Is it time to allow Preists to get married?

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matt1985

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I believe that this time has arrived. There aren’t enough people entering the presithood. This will cause the Catholic Church to become week and cause more people to join evangelical groups. I don’t like this prospect because from what I’ve seen of evangelicals, they are wrong on a lot of things. I don’t agree with much of what they say as far as theology goes.

The fact that there are some married presits shows that it isn’t a bad thing. They must be able to function. I would be curious to hear from somebody who goes to a church where presits are married. Who thinks this will happen over the next 30 years ? I’m comming to believe it would be a good thing.
 
While I would say that there is a legitimate argument to be made for opening the priesthood in the Latin Rite to married men once again, there is also a compelling argument against it…

The Orthodox Churches already have a married priesthood (and always have), and yet they too are experiencing a serious priest shortage.
 
You make it sound as though the celibate priesthood is just something we do because we used to think it was cool or something. No, we do it because the celibate priesthood was part of the institution Jesus Christ founded, always had been and always will.
The Church isn’t going to fall apart because we don’t mold ourself to a secular, sexually immoral society. Remember that the Lord said that the gates of hell would never prevail against it.
 
And also, let’s be clear that it would be a question of allowing married men to become priests, not allowing priests to become married men.

Considering that married men are not presently beating down the doors to become permanent deacons, I would be very much surprised if there were an incredible rush (should such a change in discipline occur) of married men for the priesthood.

Personally, too, as a former Protestant for whom married ministers/preachers were the norm … I’m far from convinced that it would be a good thing.
 
matt1985 said:
I believe that this time has arrived. There aren’t enough people entering the presithood. This will cause the Catholic Church to become week and cause more people to join evangelical groups. I don’t like this prospect because from what I’ve seen of evangelicals, they are wrong on a lot of things. I don’t agree with much of what they say as far as theology goes.
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Honestly, I fail to see how becoming like Protestants will help keep more people from becoming Protestants…

I see the ability to dedicate oneself entirely to God’s service, be it in a priestly or religious vocation, as a great gift given to us by the Mother Church. Not everyone is called to get married. I would rather have a priest who spends lots and lots of time with God than a priest who’s worried about his kids in the back of his head any day of the week.

Just my opinion :o
 
What about the priests who flirt with women. They get them emotianly attached and then say they can’t get married. It has happened to me personally. I think that if priest want to get married and it would help them then they should for those who are not called to marriage then stay single
 
I think that priests should be as devoted to God as is possible. Having a family will only give them something else to worry about. Protestant ministers don’t have to worry about this. They never have to run off and say give the Sacrament of the Sick in the middle of the night. Wouldn’t things like this cause a strain on the mairage and family life?
 
The priesthood is a sacred and important position. I don’t think the church intends for married priests because it knows that when you become a priest you make the church your sole focus and you live and work to serve the church.

I don’t think having a wife and child will help this, i believe the priesthood and marriage are 2 completely paths that you can take to serve god, i believe they should be left separated.

I think today the problem with the priesthood (apart from the shortage) is that i see a great number of the men becoming priests think of it more a s job and not as a vocation. I mean think about it, becoming a priest means having the authority to consecrate, to say mass, to hear confessions, to guide the flock! what could be more beautifull and more important than that! Why would you want to do anything else?. I think the priesthood has lost it’s importance and sacredness, when you become a priest you reflect Christ to the world. Jesus never married, never had children, priests are called to be like him (as we all are)!
 
sranna said:
What about the priests who flirt with women. They get them emotianly attached and then say they can’t get married. It has happened to me personally. I think that if priest want to get married and it would help them then they should for those who are not called to marriage then stay single
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The priest should not be flirting with women in the first place! This is very wrong as he should be only focusing on christ and no-one else!

If you sense a priest is flirting with you you should immediately aim to put a stop to it, don’t play along with it.
 
Don’t worry, Matt, you do your job, and let God do His job. 😉

“You then, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus. And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others. Endure hardship with us like a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer… Reflect on what I am saying, for the Lord will give you insight into all this.” (2 Timothy 2:1-7 NIV)

scripturecatholic.com/the_priesthood.html
 
sranna said:
What about the priests who flirt with women. They get them emotianly attached and then say they can’t get married. It has happened to me personally. I think that if priest want to get married and it would help them then they should for those who are not called to marriage then stay single
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Although the practice of ordaining married men in the Catholic Church is a discipline that can be changed (it was allowed in the Latin branch for almost 1000 years), it is NOT possible for a priest, once ordained, to get married (or remarried in the event of the death of the wife). The ONLY exception to this rule is in the exceptionally unlikely scenario that a married priest with very young children has his wife die. In this case, he can petition directly to the pope for a dispensation allowing him to potentially remarry. There’s not much the church could do to change this rule.
 
