Staying Single for Profession

[Greg_McPherran]

(I’m married so this does not apply to me.)

Is it morally acceptable to stay single for the sake of dedicating oneself to a certain area of interest or work, provided one lives a chaste life?

 

[Michelle_Arnold]

Yes, remaining single is a valid state of life and carries with it the obligation to chastity according to the unmarried state; for young people with interests in professions that are difficult to juggle with the demands of family life (e.g., doctors, lawyers, politicians), it may be well worth it for them to consider whether they have a vocation to the single life.

Those with an interest in the single life may also be interested in secular institutes or third orders affiliated with religious orders. For more information contact the United States Conference of Secular Institutes or your local diocese. Single women may also be interested in the vocation to consecrated virginity, revived for secular laywomen after Vatican II. For information contact the United States Association of Consecrated Virgins.