"How is a parish support to "pay" a decent salary for a married priest to be married with, say - a large family of 8 children? The food, clothing, education of these children would be paid by each parish? How would the priest make a good father to his own children when he is "fathering" all his flock? I DO NOT see this working."
But the fact is, it does work and has for 2000 years in the Eastern Church. Does it cost more money? You bet! Parishioners have to dig deeper...but sacrificial giving is a blessing in and of itself. It also means less money for the looney ideas and practices of certain religious orders and hierarchs. A married priesthood does have its own problems, but with all due respect to +Nasrallah, they don't rise to the level of what the Latin Church has faced with the sex scandals and all of the other problems which arise when celibates try to function "in the world" instead of "in the desert". Nevertheless, celibacy of the diocesan clergy is a tradition of the Latin Church and as such should not be changed because of pressures from outside or complaints from improperly formed priests.
Well, no surprise, I totally disagree! Our parish can't support the cost of one priest, much less a family. In fact, they can't support the cost of the current building (our original Church burned to the ground 60 years ago).
A married priesthood does have its own problems, but with all due respect to +Nasrallah, they don't rise to the level of what the Latin Church has faced with the sex scandals and all of the other problems which arise when celibates try to function "in the world" instead of "in the desert".
Puhlease! Such nonsense! These 'scandals' have not been a factor in the Maronite Church and you know it. The majority of our priests here in the US come from Lebanon, are highly educated and are polyglots. Many of them are bi-ritual, Maronite and Latin Rite. Our pastor has one set of vestments - white - and wears donated Latin vestments during Advent and Lent. There is barely enough money to support him, much less a wife and children. He has voluntarily chosen to live a celibate life, as have ALL the other priests serving in the US, Mexico, South America, Australia, etc.