In the early 5th century in carthage the bishops declared unanimously:
“It pleases us all that bishops, priests and deacons (that is, those who touch the sacraments), guardians of purity, abstain from conjugal intercourse with their wives, so that those who serve at the altar may keep a perfect chastity.”
The decrettal Consulenti tibi. A year later Innocent was dealing with southern Gaul. Ministering there in Toulouse was Exsuperius, who had the reputation of being one of the exemplary bishops of Gaul. That is also in keeping with the fact that he turned to the Pope because it was not clear to him how he should handle several rather difficult
ecclesiastical matters. The Pope answered with the decretal Consulenti tibi of February 2, 405. Here Innocent was not at liberty to broach thernes of his own choosing.
**"You ask what is to be done about those who, while in the diaconal ministry or the priesthood, are proved to be or to have been incontinent, in that they haw begotten children. About such clerics, the discipline of the divine laws is quite clear, and the plain admonitions of Bishop Siricius of blessed memory have been handed down, that incontinent men holding such offices must be deprived of all ecclesiastical dignity and must not be allowed to carry on a ministry that is fittingly performed only by those
who practice continence.
There is indeed the old authority of a very sacred law, which therefore has been kept from the beginning, that the priests are commanded to live in the temple during their year of service, so that the divine mysteries might claim pure ministers. cleansed of every stain, for the holy sacrifices. Nor was it lawful to admit to the sacrifices those who had sexual
intercourse, even with their wife. for it is written, “Be holy, for I, the Lord your God, am holy” (Lev 11:44 ; 20:7). To these men it had been permitted, though, to have relations with their wives so that they might have successors from among their offspring, since it had been decreed that no one might enter the priesthood from any other tribe (Num 18:7) - how much more should those priests or Levites preserve chastity from the day of their ordination, to whom is given a priesthood or ministry that is not hereditary, when no day passes without the duty either of offering the divine sacrifice or of administering baptism!
If Paul, writing to the Corinthians, says: “Abstain from one another so as to be free for
prayer” ( 1 Cor 7:5) and thus instructs the lay people, how much more shall the priests, whose constant duty it is to pray and to offer sacrifice, be obliged to abstain from this sort of intercourse. If one is stained by carnal concupiscence, how can he presume to offer sacrifice in chastity?
Or by what guarantee, by what merit does he believe that he will gain a hearing, when it is said, “To the pure all things are pure, but to the corrupt and unbelieving nothing is pure” (Tit 3:2) ?
But perhaps he believes this to be permissible because it is written: “the husband of one wife” ( 1 Tim 3;2). Yet [Paul] did not say this so that [a cleric] might persist in his desire to beget, but rather for the sake of future continence. Nor did he [Paul] refuse to admit even virginal candidates. for he said, “I wish that all were as I myself am” (1 Cor 7:7).
And he stated his opinion even more clearly when he said: “Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh, you are in the Spirit” (Rom 8:8-9), and he said “having children” (1 Tim 3:4), not “begetting children”.
But discern such matters thoroughly, and your judgment will be twofold, For if this norm of ecclesiastical life and ecclesiastical discipline, which was sent from Bishop Siricius to the provinces, cannot be proved to have reached some clerics, they should be dealt with leniently because of their ignorance, provided that henceforth they practice perfect continence. And so let them retain their present ranks, without allowing them to advance to higher ones. They ought to view it as a favor that they do not lose the position that they actually have. If it is discovered that any clerics knew about the manner of life prescribed by Sirlcius but did not immediately cast aside their libidinous desires, they are by all means to be removed from office, because after having heard the warning they
decided that pleasure was preferable."**
Exsuperius was dealing with deacons and priests who, with their wives, were begetting children. He asked the Pope what should be done and how the punishment was to be determined. He did not call clerical contience itself into question. On the contrary, he was aquainted with it but did not know how he should act in individual circumstances…
It was quite common for married men to be priests and abstain from conjugal intercourse in the 5th century in the western church. It was apparently a newer rule originating in north (pro-consular) Africa in the 200’s or early 300’s and introduced in Gaul and areas north of Spain and Italy sometime in the late 300’s, which would explain why St Patrick states in his confessions that he is the son of a priest, as it was still possible in his region of the world for that to occur at that time.
If it is a discipline and their are no vows, theoretically one could again revive this custom of having priests who have wives, yet abstain from relations, as they did in the past. But of course in this day and age, it having been a custom long disappeared from the latin church it would be less likely for people to have the willingness to revive such customs, especially with so many influences from “modernism” which protest against “overly harsh” ascetic sacrifice.
