How do you feel about priests marrying and having families?
It may come as a surprise to learn there are married priests in the Catholic Church. How do you feel about married priests?
Personally, or what the Church teaches?
If I could have been a married priest, I would have become a priest. But...
In Scripture, Jesus and St. Paul make it clear that the celibate state is greater than the married state, for those that are called to it. I was torn, myself, but I wanted children more than anything.
As NYer said, Eastern Rite Catholic priests are allowed to marry. But their priests must be married prior to being ordained, and bishops cannot be married. At least that's what I remember. Also, there are some married priests in the Latin Rite. John Paul II exempted married Anglican priest converts from the Latin Rite discipline.
And since it is a discipline, it can change over time, for pastoral and prudential reasons, and it has.
You didn’t ask me, so forgive me for answering anyway...
Matthew 18:12 ...there be eunuchs, which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake ...
Obiously they did not make themselves eunuchs in the literal sense, the point here is that being unencumbered by wife, children, etc., frees a man to devote himself solely to God.
Also Jesus tells us that we have to leave behind mother, father, etc. to follow him - again not necessarily literally but the point being to focus on Him. Some who are called actually do join the monastic life, and scripture would support this concept.
This is the best route - but as the orthodox, etc., allow married priests, clearly the other routes are not “wrong”.
PS I live in the Albany Diocese; I didn’t know about this - I am looking forward to Hubbard’s departure; countless schools and irreplaceable historic churches have been closed and some destroyed on his watch. I pray for a miracle - that his successor will be conservative and able to turn things around for us.