Where in the Bible is it written that celibacy is preferable to the married state?
Where in the Bible is it written that celibacy is a requirement for service in the priesthood?
What is wrong with allowing priests (or bishops for that matter) to be married? We have married priests in our archdiocese and they do just fine.
The Lord commands us to be fruitful and multiply. Holy Matrimony is God’s plan. Compulsory clerical celibacy is a Church invention.
Actually Paul wrote that he preferred it because it created a conflict of duties between family and the type of traveling preaching the Gospel that he did. But he wrote it was not a command but his preference so that clarified that God does not demand it nor prefer it.
Where in the Bible is it written that celibacy is a requirement for service in the priesthood?
You're Catholic?
This is boiler plate Protestantism. The Church is based on both Scripture and Tradition and the answers to your questions can be easily found by a cursory survey of the voluminous Catholic treatises on this subject. You could start HERE or HERE
I'm sure you're familiar with this already but reject it.
The doctrine of the Mystical Body says that not all are prophets, not all are teachers so it's not a question of which state is "preferable", as you put it. Each has his or her own calling and for some celibacy is that calling after the model of Christ Himself.....
" there are eunuchs, who were born so from their mother's womb: and there are eunuchs, who were made so by men: and there are eunuchs, who have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven. He that can take, let him take it." Matt 19:12.
Christ's bride is the Church (see Ephesians) and the priest (as an alter Christus) follows the example of Christ.
The Lord commands us to be fruitful and multiply. Holy Matrimony is God's plan.
So you're saying that the Catholic Church is thwarting God's plan by insisting that priests remain celibate?
If that's the case, one has to ask how else is the Catholic Church thwarting God's plan which in turn raises the question of why you would want to belong to it?
C'mon......you know what St. Paul says about the celibate state and how he'd prefer those devoted to the Lord's work to be as he is.
Compulsory clerical celibacy is a Church invention
Right....because the Catholic Church just makes stuff up.....