Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article

To: SpirituTuo; NYer
"which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake"
Did the Church make them or command them? No. They did it of themselves.

"But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner, and another after that.”
Sounds pretty much like Paul is leaving the door open . . One man after this manner (celibacy) and another after that (marriage). There is NO requirement to be celibate recorded for clergy. Some prophets were married and some were not.

27 posted on 06/22/2014 4:25:37 PM PDT by BipolarBob (Obama - The Scandal a Week President.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 24 | View Replies ]


To: BipolarBob

And.....???

The point is that celibacy is a Biblicaly-based DISCIPLINE, and not a DOGMA.

It is subject to change, and not a requirement.

You will find married priests in the Roman Catholic Church, specifically from 2 sources. The first is that eastern churches permit married priests, but not married bishops. Additionally, former Episcopal/Anglican priests who have converted to Catholicism have been allowed to be re-ordained.

Yes, the door is open.

Sorry to take the wind out of your sails.


47 posted on 06/22/2014 5:32:49 PM PDT by SpirituTuo
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies ]

To: BipolarBob; SpirituTuo
There is NO requirement to be celibate recorded for clergy.

Celibacy is a discipline, not a dogma. The Eastern Catholic Churches, for example, allow married men to become priests. On the one hand, it resolves the issue of priestly shortage; on the other, it creates new problems. It is far easier to assign a celibate priest to a parish than one who is married. The celibate priest is flexible. The married priest follows the sequence of his vows. The first vow is to his wife; the second is to the priesthood. This places a greater financial burden on the parish to cover the expenses of a family vs a single individual. The bishop must take these factors into consideration when assigning a married priest to a parish. If, for whatever reason, problems develop, it is far more costly to move an entire family.

This bears out St. Paul’s basic concern that to be married is to be distracted from the spiritual:

The unmarried man is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord; but the married man is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please his wife, and his interests are divided. And the unmarried woman or girl is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit; but the married woman is anxious about worldly affairs, how to please her husband (1 Cor. 7:32-34).

110 posted on 06/23/2014 4:04:33 AM PDT by NYer ("You are a puff of smoke that appears briefly and then disappears." James 4:14)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 27 | View Replies ]

Free Republic
Browse · Search
Religion
Topics · Post Article


FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson