Two things here: First, their marriage, being valid, is until death. And second, Edeltraut Kleuting, Fr. Kleuting’s wife, is a Third Order Carmelite, not a Carmelite nun. Third Order Carmelites are LAY people who live in the spirit of the order they associate with. In the case of the Carmelites, they seek to live a life of constant prayer and service. They do this within their state of life, so a married woman will continue to live as a married woman.
Thank you. I was wondering about that nun part.
Now, the question is, since the Scripture says for us to live the life assigned to us, are these folks who were Episcopal and Lutheran ministers really coming into the priesthood due to a calling or is this a back door way to force the celibacy issue?
I have known some ex-priests who left precisely because the faith seemed to fall apart after Vatican II, and they were living in heterodox dioceses or were members of religious orders that went crazy after Vatican II.
Incidentally, we’re talking about men who were validly dispensed, not somebody who ran off with the church organist.
Many of them are extremely orthodox and that was why they left. I think they only want to come back now because we have a firmly orthodox pope, and they finally feel there is hope. Maybe they should have stuck it out, but anybody who lived through the 70s will know how horrible things became for orthodox Catholics during that time. And I’m sure it was much worse for orthodox priests.