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September 27, 2018
Larry Burdoin
San Francisco
Bev Rowden’s insightful letter, “Effect of the celibate lifestyle” (Sept. 13), brought to mind some long held thoughts on mandatory priestly celibacy. As Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI said in an interview early in his papacy, the celibacy requirement for priests is a church discipline, not a church doctrine. Thus, this discipline could be changed. The Catholic Church forbade priests from marrying in 1141 at the Second Lateran Council. Four centuries later, at Trent, the church formally forbade married men from becoming priests (as men were marrying in secret and then becoming priests). Despite some who will assert that a required celibacy for priests can be found in certain Gospel passages, priests were allowed to marry for many centuries.
The advantage for the church today in allowing priests to marry would be a likely reduction in the priest shortage in many countries. If marriage is indeed sacramental, then the church ought not remain obstinate in clinging to its celibacy requirement for priests. For many persons, celibacy is seen as an ascetic, burdensome, and unnatural condition for the human person. The natural state is for men and women to marry. Past surveys of priests have shown a large majority, more than 70 percent believe that lifelong celibacy should be optional. (Of course, celibacy is understandable for priests who go into the mission fields or seek the contemplative life in a monastery.)
Sadly, it is deeply distressing that the church seems to not be bothered by unrepentant pedophiles and sexual predators celebrating Mass and administering the sacraments, while stubbornly refusing to allow married men to become priests. Why is this? Do some in the church hierarchy fear the long-term effects on the church’s understanding of married sexual love from once again allowing a married priesthood? Consider, men who have the personal experience of the goods of marriage, including the unitive dimension of married lovemaking, will likely help the church to finally value and respect the unitive on a par with the procreative good of married sexual love.Letters policy
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