Former Anglican priest ordained Catholic priest in San Francisco

Catholic News Service ^ | December 29, 2003

[NYer]

SAN FRANCISCO (CNS) -- Archbishop William J. Levada of San Francisco ordained Father James Livingstone, a married former Anglican priest, to the Catholic priesthood Dec. 20. "He is the first such married man to be ordained a priest for the archdiocese," the archbishop said. Father Livingstone was ordained in the Anglican Diocese of Nova Scotia, Canada, in 1975, and has served in teaching, prison ministry and parish ministry. He was a pastor of U.S. Episcopal congregations in New Hampshire and South Carolina before he moved to San Mateo, Calif., in 1990. He headed an Episcopal congregation there until he made his profession of faith as a Roman Catholic. "Since 1998, when he first petitioned me to consider him for Catholic ordination, he has been patiently pursuing a review of Catholic theology and practice with private tutors," Archbishop Levada wrote Dec. 5 in a column announcing the ordination in his archdiocesan newspaper, Catholic San Francisco.

[Catholicguy]

Amen. women priests are an ontological impossibility

[Catholicguy]

My family motto is "It is always darkest before the storm."

Me and my Fam are prepared.

[sinkspur]

Females cannot be the "alter Christus," which involves Christ's maleness.

[johnb2004]

"However, if I was going to play devil's advocate I might suggest that many traditionalist/conservative Catholics would be happier with queer priests than they would be with married priests! ;)"

Faithful Catholics would be happy when Church leaders denounce error and excommunicate heretics. The priest shortage is the result of liberal forces infiltrating the Church. Celibacy is not the issue, no matter how the heterodox spin it.

[TexConfederate1861]

One question:

I can see the point you are making, but since your own Eastern Rite allows married priests, what is the big deal?

We Orthodox have had married clergy, and I have never seen a problem yet. I know it is not practice in the West, but these Anglicans that are joining your church can be just as committed being married as not.

[ccmay]

Wait a second...when is celibacy NOT freely chosen?

Back in my college days, before I was married, I had long periods of celibacy-- not freely chosen by me, and I wished mightily it were not so.

-ccm

[ccmay]

He said many were marvellous priests but "I think everybody sees that it would be undesirable to have the clergy predominantly homosexual."

It would be undesirable to have ANY homosexual as a proest.

-ccm

[NeoCaveman]

Wait a second...when is celibacy NOT freely chosen?

Back in my college days, before I was married, I had long periods of celibacy-- not freely chosen by me, and I wished mightily it were not so.

Celibacy is alsoimposed, aka no freely chosen, when the wife has a headache. LOL.

[Tantumergo]

"It would be undesirable to have ANY homosexual as a proest."

I can't argue with that!

;)