would be equally bad, if a priest said sex out of wedlock is okay and serial adulterers should be accepted by Catholics.
If the threads seem like broken records, it’s because this message doesn’t seem to get through. We all sin, but we are called to “repent and sin no more”.
goofyjim:
The problem is with priests and others in the Church who teach that homosexual acts are okay and people who live active homosexual lives should be accepted Catholics. It would be equally bad, if a priest said sex out of wedlock is okay and serial adulterers should be accepted by Catholics.
If the threads seem like broken records, it’s because this message doesn’t seem to get through. We all sin, but we are called to “repent and sin no more”.
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m134e5
Guest
I wouldn’t count on that. A few bishops don’t really care about that.
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m134e5
Guest
With the help of God’s grace, they certainly can.
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Mike_Dye
Guest
Just to cut to the very core of the matter, I really appreciate everyones opinion and everything but in my world an openly gay priest Will Not Be My Priest!
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goofyjim
Guest
Where is the sin if one has not acted on the attraction? It sounds like this priest fell under this category and just chose his words wrongly. I will not have an actively gay priest but I don’t mind any celibate priest as long as he is celibate. I like to know they are still human otherwise and not some super apostle which St. Paul did caution against.
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Riley259
Guest
This article is such a huge piece of propaganda. Why was it even necessary to tell his congregation that he’s gay (notice that the word gay was used rather than same-sex attraction). He blames the Church for their backward thinking in this matter and says he only has to answer to Christ - this only partly true: of course, he only has to answer to God in the end because God is the only one who can judge. But the Church and her representatives is an institution that Christ set up and he has an obligation to answer to the Church that he professes to belong. I’m so sick of the dissent and the disunity that people like this priest cause within the Church. Pray for them.
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Ortho
Guest
That’s reasonable. I suppose with that same help seminarians can do the same. I wonder if heterosexuals need that grace, too?
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Ortho
Guest
Mike Dye:
If he is openly gay, you have a choice. But if he is not open, then you don’t know. What are the probabilities that he is?
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fix
Guest
I think the point is if these folks in these positions did not “come out of the closet” no one would know and it would not raise criticism. Why good is served from a priest doing what this priest did. The article may not be complete in its reporting, but it seems he did not specfically mention how he accepts the Church position and that he asks others to accept it as well and live it out.
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goofyjim
Guest
But we come “out of the closet” with so many other struggles why is same sex attraction one forbidden to speak of. That is where I beleive the hypocrisy also lies. If we do not want to hear about anyone’s struggle with same sex attraction I think it only fair that I don’t want to hear anyone’s struggle.
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fix
Guest
But, we do not hear priests coming out about other things. Why is it necessary to speak about these issues, and other issues, so publicly? I can see in a group setting or with friends or interested other parties, but why publicly and at mass? Also, from these many reports we read it often seems these priests say there have this attraction, yet the we do not here things like it is a struggle but with God’s help I am living out Church teachings or I think many have misread what the Church teaches or things of this nature.
We read they are gay and they want others to know it and that is it.
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