…there was not general agreement among the Apostles and disciples of Jesus over exactly how one should practice this rule, and how far one should go to practise it. Paul was much more strict than the rest…
Going back to what the Lord said in Matthew 19:10-12, it is a mistake to interpret it to mean that a celibate state is inherently a more desirable state to be in than a married one—both in this life and the next. What it means is that under certain limited circumstances it is necessary in order to fulfil certain types of mission for the Lord; but it does not mean that it is inherently, permanently, and eternally a preferred condition…
Our Church would be infinitely worse off if it were deprived of the contribution of the women…
zerinus
Thank you for your thoughtful explanation and your endorsement of the complimentary roles of men and women. I respect your opinion about it being a mistake to endorse celibacy over marriage, however I do not agree with it.
One thing I inadvertently omitted from my earlier post is that when the New Testament speaks of contemporary Christian and Jewish marriages, the words for man and woman are always singular unless it is clear that a group is being addressed. So, the NT has “husbands and wives” or “husband and wife” but nowhere does the NT speak of contemporary Christian or Jewish marriage as “husband and wives.” Thus, the NT does not endorse polygamy, even though it acknowledges it was practiced in OT times.
Moving on, it’s true enough that the Catholic Church does not today follow all the strictures Paul placed on women, although I know of Baptist and Pentecostal churches that do. For us it’s not a matter of picking and choosing doctrines, cafeteria-style. It’s a recognition of where Paul’s instruction did or did not align with Jesus’, and understanding middle-eastern culture 2,000 years ago when women were commonly in a subordinate role.
Jesus and Paul agreed on the benefits of an unmarried man being able to devote himself entirely to God. The Church follows this instruction. But Jesus did not relegate women to a silent servant role the way that Paul seems to, and throughout the NT letters we find prominent women, so the Church gives preference to Jesus’ teaching and also respects and endorses the leadership of women. However, we do not have women in the priesthood because none of Jesus’ 12 apostles were women.
We know that Simon Peter, the Prince of the Apostles, was married. He was already married when Jesus called him to be an apostle. We presume that several of the others were married at the time they were called. This presumption is based on several factors: (a) we know from 1 Cor that several were married besides Simon Peter, (b) the bible does not give any account of betrothals and weddings amongst the apostles either during or after Jesus’ ministry, (c) in those days men normally married in their late teens or very early twenties, and most of the apostles were mature men already in business for themselves. The exception was John who was probably in his mid-teens. Yet, if John went on to marry later there is no record of it.
For the record, the Roman Catholic Church holds that celibacy for the clergy is a Discipline, not a Doctrine. This means that as the world changes over time, the rule may be modified. And we recognize that the Eastern Rite Catholic churches and the Orthodox have married clergy. The social situation in Europe for most of the last 2,000 years, however, was such that there were plenty of men willing and able to commit themselves to the celibate life completely committed to God, so we had no compelling need for a married priesthood. A nobleman would have several sons to ensure that his titles and lands would have an heir, but if all his sons survived to adulthood the younger sons who would not inherit were often encouraged in the loftier pursuits of religious life. Thus, the noble’s estate was kept intact.
At present, allowances are made for the priestly ordination of mature married men who were already functioning as non-Catholic ministers before they joined the Catholic Church. The Catholic rule for ordination of deacons is that they be either single men of any age, or married men of mature years. A condition of their ordination is that they commit to a single, celibate life if their wives should pre-decease them.
Parenthood is truly a 36-hour-a-day job, and ministry is also a 36-hour-a-day job. A father needs to be able to put his job on hold for the sake of his young son. In limiting ordination of married clergy to older, mature men, we have managed to avoid the inevitable conflicts. Thus we obtain the benefits of their complete commitment to God, the life-perspective of first-hand experience of marriage, and the support of a wife who is not torn between responsibility to her children and to her church.
Nan
