Posted on 01/27/2013 12:31:22 PM PST by marshmallow
John Cornelius, who is married, will be ordained this weekend -- and sex-free life begins
John Cornelius will be ordained a Roman Catholic priest this weekend — and with the blessing of his wife they're giving up their sex life. Cornelius, a father of three, will become the first married Roman Catholic priest in New York — and Sharyl, his wife of 33-years, has agreed to the whole celibacy thing.
“We have decided to do that voluntarily,” Cornelius told WGRZ-TV. “I have always had friends that are Roman Catholic priests and I appreciate what they've given up to serve God and the priesthood.”
Cornelius, 64, is a former Episcopalian priest who converted three years ago to Catholicism. He said his old church had gotten too liberal for him.
Two Catholic takes on the story:
Buffalo’s married priest says he will stop having sex (The Deacon's Bench)
Dcn. John Cornelius and his wife Sheryl are doing a praiseworthy thing (In the Light of the Law)
Oh come on, what’s he giving up... Everybody knows that the sex stops when you get married.
Oh come on, what’s he giving up... Everybody knows that the sex stops when you get married.
Oh come on, what’s he giving up... Everybody knows that the sex stops when you get married.
I’ve heard of a few convert Catholic priests who can have relations with their wives until she dies, but then can’t remarry. Does anyone know if Cornelius is taking a vow or a promise or is this something he can voluntarily go back on with no sin involved?
“Buffalo’s married priest says he will stop having sex”
So many punchlines here.
Somehow, I have a feeling that Fr. Cornelius will have very few penitents going to confession with him.
Not having sex in a marriage is unBiblical, except by agreement, for a short time, for prayer.
Could he not have been ordained as a priest in one of the Eastern Catholic Churches, and if so, would continence still have been expected? I know outside of the US it is not, but I think there are special circumstances for Eastern Catholic priests in the United States.
Indeed.
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1%20Corinthians%207:1-11&version=KNOX
However, I do respect those who live chaste lives in our sex-obsessed society. I wonder if married Anglican and other Protestant priests who become Roman Catholic have to follow the celibacy rule as well?
Married Catholic clergy do not take a vow or make a promise to be continent. We make a promise of conditional celibacy in that if our wives pre-decease us then we must remain celibate and cannot remarry.
If Deacon Cornelius is making a promise to be continent after ordination, then that is entirely of his own initiative - and all the more praiseworthy because of it. He would have to have his wife’s agreement in this, of course.
If they subsequently decided that they could not live continently, he would not be breaking any of the Church’s laws, therefore, it would be no more sinful than breaking any other promise. However, the prospect of breaking a promise we make to God should make any of us pause before making such promises without due care and consideration.
Why not? My confessor is a married priest and he always has long lines of people waiting at his Confessional. The rules about the Seal of Confession will apply just as much to him as to any other priest.
For his sake, I just hope that his Confessional is quite roomy! ;)
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