NO NO NO Priestly celibacy is so important. It is to make their direct relationship with God more intimate. For example, If someone calls the priest and says, “father I need you to come and give my son the anointing of the sick” and then he says "I cant I have to take my kids to soccer practice. This is why we are celebrating the year of the priest.
 
  1. Celibacy reaffirms marriage.

    In a society that is completely saturated with sex, celibate priests are living proof that sexual urges can be controlled and channeled in a positive way. Far from denigrating the sexual act, celibacy acknowledges the goodness of sex within marriage by offering it up as a sacrifice to God. The sanctity of marriage is dishonored if it is treated merely as an outlet for sexual impulses. Rather, we as Christians are called to understand marriage as the inviolable commitment of a husband and wife to love and honor one another. A priest offers up a similar commitment of love to the Church, a bond that cannot be broken and that is treated with the same gravity and respect as in marriage.
  2. Celibacy is scriptural.

    Challenge young men to a religious life that is demanding, countercultural, sacrificial, and loyal to the Holy Father and Catholic teaching. This is the surest way to guarantee a greater number of vocations.
    Fundamentalists will tell you that celibacy has no basis in the Bible whatsoever, saying that Christians are called to “Be fruitful and multiply” (Genesis 1:28). This mandate speaks to humanity in general, however, and overlooks numerous passages in the Bible that support the celibate life. In 1 Corinthians, for example, Paul actually seems to prefer the celibate life: “Are you free from a wife? Do not seek marriage. . . . Those who marry will have worldly troubles, and I would spare you that. . . . The unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; but the married man is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided” (7:27-34). This is not to say that all men should be celibate, however; Paul explains that celibacy is a calling for some and not for others by saying, “Each has his own special gift from God, one of one kind and one of another” (7:7).

    Jesus Himself speaks of celibacy in Matthew 19:11-12: “Not all can accept this word, but only those to whom it is granted. Some are incapable of marriage because they were born so; some, because they were made so by others; some, because they have renounced marriage for the sake of the kingdom of God. Whoever can accept this ought to accept it.” Again, the emphasis is on the special nature of celibacy, one for which not all men are suited, but one that nevertheless gives glory to “the kingdom of God.”

    Perhaps the best evidence for the scriptural support of celibacy is that Jesus Himself practiced it!
  3. Celibacy is historical.

    Most people assume that the celibate priesthood is a convention introduced by the Church fairly late in history. On the contrary, there is evidence that even the earliest Church fathers, such as St. Augustine, St. Cyril, and St. Jerome, fully supported the celibate priesthood. The Spanish Council of Elvira (between 295 and 302) and the First Council of Aries (314), a kind of general council of the West, both enacted legislation forbidding all bishops, priests, and deacons to have conjugal relations with their wives on penalty of exclusion from the clergy. Even the wording of these documents suggests that the councils were not introducing a new rule but rather maintaining a previously established tradition. In 385, Pope Siricius issued the first papal decree on the subject, saying that “clerical continence” was a tradition reaching as far back as apostolic times. While later councils and popes would pass similar edicts, the definitive promulgation of the celibate, unmarried priesthood came at the Second Lateran Council in 1139 under Pope Gregory VII. Far from being a law forced upon the medieval priesthood, it was the acceptance of celibacy by priests centuries earlier that eventually led to its universal promulgation in the twelfth century.
  4. Celibacy emphasizes the unique role of the priest.

    The priest is a representative of Christ, an alter Christus. In this respect, the priest understands his identity by following the example of Jesus, a man who lived His life in perfect chastity and dedication to God. As Archbishop Crescenzio Sepe of Grado explains, “[A priest’s] being and his acting must be like Christ’s: undivided” (The Relevance of Priestly Celibacy Today, 1993). As such, the sacramental priesthood is holy, something set apart from the rest of the world. Just as Christ sacrificed His life for His bride, the Church, so too must a priest offer up his life for the good of Christ’s people.
  5. Celibacy allows the priest’s first priority to be the Church.

