Priests and Celibacy-What are your thoughts?

[AKA2D '91]

I heard yesterday that the Pope alluded to this issue in his Holy Week presentation. So, since he alluded to this, does that mean he is acknowledging that there is a problem?

If so, what is the solution?

[Ideal08]

Originally posted by butterfly82
I believe that the vow of celibacy should be lifted so many clergy members of the cathloic religion will not have to come across any negative urges for sexual behavior.

I don't really have an opinion on the topic of the thread, but I did want to respond to this. Lifting the vow of celibacy may not stop a single thing. I somehow doubt it. There are pedophiles who are married. They can (an assumption) get the nookie on the regular. But their FETISH is children. Regardless if they were able to have sex, they'd still have the same fetish (is that spelled right? it looks funny).

[XOAlumXO]

Sorry to jump on this board, but being Catholic, I felt like I needed to add my $.02!!

First of all, I think something is being overlooked here. I really don't think it's the vow of celibacy that drive these men to molestation, etc.
Obviously, something is wrong with a person's head if they're going to act like this. I do think it's unfortunate that these priests act in this way.

But something I'd like to point out: ALL KINDS of people, NOT JUST CERTAIN PRIESTS, are involved in this type of action. It is sad that it happens. It is unfortunate. And, I understand that since these men ARE priests, the media is going to highlight it. What they don't highlight is the majority of priests DON'T do this and they are GREAT men. I personally know this, being raised Catholic. I went to Catholic school my whole life and have great relationships with the priests at my church.
Something to also remember is that just bc a man is a priest he is HUMAN and makes mistakes.

But the problem is the PERSON commiting the act, not the vow of celibacy itself.

[AKA2D '91]

Originally posted by XOAlumXO
Sorry to jump on this board, but being Catholic, I felt like I needed to add my $.02!!

First of all, I think something is being overlooked here. I really don't think it's the vow of celibacy that drive these men to molestation, etc.
Obviously, something is wrong with a person's head if they're going to act like this. I do think it's unfortunate that these priests act in this way.

But something I'd like to point out: ALL KINDS of people, NOT JUST CERTAIN PRIESTS, are involved in this type of action. It is sad that it happens. It is unfortunate. And, I understand that since these men ARE priests, the media is going to highlight it. What they don't highlight is the majority of priests DON'T do this and they are GREAT men. I personally know this, being raised Catholic. I went to Catholic school my whole life and have great relationships with the priests at my church.
Something to also remember is that just bc a man is a priest he is HUMAN and makes mistakes.

But the problem is the PERSON commiting the act, not the vow of celibacy itself.

Evidently something is wrong with ALL of these people who happen to be priests, where over 20+ years (give or take) who have committed these crimes. Is it that these sickos exclusively decide that they want to become priests? Is it a strategic plan to get "nookie"? It's not like it is an isolated event, it's like its a "sacered oath" or something?



Right, these people are human. That's the same thing that has been said regarding Jesse Jackson and his escapade and other notable ministers of the cloth or notable people in general. I don't know what these people do in private, I'd never say what my minister does or doesn't do( actually I've heard about his past or present ), anyway. The way the world is today, who knows?

[DoggyStyle82]

The celibacy rule was not instituted until a 1000 years into Catholicism. As SHELACIOUS was trying to say, priests were no longer allowed to marry because there were disputes over who inherited their property at death, the family or the Catholic church. Because priests were the richest and most powerful in their communities, nepotism became a problem. There is no real religious basis for celibacy and either in first or 2nd Timothy, Paul lays out instructions that the bishops and deacons of the congregations be married men because they are more stable and less prone to sexual indiscretion and offer a model for the parishoners.

Secondly, there would be less pedophile priests if the celibacy restrictions were removed. Qualified people would fill those positions that are currently occupied by the deviants. A pedophile is a pedophile regardless of marital status, but at least they would be fired instead of tranferred because there would no longer be a shortage of priests as there is now.

[darling1]

Originally posted by AKA2D '91
As I channel surfed this evening, I think CNN was going to discuss Priests and their vow of Celibacy. With the numerous cases of sexual abuse/molestation ALLEGEDLY at the hands of priests, should the RC church do away with this vow?
They have allowed priests to adopt children.

