My dad has a friend who is gay and some time ago went into the seminary, but only to drop out later. (Dad used to work for a seiminary, that is how he got to know him) The man is celibate. He has no partners, nothing. He is a very gentle, thoughtful man, who loves the Lord a great deal. My dad thinks the man is a saint.
I caution people here to be careful because there could be many struggling homosexuals who consider joining the church and get turned off by hateful remarks. Remember, Christ loves them as much as He loves you and I.
One quick story about my dad. There was an alumnae celebration at the seminary, (my dad was in charge of it) and a man called and asked if he could come. Dad was very perplexed... "of course you can come". The man replied, "well I'm gay". My dad said he could still come.
Later he found out, the man repented on his death bed and rec'd the last rites.... (the man had confided to a friend which later got back to dad, that he repented because of my father's kindness and witness to the catholic faith.
Just for the record, I'm not advocating homosexuality, I'm just saying that Christ commanded us to love our neighbors, even when they are in error. Our love for them is the greatest way to preach the gospel of Christ.
Why do I have a feeling I'm going to receive hate mail!
Because you have fallen into the liberal trap of equating homsexuality with immutable trates like left-handedness.
Homosexuality is filthy perverted behavior and nothing more. How and why they came to engage in that behavior is best left to psychiatrists whos study pornography, arson and other forms of sexual deviancy.
No hate mail from me. I had several gay friends in San Francisco who struggled with celibacy and succeeded..their celibacy made them no less gay, as they still felt drawn to attractive men.
IMO, anyone who has intense urgings and yearnings to engage in sin and overcomes them is a strong and worthy person. Could be any sin and any man or woman. A lot of straight men are drawn to easy-to-get pornography. Some succeed in overcoming the compulsion.
A prominent theatre fellow I know in Los Angeles looked and sounded gay and gay men assumed that he was one of them. No. He had a gorgous and famous wife to whom he was entirely devoted, children whom he adored, and led an exemplary life. Though he seemed more gay than those famous Queer Eye guys, his heart was strong and his intentions noble.
Which brings up the subject of gays who "convert" with help from the (alleged) Christian community. Would their voices automatically change? Their gestures look less poofy? Or? If they renounce their gayness, would the Christian community accept them? I really do wonder.
But this is a thread about the Catholic Church. Will the Church accept celibate gay priests? Should it?
And yet that man could not rebuke the idea of himself as "a homosexual," did not reject homosexuality but instead found it necessary to reject the Priesthood, to rebuke his vows of ordaination.
There are many, MANY instances throughout human history of "gentle, thoughtful (men) (and women)" in societies who have been responsible for great evil. And yet they are thoughtful, kind, quiet and well mannered...
It isn't a case of whether or not someone is "thoughtful" or any other adopted behavior but whether or not they are living with or without wilful acceptance of a sinful condition, situation, behavior.
That one fellow you write about, as I say again, chose to reject the Church and his own vows rather than reject the sin. I think that's all that anyone need know about the man in relationship to the Priesthood.
To be blunt here, it's often said about people who engage in molestations that they are "thoughtful, kind, well behaved" right up until the point they allow the fruition acts of their sin.
The only correlation I see between outward social presentation of and by a person with and among others and who they are spiritually and therefore psychologically is that they are well moderated in their behavior -- a lot of people rely on being well moderated IN ORDER TO maintain certain behaviors that are damaging to others (and to themselves, and that's what's often overlooked here in the issue of the Priesthood).