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Permalink Reply by Dr Caroline Wright on August 4, 2012 at 10:02pm

Thanks Jan for looking after me.

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Permalink Reply by Dr Caroline Wright on August 4, 2012 at 10:45pm

It is not the intention of the discussion topic to 'get the Catholics' it is about priests in this religion being celibate not about what is happening in the Church which is adequately covered in another discussion.

It is not intended to offend any person of the religious persuasion otherwise I would not have commenced it.

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Permalink Reply by Dr Caroline Wright on August 5, 2012 at 10:57am

If your prediction is accurate Jan then it will 'die a natural death'.

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Permalink Reply by Dr Caroline Wright on August 5, 2012 at 10:29pm

I have been thinking a lot about this issue of a priest being celibate since reading the article and it has raised some concerns for me.

The Article Itself

My immediate response was how fortunate the priesthood was to have such a man in its ranks for twenty years as he was greatly admired by his parishioners.

My next thought was that one cannot help falling in love when one meets the person of their dreams.

Having been legally married overseas and was having sexual relations with his wife then Father Kevin has broken his vows according to Church Law.

I find it difficult to accept that he then returned to his duties as a priest knowing that he was living a lie. His justification was to demonstrate how easy it was to lead a double life as a priest.

With the public as his audience he let Australia know what he had done and what was happening in the Church with homosexual and heterosexual sexual relationships and priests acting out their paedophilic tendencies. He had stated previously in the article that such priests were hypocrites yet he knowing joined their ranks for a 12 month period.

The Church's Stance on This Issue

If the oath of celibacy is important for priests then why is Father Kevin only deemed "irregular for sacrament" meaning he has lost his licence to give or receive communion. He can still perform the Mass ritual.

The Discussion Topic

If the answer to the question posed in this discussion topic is yes  then those priests who participate in sexual relations of any kind and/or get legally married then they should no longer be priests. In my opinion the Church should take a firm stand on this issue. This will result in a greater shortage of priests than there already are currently. 

If the answer to the question posed in this discussion topic is no (as celibacy for Catholic priests was not introduced until 600 AD, that is, it was Church Doctrine and Not Jesus Doctrine) then now would be the time to change the Rules of the Church so that the Church can grow and prosper.

The Catholic Church did not fall down when they changed the language of the Mass from Latin to English.

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Permalink Reply by Dr Caroline Wright on August 11, 2012 at 10:57pm

Have been thinking some more on this question lately and the question arose in my mind that if Anglican priests are married and convert to Catholicism they may remain married while undertaking priestly duties. Would the same rule apply for a married Catholic man with a Doctor of Divinity who wanted to become a priest?

If a priest marries he cannot remain a priest but if an Anglican who is married becomes a Catholic he can continue to be a priest.

To my way of thinking the rule is not applied consistently. 

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