    The image used to describe the role of the priest is one of marriage to the Church. Just as marriage is the total gift of self to another, the priesthood requires the total gift of self to the Church. A priest’s first duty is to his flock, while a husband’s first duty is to his wife. Obviously, these two roles will often conflict, as St. Paul noted and as many married priests will tell you. A celibate priest is able to give his undivided attention to his parishioners without the added responsibility of caring for his own family. They are able to pick up and go whenever necessary, whether this involves moving to a new parish or responding to a late-night crisis. Celibate priests are better able to respond to these frequent changes and demands on their time and attention.
catholiceducation.org/articles/facts/fm0014.html
 
5 Arguments Against Priestly Celibacy and how to refute them.
  1. Allowing priests to marry would end pedophilia.

    It is completely untrue that celibate priests are more likely to be pedophiles than any other group of men, married or not. Pedophilia affects only 0.3 percent of the population of Catholic clergy, and sexual abusers in general account for less than 2 percent of Catholic priests. These figures are comparable to rates among married men, as non-Catholic scholar Philip Jenkins points out in his book Pedophiles and Priests. Other Protestant denominations have admitted to having similar problems among their own married clergy, so clearly the problem is not with celibacy.
  2. A married clergy would create a larger pool of healthy priestly candidates, solving the current priest shortage.

    There are actually plenty of vocations today in faithful dioceses: Denver, Northern Virginia, and Lincoln, Nebraska, have great numbers of men entering the priesthood. If other dioceses, such as Milwaukee, want to answer the question of why they have so few vocations, the answer is simple: Challenge young men to a religious life that is demanding, countercultural, sacrificial, and loyal to the Holy Father and Catholic teaching. This is the surest way to guarantee a greater number of vocations.
  3. Married priests relate better to issues concerning marriage and the family.

    To put it bluntly, one doesn’t need to be an adulterer to counsel other adulterers. Priests understand the sacrificial nature and sanctity of marriage in a way that few others do. Who better to counsel a person in the ways of keeping the marital vow of fidelity than one who keeps the vow of celibacy?
  4. It’s unnatural for men to be celibate.

    This idea reduces men to animals, creatures who can’t live without their sexual urges being gratified. But humans are not animals. Humans make choices about the gratification of their appetites. We can control and channel our desires in a way that sets us apart from the rest of the animal world. And again, most sexual abusers are not celibate. It’s sexual license that breeds sexual abuse, not celibacy!
  5. Celibacy in the Latin rite is unfair. Since the Eastern rite allows married priests and the Latin rite allows married priests who have converted from Episcopalianism and Lutheranism, why can’t all priests be married?

    The discipline of celibacy among priests is one of the distinctive marks of the Roman Catholic tradition. Anyone who chooses to become a priest accepts the discipline. The Eastern rite, Lutheranism, and Episcopalianism, on the other hand, have a long tradition of married priests and the infrastructure and experience to handle it. However, Eastern rite priests and married priests who have converted from Lutheranism or Episcopalianism are NOT allowed to marry after their ordination or remarry after the death of their wife. In addition, the Eastern Church only chooses bishops from among their celibate, unmarried priests, clearly demonstrating that they see an inherent value in the nature of celibacy.
catholiceducation.org/articles/facts/fm0014.html
 
There is already too much of the world in the Church, and tool little of the Church in the world. Both Jesus and Saint Paul spoke regarding remaining single for the sake of the Kingdom. The contemporary example of Father Cutié is the exception that proves the rule. There is no groundswell of dissatisfied priests. There is only a tiny minority who do not like their marriage to the Church. Relaxing this rule now will only attract a quantity of men who do not know how to sacrifice to make the priesthood work. Exceptions to the celibacy rule certainly exist. But, again they remain the exception. In any event, this is something for the Church hierarchy to discuss and decide, since our faith is not a democracy. It will be ruined because of it.
 
matt1985 said:
I believe that this time has arrived. There aren’t enough people entering the presithood. This will cause the Catholic Church to become week and cause more people to join evangelical groups. I don’t like this prospect because from what I’ve seen of evangelicals, they are wrong on a lot of things. I don’t agree with much of what they say as far as theology goes.

