Pope: Priests Must Stay Celibate

AP via Yahoo via Drudge ^ | 4-20-2002 | NICOLE WINFIELD

[Notwithstanding]

In a strong message days before a summit of U.S. churchmen on a sex abuse scandal, Pope John Paul (news - web sites) II said Saturday that priests must live celibate lives and avoid scandalous behavior. Bishops, he said, must investigate such behavior and take action to end it.

[Notwithstanding]

Pope: Priests Must Stay Celibate
Sat Apr 20, 3:14 PM ET

By NICOLE WINFIELD, Associated Press Writer

VATICAN CITY (AP) - In a strong message days before a summit of U.S. churchmen on a sex abuse scandal, Pope John Paul (news - web sites) II said Saturday that priests must live celibate lives and avoid scandalous behavior. Bishops, he said, must investigate such behavior and take action to end it.

Photos AP Photo

In comments to Nigerian bishops, the pope didn't directly refer to the scandal rocking the American Church. But the timing of his message appeared to be a clear signal of his position going into the summit and a firm policy statement that he doesn't tolerate the type of behavior shown by some American churchmen.

The scandals, in which several churchmen have been accused of abusing children and teen-agers, have shaken confidence in the American Church, cost it millions of dollars in settlements and raised questions about bishops' mishandling of the investigations.

The pope summoned American cardinals to a summit Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss the matter — an extraordinary measure that has underscored the urgency that the Vatican (news - web sites) now appears to feel is necessary to deal with the issue.

In his comments to the Nigerians, the pope didn't refer to sex offenders or pedophilia, focusing on the broader issue of the need for priests to live a life of poverty and celibacy.

The Vatican has spoken out about problems in the African Church of priests breaking their vow of celibacy and having relations with women.

"The value of celibacy as a complete gift of self to the Lord and his Church must be carefully safeguarded," John Paul told the Nigerians.

"Behavior which might give scandal must be carefully avoided, and you yourselves must diligently investigate accusations of any such behavior, taking firm steps to correct it where it is found to exist," he said.

John Paul's comments Saturday were his most extensive remarks about celibacy since the revelations of sex abuse began pouring out in the United States earlier this year. He broke his long silence in a pre-Easter letter to priests last month, decrying the scandal caused by some.

In the meetings this week, the cardinals will be looking to the Vatican for guidance and backing on a wide range of issues, foremost among them whether the church should ever consider reassigning sex offenders and creating a uniform American policy for reporting abuse claims to police.

In the United States, the Church is accused of covering up misconduct by priests, in some cases by moving known abusers from job to job.

Cardinal Bernard Law, head of the Boston archdiocese, has faced growing criticism since acknowledging he transferred a priest to another parish despite knowing of sexual misconduct allegations against the man. That defrocked priest later was sentenced to prison.

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[Notwithstanding]

What Silence?

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Priests Must Stay Celibate

The only way that I could do that is if somebody had me quick-frozen. I gotta hand it to anybody who does this and really sticks to the rules. There's no way I could.

[Notwithstanding]

This "journalist" writes: "He broke his long silence in a pre-Easter letter to priests last month..." without doing any research at all. Her research amounted to repeating whatever the NY Times or the wires fabricated the last time any one wrote on this topic.

[umgud]

I don't see the need for celibacy (I'm not Catholic), but even so, the current problem has more to do with inappropriate behavior (criminal also) than celibacy.

[Paul Atreides]

Getting rid of known homosexual priests would be first priority.

[breakem]

Must?

[sinkspur]

This article assumes that the Pope is speaking to Americans.

He may be speaking to Nigerians. Violating celibacy with women is a systemic problem in Africa (with nuns) and in Latin America (priests live in open concubinage).

Celibacy will never be optional with John Paul II.

[uncbob]

"The value of celibacy as a complete gift of self to the Lord and his Church must be carefully safeguarded,"

Well what about all those helping make babies for the Lord and Church

[Notwithstanding]

Celibacy will never be optional in a culture that treats the libido as a god - such as the current one.

The sex drive has always been strong, but promiscuity used to be considered morally reprehensible by most people - today promiscuity is largely accepted as part of life. And as such the Church requires its priests to be witnesses to selfless sacrifice - which is one great benefit of celibacy. No one is forced to be a priest. No one is forced to marry. But those two commitments require one to make a lifelong promise about one's sexual behavior: chastity. Priests know when they make their lifelong promise that chastity means they promise to remain celibate for life. It is a wholly voluntary promise and they are not forced to be ordained.

[Conservative til I die]

Nothing wrong with not being celibate your whole life. The only thing wrong would be to join the priesthood and then campaign against it or break the vow, as if you were unaware that being a priest is voluntary.

[Conservative til I die]

Making babies? Well, I think the other 99.89% of the world (oh, roughly 6.5 billion people) have that covered quite nicely.

You people can complain about anything.

[Notwithstanding]

What about it? It has its own place - within marriage.

God calls people to ministerial priesthood but the Church determines who is to be ordained. There is no right to ordination - otherwise anyone who claimed they were "called" would be entitled to ordination and the Church would not be able to set any prerequisites whatsoever.

[Excuse_My_Bellicosity]

Understood, I'm not making fun of the priests. I'm admitting that I couldn't do it. If anything, I'm making fun of me. They're doing something I couldn't.

[Notwithstanding]

Me too - the commitment to celibacy is heroic. And a sign of contradiction in this worldly world. Eunuchs for Christ. Amen.

[Great Dane]

Don't know why, celibacy is a man made law.

[De Fide]

Priests Must Stay Celibate

The only way that I could do that is if somebody had me quick-frozen. I gotta hand it to anybody who does this and really sticks to the rules. There's no way I could.

God gives to the men whom He calls to the priesthood a special charism, or grace, to take up the spiritual weapon of chaste celibacy. Like all graces, it can be sinfully refused at any given moment; hence, the importance of the virtue of chastity, also God's gift.

Everyone else -- everyone else -- is called to chastity according to their state in life [i.e., conjugal relations for conjuges only], and receives the grace not to sin against purity, if they will accept and cooperate with it.

[Notwithstanding]

As are the requirements that a priest be able to read and write, speak the language of his diocese, and that he have arms. He must also wear clothes and bathe occasionally. None of those requirements are in the bible, but none of them contradict what is in the bible.

What is your real point?

[St.Chuck]

The Church is unlike other institutions in that they don't accord the media the same kind of subservience that say, politicians do. Diane Sawyer is unlikely to get get an exclusive interview with Cardinal Law. Seems to me that what the pope and clergy think is embodied in the catechism and the magesterium. I think it grand that the church does not play the spin control game, the news cycle game; oh how frustrating to the media that the Vatican is not in a state of panic at the American church's "crisis", when much larger problems exist that demand its attention.

[nmh]

#18 "What is your real point?"

The spiritually discerned won't get it. Unfortunately you fall into that category. Pray about it.