As a cradle Roman Catholic, I never paid this topic any heed until I joined this forum and met Orthodox with married priests. Only last week did the light bulb turn on. Peter was married before he was called into service by our Lord. He was one of the original disciples and his first vow was to his wife. He kept it until his death.
It was an "ahaa" moment. The Eastern practice of allowing married men to become priests suddenly made sense, as did the Latin practice of following Paul's admonition, after receiving the Word from our Lord.
A vow is a vow. Once broken, there is no reconciling the differences. The Episcopal priest in this article, never took a vow of celibacy. He began with a marriage vow. Now that he has been ordained a Catholic priest, his vow of celibacy kicks in, if and when his wife dies. It all makes perfect sense. A priest is married to his bride, the Church. His children are the parishioners who look up to him for guidance and counsel. My pastor, God bless this holy man, is a celibate Maronite priest who gives his all to the parish and community at large. He has sacrificed a wife and children to care for us. And care, he does, with heart and soul, enflamed with love for our Lord.
The disintegration of the Episcopalians has been visible on the horizon for some time. I think that's probably why the Church has made this limited exception - since many Episcopalians are One Step From Rome anyhow, and the faithful ones are being left homeless by the sinful antics of the national church. Things have just accelerated with the "consecration" of Vicky G. and the ensuing fallout.
And you are right, the new priests DO take a vow of future celibacy - once ordained, they cannot marry again if widowed. And that's as it should be.
"My pastor, God bless this holy man, is a celibate Maronite priest who gives his all to the parish and community at large. He has sacrificed a wife and children to care for us. And care, he does, with heart and soul, enflamed with love for our Lord."
And in the old country, virtually all non hierarch and non monastic priests are married men with families, NYer. The fact that here in the States Maronite priests are not married is due to the orders of the greater Latin Church here in the US. I've said it before, celibates belong in monasteries, not in parishes.