Actually, they haven't. Not a single person has addressed the early church document by Clement of Alexandria that mentions Peter being with his wife before she was martyred. Care to try and knock a hole in it or do you just wish to keep dodging facts which don't fit your pet beliefs?If you think that our Church is going to die out because all our parishioners are leaving, why do you care? Isn't that what you want?
Actually, it isn't. My hope is that all churches will stop preaching unbiblical and damaging doctrine, whether it be the requirement of celibate clergy for Catholics, the prohibition against drinking alcohol by Baptists, or the "pray-yourself-to-riches" doctrine of people like Benny Hinn. I have a lot of admiration for Catholics -- you guys were pro-life before it even hit Protestants that there was a problem. I think that evangelical Protestants have done a great job of catching up, but you guys were there first.In times of trouble, we need to hold on to our Traditions, not let them be dictated by the new "thought-of-the-day."
We agree here, but since priestly celibacy wasn't a popular idea until the 4th century and wasn't made mandatory until the 11th century, I would argue that you need to get back to the original Church traditions. It's the "thought-of-the-day" for the 4th century that you're hanging onto, not the gospel preached by Jesus, taught by the apostles, or practiced by the early church.
I don’t have to disprove that Peter had a wife in order to support priestly celibacy. Maybe he did have a wife. The doctrine of Tradition does not necessarily mean that we are trying to maintain the church as it was in the year 35. Peter was also a practicing Jew, but that doesn’t mean we have to circumcise our sons, observe the Sabbath and avoid eating pork. Also, Peter’s wife could have died before he became an apostle. That is how they could be together in heaven. If you think that our Church is going to die out because all our parishioners are leaving, why do you care? Isn't that what you want? Actually, it isn't. My hope is that all churches will stop preaching unbiblical and damaging doctrine, whether it be the requirement of celibate clergy for Catholics, the prohibition against drinking alcohol by Baptists, or the "pray-yourself-to-riches" doctrine of people like Benny Hinn. I have a lot of admiration for Catholics ...
We do have many things in common, which I why I wish you could just accept that we are going to follow our own Tradition that has sustained our church for over 2000 years. This Tradition is not something to mess with lightly.
. It's the "thought-of-the-day" for the 4th century that you're hanging onto, not the gospel preached by Jesus, taught by the apostles, or practiced by the early church.
Well, this thought has lasted over a millennium, so I don’t know if it could be characterized as a thought of the day. We are never going to convince each other that either of us is right on this issue. Can we just give it up now? We agree on some very important things besides this.