Celibacy

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[Salvation]

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Celibacy    RAYMOND ARROYO

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When he met with the U.S. cardinals to formulate some response to the sexual scandals besieging the Church, the Pope, in his wisdom took the issue of clerical celibacy off the table as a cure-all. Against the strident voices of dissenters, disaffected clergy, and at least one American cardinal, His Holiness suggested that celibacy was part of the solution, not the problem. And the facts seem to bear him out.

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In 1992 the Archdiocese of Chicago reviewed some 2,252 priest personnel files. They found that 40 priests — 1.8 percent had been guilty of sexual misconduct at some point in their career. Of that 40, only one was a pedophile. Another study by Penn State Professor Philip Jenkins reveals that a mere .3 percent of priests are pedophiles. Married men abuse children in far greater numbers. Anywhere from 3 to 8 percent if you believe the studies.

So statistically, children are far safer with the celibates. As the U.S. cardinals said in their report of April 24: "a link between celibacy and pedophilia cannot be scientifically maintained."

"But if only these men had a spouse, a sexual outlet, they would not need to turn to kids" goes the conventional wisdom (and the screeds regularly littering the op-ed pages). Aside from reducing women to little more than child-protection devices, there are logical holes here.

Putting aside the media fixation with the Catholic Church it is important to point out, as the Christian Science Monitor recently did, that the majority of sexual-abuse allegations in America occur in Protestant churches. There are 3,500 sex-abuse allegations a year — roughly 70 a week in Protestant churches according to the Christian Ministry Resource Survey. Remember, these are churches where married clergy and volunteers predominate.

If the objective is to stop the abuse before us, and prohibit its happening again- the Protestant statistics prove marriage is no insurance policy. Since the victims in 98 percent of the alleged Catholic abuse cases were teenage boys, allowing priests to marry (women) seems a pointless solution. There is just no correlation between the offense and the corrective. It's a little like offering the alcoholic priest the deed to a dairy and calling him cured.

If the truth be known: These scandals were not caused by celibacy. These scandals were caused by a lack of celibacy. The ancient discipline has gotten a bad rap in the chaos of the last few months. But it is so much a part of the Church's history and its goodness, to cast it away in this dark hour would be an error.

If you believe the folks on TV, celibacy was something "imposed on the priesthood" during the Middle Ages to keep the children of clerics from inheriting Church property. If I had a dime for every time I've heard this.… Actually, the real history is far more interesting, and complex.

To begin with, Christ himself was a celibate so it is no surprise that the early Church and the Scripture itself salutes and commends the practice. In Matthew's Gospel, Christ lauds those who "make themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven." In his first letter to the Corinthians St. Paul, another celibate, writes: "the unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord....but the married man is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided."

From the time of Christ forward celibacy was the Catholic norm for priests — married clergy were merely tolerated. Certainly by the 4th century there is little doubt where the Church stood on the matter. In 385, Pope Siricius issued the first papal decree on priestly celibacy. Five years later, the Council of Carthage announced: "Previous councils have decreed that bishops, priests, and deacons must be continent and perfectly chaste, as becomes ministers of God...as the Apostles taught." By the Council of Toledo in 633, a bishop's permission was needed for a priest to marry. Finally in 1139, Pope Gregory VII declared celibacy mandatory for all priests; formalizing in law what was already the general practice for centuries.

And the canard that protecting Church land rights drove the papacy to the discipline of celibacy just isn't true. But there is a spiritual explanation. Starting in the third century married priests were required to abstain from sex the night before offering Mass. The notion being: Separate yourselves from the worldly and focus on the transcendent. As the demand for the sacraments increased, these men were abstaining from sex all the time. Thus, like all things in the Church, a practice rooted in tradition evolved over time and eventually was codified into law.

At a time when the world is so transfixed by the deviant, where all mysteries are laid bare, these celibate men and women are a contradiction: a people set apart, people who have saved the most precious part of themselves for God alone. The world needs that example and purity today more than ever.

In the final analysis we are right to condemn, and bring to justice those non-celibate clergymen guilty of these heinous crimes, but let us not strike out against those who faithfully observe their vows to God and continue to walk steadily down this holy and well-trodden path of sacrifice.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

Raymond Arroyo. "Celibacy." National Review (May 16, 2002).

This article is reprinted with permission from National Review. To subscribe to the National Review write P.O. Box 668, Mount Morris, Ill 61054-0668 or phone 815-734-1232.

THE AUTHOR

Raymond Arroyo is news director and host of The World Over on EWTN, the world's largest religious network. He writes from New Orleans.

