I don't see anything particularly wrong in 174. I just don't think that "admission" should be waved around as if it were proof that Martin had a celebret from the Pope, or as anything other than the fact that Martin wasn't dispensed from his vow of celibacy. That doesn't prove anything - as the "admission" states, laicized priests at that time were not dispensed from the vow of celibacy.
Of course you don't. Admit it, it was excellent, beautiful even, and thoroughly Catholic. In fact, let's just read an excerpt again, let the words really sink in...
"The mystery is this: I can look on my celibacy if I am a priest, as a chastity belt. And the Church has locked it and thrown away the key. In that case then, I'm just somebody deprived of what I should have a right to by a greater force that's thrown away the key.
That's not celibacy at all. That is enforced continence.
I can look on celibacy then as something acceptable to the Church but a pain in the neck or a pain somewhere else. I still am very far from it.
The celibate is somebody who says to himself or herself (a nun), 'My greatest power of love is in reproduction and in living with another human being. And in having children and in exchanging our love and warmth and friendship and confidence. And giving each other the intimacy of our very being, soul and body, which a true marriage does.
But, I will give that up because..when I become a priest, Christ puts a seal on my soul. The seal of his priesthood. And that seal cordons me off for a higher destiny. And the destiny is to have a very, very particular union with God, with Christ.'
And that union is the union of somebody who is going to hold God's body in his hands at Mass. And is going to be a special emissary bringing blessing and shriving people from their sins and healing their souls. That's what true celibacy is. It's a segregation of your soul from all the lovely things in life that human love can bring and marriage can bring....
And in the beginning it is a sacrifice. And then, with the passage of time and fidelity, suddenly...this flower blooms in their souls. And they achieve this marvelous tranquility and this marvelous warmth that people always saw in the traditional priest. This amazing power to get inside you. This light, this feeling that they were there for you. They weren't riven in their sympathies. And they were there for you because Christ was their man, Christ was their King, Christ was their High Priest. That idea of priesthood....you won't find that anywhere today in Catholic manuals or preached in sermons or anything like that. Celibacy is regarded as...like Fish on Friday , a law we want to change and do away with." - Fr. Martin
Sinkspur probably didn't read it either. He just didn't want to miss an opportunity to attack Fr. Martin because deep down he knows he can't present an intelligent argument against what Fr. Martin says about celibacy, or I would wager anything to do with the faith.
Why you jumped in on the bandwagon I have no idea.