I think celibacy is the least of the Catholic Church's worries. They need to concern themselves with looking into why the numerous sexual abuse cases were swept under the rug. If celibacy were an issue, why is it that these priest weren't having adult intimate relationships. If they were knowing that it was against their practice then I would say emphatically YES. Right now the coverups need to be addressed and the process in which these priests are brought in needs to be looked at as well because obviously somebody is missing something along the way.

[volgirl2376]

I think the ban should be lifted, but not because of the molesting taking place. i think that a child molester is a child molester...being a celebate priest does not bring those tendancies out in someone. They are sick...and they would be doing it regardless of their occupation or marital status.

[kitten03]

As a student in a boston area catholic university, i see how the role of celibacy and the catholic church affects the priests who live and work with us. It is a reason why many more people who are "called" by God decide to share their spiritual gifts in other ways to avoid not having a family. To me, (a non-catholic) celibacy needs to go. It inhibits human emotions and puts an unnecessary stress on people. It is right to point out that those who molest children are sick. There's no doubt about it. But to be put in a situation where men are the only visible companion, seems to me to lead towards certain inclinations. This is not an excuse or explanation of the actions of certain priests. Simply my interpretation.

I really dont have an opinion on Cardinal Law. Although there's a rumor going around that the catholic archdiosese of boston may not be able to pay all the law suits and want to sell their offices and seminary. This would be devastating to their authority in Boston. So they need to evaluate ways to pay the victims without losing everything they have.

[kiml122]

Ok here goes,

At first I was going to leave this thread alone and just make it one of the many that I don't respond to...but...as you see something has made me change my mind. What made me change...a local priest in my area where one of my friends has a 7 year old son at the catholic school where a priest was just removed from his post for molesting a boy now man back in the early 70's.

I know that growing up going to a catholic school and being catholic myself I have thought on many occassions that a certain priest at my grade school was molesting the alter boys, but being young I just let it slide. Once I got to high school and this priest was also a priest at my high school I once again thought it. I do wonder where this priest is now, and I search the paper everyday looking for his name to see if someone man has outed him or not.

I didn't attend mass today being Easter well because I just couldn't. Also I feel that priest nor nuns should have to take a vow of celibacy. Men and Women were put on this earth to pro-create correct...well how can that be done if people have a vow of celibacy? I agree with Ideal08 in that lifting the celibacy rule won't change a person from being a pedophile, but I do believe that if the rule is lifting then you may find that more people may want to become a priest or a nun. I say this becuase back in the summer of last year commercials use to run all the time showing that men were needed to enter the seminary to become a priest. that said to me that the numbers were/are down. I think the same for the different orders of nunship...(I know that's not a word...but you know what I mean) Something else I think is priest don't become pedophiles....pedophiles become priest!!

Just my thoughts and opinions

[equeen]

Originally posted by AKA2D '91
...should the RC church do away with this vow?...

If the Roman Chatholic Church does away with requiring a vow of celibacy, it should not be solely based on the current scandal. I think it needs to be based on a lot more than the issues at hand.

For the record, I am not Catholic. I am Hindu. My friends do joke that I am "Catholic by association" - due to the fact that most of my close friends are Catholic, my fiance is Catholic, and my parents attended parochial school (for my mother, college as well).

[thesweetestone]

I am Not Catholic but I think celibacy should be an option not requirement. Sex is very important. I not a doctor either but I feel like sex is a human need. No, it 's not needed as much as food or water but it is a need. I think we all need to feel physical contact with other people.

I hope I didn't offend anyone religious beliefs or was too graphic.

[The Original Ape]

fix the problem by allowing all of those men to marry, and keep their wives with them.