Copyright © 2002 National Review

[Salvation]

Should offer a good discussion.

[Salvation]

Celibacy discussion Ping!

So statistically, children are far safer with the celibates. As the U.S. cardinals said in their report of April 24: "a link between celibacy and pedophilia cannot be scientifically maintained."

[Salvation]

John Paul II bump

His Holiness suggested that celibacy was part of the solution, not the problem. And the facts seem to bear him out.

[Salvation]

I could not resist giving this article its own thread!

[ventana]

I agree with you, that number is totally phony. Additionally, Arroyo has a good show, but he seems incredibly arch...did I say effete? well, that too.

All that aside, the issue here, oph, is chastity. Chastity is achievable, and, in imitation of our Lord and His Mother, desirable.

Nor should we turn away from a discussion of a married priesthood. But, first we have to discuss the plethora of homosexual predators in the priesthood, a lack of heterosexuals observing chastity, and, then, a married priesthood. Logically, in that order. But first, we cure the priesthood of its homosexuals. V's wife.

[sitetest]

Dear one_particular_harbour,

"I will add that it means that in your average 400 student elementary school - all religions - there will be 32 children being diddled by their fathers."

No, what it actually means is that in a 400-child elementary school, which may represent perhaps 250 - 300 families (many families will have two children, or even more, in the same school at once), which may represent 200 or so families where there is a dad, or once was a dad, about 16 or so of these fathers will have diddled, or will diddle sometime in the future, someone under age at some time or another in these men's adult lives. A few of these men may actually abuse their own children.

And maybe even not that many, since the most likely child sex abuser is an unrelated adult male love interest in the household with underage daughters.

The largest portion of child sex abuse occurs in households where the biological father is absent, and the mother has taken up with another man.

sitetest

[american colleen]

agree with you, that number is totally phony. Additionally, Arroyo has a good show, but he seems incredibly arch...did I say effete? well, that too.

LOL! I thought the same thing when I first started to catch "World Over" - but I've since noticed he wears a wedding ring - for whatever that's worth.

[WriteOn]

Makes sense. Seems the kids are only unsafe with those not following the Holy Spirit... duh!

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

And you are so eager to maintain the doctrine of celibacy, that you are grabbing junk statistics.

It's a discipline not a doctrine. You should know that. Do you have verifiable numbers/studies to refute what Arroyo wrote?

[SMEDLEYBUTLER]

Additional discussion in News/Activism.

[ventana]

Yah! For whatever that is worth. His nails are manicured! Don't get me started on Bishop Sheen, notoriously rumored to visit the gay bathouses on NY's lower east side. V's wife.

[american colleen]

Sheen!?!? NOT Sheen!!!!!

[ventana]

Well, doesn't he flourish that cape an awful lot??? Colleen, I AM SORRY!!! But, honest, I had heard it rumored, then saw him on EWTN sort of preening about, and then did a search and, well, the rumors were rife on the internet, too. So, I can't say for sure, but rumors abound. He certainly had good things to say!!! Oh, good grief! V's wife.

[sinkspur]

Don't get me started on Bishop Sheen, notoriously rumored to visit the gay bathouses on NY's lower east side.

Well, that's a surprise!

One of Sheen's closest friends, when alive, was Dag Hammorskjold, former head of the UN, who was openly gay.

[Sock]

Don't get me started on Bishop Sheen, notoriously rumored to visit the gay bathouses on NY's lower east side.

If you've got hard evidence indicating that Bishop Sheen [R.I.P] was homosexual, then post it. Otherwise, you ought to shut the hell up and let the bigots at FR make those kinds of statements.

[american colleen]

To tell you the truth, I like Sheen's program - the few times I've HEARD it since I can't WATCH it because of the swishing and flourishing and flicking of his cape. OK. I got it off of my chest. It's been bugging me since the first time I saw his show.

I'm OK with Cardinal Spellman. I went to a HS bearing his name and there were "pastoral" scenes painted on the auditorium walls and I just knew something wasn't kosher with him. Turns out he was best friends with Truman Capote.

If you know anything about Cardinal Cushing, don't tell me.

[ventana]

Well now I am searching this, again, and finding nothing. Maybe I am mistaken in thinking I had seen something. If I am, God, please forgive more for slandering a good man. If enough rumor is out there, however, we have cause to be susipicious, in this time. V's wife.

[Sock]

Well, that's a surprise!

You are quick to accuse others of slander but you do the same thing yourself.

If you have any "facts" post them, otherwise, you can shove it.