Rob_Roy
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Before I begin, I am not nor have I ever been a member of the Catholic Church. Since I've gone on about Catholic matters before and someone still assumed I was Catholic even though I stated I wasn't, I repeat myself: I AM NOT A CATHOLIC. Don't take me to task for what the Catholic Church teaches just because I happen to have studied Catholicism, on my own at that. And no, I don't have to be rabidly anti-Catholic to prove anything to anyone when I write about Catholic things. The icon of the Ascended Master Mary to the left is there because I have a relationship with her that has nothing to do with the Catholic Church (or any other belief system). Thanks.
Celibacy is a matter of discipline, not theology. The Catholic Church HAS NOW and has aways had married priests. Before I go any further, when I say Catholic, I mean in full communion with (some would say under) the Pope in Rome, as Catholic as any Catholic in good standing that you know.
Not all Catholics are Roman. Not all Catholic priests are celibate. There are married Eastern Catholic priests. There are even married Roman Catholic priests. Confused yet? You're not alone.
The Catholic Church is a actually a communion of 21 particular autonomous and semi-autonomous churches that comprise the Universal Church on Earth. One of these, and by far the largest, is what most people call the Roman Catholic Church. It's so huge that a lot of people mistakenly believe that its rituals, mindset, Latin/Western spirituality and disciplines are the very definition of Catholic. Only partially true.
The other 20 Churches are Eastern (as was/is the Churches in Jerusalem, Antioch, et al.). Most of them have lots of married priests, esp. overseas in their homelands where there are far fewer Latin priets and bishops to object. They never made mandatory the discipline of celibacy for priests, although they have many celibate priests as well. At bit of clarification is needed here. These Churches do not allow priests to get married. They must be married before ordination. If their spouse dies they remain celibate and cannot remarry. All eastern bishops are drawn from the celibate clergy, usually monks.
In the Latin ("Roman") Church, there are convert clergy from the Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Lutheran, and other communions who came with their wives and children into the Catholic Church. They are now Roman Catholic priests serving in Roman Catholic parishes and elsewhere. The Catholic Church didn't make them give up their families when they joined. There are also Eastern Catholics with married priests in several countries where Latins are dominate, with their parishes often located near a Roman parish or sometimes even sharing the same church buildings and facilities.
BTW, the Eastern Orthodox (Russian, Greek, et al) are considered by the Catholic Church to have a valid priesthood. They are considered to be true particular Churches and Sister Churches to the particular Catholic Churches, even though they are not in full communion with Rome. They have LOTS of married priests. When an Orthodox priest joins the Catholic Church, he's not reordained and he brings his family with him.
Even if the Latins wanted to start ordaining married men in large numbers, there are very real practical considerations. In the Eastern Churches the priests are usually supported by their respective parishes. That means salary, medical insurance, living quarters (for a family), a car, and other expenses. A lot of Roman Catholic parishes could not afford those things nor to modify or build new rectories to house a family. Then there's the problem of educating Catholics themselves. A lot of Catholics don't understand their faith very well, let alone an 'innovation' such as married priests. There would be controvesy without end, something the Catholic Church doesn't need right now, nevermind the expense.
Rob
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