[cleopatrajones]

I am not Cathlic but I did go to Catholic school. I do think the celibacy vow should be lifted. However, it should notbe lifted because it would cut down on molestation but because God never "said" preists and nuns had to be celibate forever. Sexuality is a gift given to us by God. God would not have given it to us if He meant for it to be restricted in the way that celibate Catholic clergy must. As DoggyStyle82 pointed out, celibacy was a tool of the church for property definition. That makes the celibacy vow even more ridiculous to me. Although, from the Church's stand point, how can they repeal a vow that has been in place for hundreds of years? If that's what their faith dictates to them then they cannot turn away from it in a tumultuous time. At any rate, I think it does need to be lifted and this scandal could act as the catalyst for some serious consideration of the celibacy vow.

[tickledpink]

Here's an article that I agree with. The scandles that we are hearing about are crimes against male children. I don't think lifting the ban on celebacy will change the behavior.

Crosswalk.com News Channel - I've been reluctant to comment on the scandals involving allegations of sexual misconduct by Roman Catholic priests. I thought it might seem inappropriate or unseemly for me, a Southern Baptist layman, to talk about the serious internal problems of the Catholic Church.
But as I read the press coverage of the story and observe the spin being put on it by today's columnists and reporters, I can't resist one observation: The press is missing the real story, and Christians need to hear it.

Both the accusations and the magnitude of the scandals are mind-boggling. More than 50 priests have been accused of having sexual relations with under-aged boys. Catholic dioceses have paid tens of millions of dollars to settle lawsuits brought by the victims of sexual misconduct.

Shortly after reports of the scandal hit the national press, a consensus formed among the prestige media as to its cause: celibacy. Maureen Dowd of the New York Times summed up the consensus: "The vow of celibacy serves as a magnet for men running away from sexual feelings they are ashamed of." She added that "the allegedly celibate society these men enter ... retards their sexual development, funneling their impulses in inappropriate directions."

In essence, Dowd, and the people who agree with her, are saying that not acting on your sexual impulses will warp your personality. This is misleading nonsense.

Celibacy is not the problem. The problem in the Catholic Church is a homosexual problem. In a recent article in the National Review, Rod Dreher writes that the pedophilia scandal "cannot be understood and honestly dealt with" without taking the homosexuality of the accused priests into account.

As Dreher writes, "What we're seeing is gay men who cannot or will not keep their pants up around teenage boys. Not teenage girls. Teenage boys." Even the pro-homosexual book, The Gay Report, noted that 73 percent of gay men have had sex with teenage boys.

This is why changing the rules on celibacy would have no effect. As Bill Bennett has pointed out, such a change will do nothing about a man's sexual interest in other men...
What's needed, as Bennett and Dreher point out, is a systematic examination of the way the Catholic Church selects and trains priests. Dreher writes about a "lavender mafia" within the church that perpetuates a gay subculture, and that's what must be rooted out.

Of course, this will prompt cries of "bigotry" from the very same people who are distorting the issues today. We need to help people understand that it isn't discrimination to hold people to their vows and to uphold the virtue of chastity. We need to remind all Christians that we're all called to present our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. To say Christians can't be taught to live that way is the worst bigotry of all.

Copyright 2002 Prison Fellowship Ministries. All Rights Reserved.

[Steeltrap]

From the Associated Press:

Police: Alleged Victim Shoots Priest
Tue May 14,12:09 PM ET
By GRETCHEN PARKER, Associated Press Writer

BALTIMORE (AP) - A priest was shot and seriously wounded by a man who had accused him of abuse years ago, authorities said Tuesday.
Dante Stokes, 26, surrendered Monday night, saying he had shot the Rev. Maurice Blackwell, police spokeswoman Ragina Averella said.
Blackwell was in serious but stable condition Tuesday at the University of Maryland Shock Trauma Center.
Blackwell was shot about 6 p.m. Monday outside his home.
Witnesses told police Stokes tried to talk to Blackwell before the shooting, Averella said. Police said Stokes shot the priest with a handgun.
Blackwell is on a leave of absence from the Archdiocese of Baltimore because the church found in 1998 he had an inappropriate relationship with a minor, said Ray Kempisty, a spokesman for the archdiocese.
Averella said Stokes told police he had been molested by Blackwell nine years ago. Kempisty said there had been a 1993 allegation against Blackwell but he was returned to priestly duties when police dropped the case. It was not immediately clear if that case was the allegation Stokes had mentioned.