The fact that there are some married presits shows that it isn’t a bad thing. They must be able to function. I would be curious to hear from somebody who goes to a church where presits are married. Who thinks this will happen over the next 30 years ? I’m comming to believe it would be a good thing.
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Priests cannot marry. Married men can become priests. The problem with your argument is that the state of celibacy is tied to the state of marriage. IOW, if marriage in this culture is in trouble so is celibacy. The answer to any shortage is not married men becoming priests. The answer is we all need to be more holy.

Basically, we get the number and types of priests we deserve. The problem is us.
 
matt1985 said:
I believe that this time has arrived. There aren’t enough people entering the presithood. This will cause the Catholic Church to become week and cause more people to join evangelical groups. I don’t like this prospect because from what I’ve seen of evangelicals, they are wrong on a lot of things. I don’t agree with much of what they say as far as theology goes.
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What evidence is there to support the idea that allowing priests to marry will increase the priesthood?
matt1985 said:
The fact that there are some married presits shows that it isn’t a bad thing. They must be able to function. I would be curious to hear from somebody who goes to a church where presits are married. Who thinks this will happen over the next 30 years ? I’m comming to believe it would be a good thing.
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OK, but what evidence do you have to say that allowing priests to marry will increase their numbers?
sranna said:
What about the priests who flirt with women. They get them emotianly attached and then say they can’t get married.
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The problem you pose has nothing to do with the priesthood.
This same issue exists for married men as well.
 
I believe that this time has arrived. There aren’t enough people entering the presithood. This will cause the Catholic Church to become week and cause more people to join evangelical groups.
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The main difficulty that I see here is that it is an opinion stated purely from our own viewpoint. The Church needs to consider a lot when it makes a decision of this sort, because it will stand for a long time. These things should not (and indeed, some cannot) change back and forth to suit the needs of the moment, or else the Church becomes just another entity that does not stand fast when the world around it is shaken. If we are to maintain that the Church holds the Truth, we must not allow its doctrines to change at the drop of a hat. Keep in mind that the last 40 years (and their difficulties) are minuscule when compared to the two millennium history and incredible trials that the Catholic Church has already withstood.

If the rationale to allowing married priests into the Latin rite without preconditions is that there are too few men seeking the religious life, perhaps we should look at what we can do to increase knowledge about that life and the benefits it offers. Perhaps we should be teaching our young people that a religious life is truly a life to be considered. Many parents (mine included) do not really leave this as option for their children.

Personally, I feel the speculation that the Church will become weak from a decline in seminary enrollment is unfounded. People leave the Church for a multitude or reasons, most of them personal. It is possible that all of the Catholic churches in an area will close and the only alternative is a Protestant congregation, but this is unlikely. A good bishop will use the resources available to him to make sure that as many who wish to attend Mass may do so. For the Church to truly become weak, it need merely bow to every whim and wish of the moment.
 
matt1985 said:
I believe that this time has arrived. There aren’t enough people entering the presithood. This will cause the Catholic Church to become week and cause more people to join evangelical groups. I don’t like this prospect because from what I’ve seen of evangelicals, they are wrong on a lot of things. I don’t agree with much of what they say as far as theology goes.

The fact that there are some married presits shows that it isn’t a bad thing. They must be able to function. I would be curious to hear from somebody who goes to a church where presits are married. Who thinks this will happen over the next 30 years ? I’m comming to believe it would be a good thing.
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I too believe celibacy should be optional for priests, not obligatory.
I think we could have some awesome married priests who would have some experience with married life that would benefit the clergy and their way of communication from the pulpit and in confession.
Also I think it would strengthen them mentally to have a spouse. Then there would definately be more priests so the work burden would lessen for the one.

I sometimes attend a pentecostal church with 300 parishioners. They have 2-3 pastors, all married and they are really good and very dedicated.
Then there are our Catholic parishes where we have one priest for a thousand people. the best priests go down with stress. All statistics show that many priests are very lonely.

Paul says somewhere that no one should deny a disciple from marrying a sister in Christ. I think his word should be final on that. Even Peter was married and he was chosen as the leader and not one harsh word was uttered from Jesus about his lack of celibacy. Paul chose celibacy freely after he had chosen full time service for God.

Yes. I hope the Church will soon take this merely disciplinary rule away. I think also it would make some really great families in the Church. Now, many men would like to be priests and get married too but are forced to choose… So we miss them as strong fathers of families, or as strong priests. Mostly its the Church herself that suffers the consequence…
 
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