Should Priests Marry?
Did God intend for men to remain single for any reason? Is there a cause in society (past or present) that a man must refrain from marriage? Is this unnatural? Remaining single as a minister, is this biblical or just a Catholic thing?
The former pope -the German intellectual Joseph Ratzinger- who has given himself the title of "emeritus" pope, Benedict XVI, a learned theologian who "ruffled feathers in April 2019, when in a long text he blamed paedophilia within the church on the 1960s sexual revolution and an absence of God in modern society".
The current Pope seems to be leaning toward "married priests". Who is right, Joseph Ratzinger or Pope Francis? Wouldn't married priests help stem the century old, paedophilia problem in the RCC? CM
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Comments
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Of course Priests should be allowed to Mary. Peter was married at one time. Doubt you hear many Catholics talk about that.
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@C_M_ posted
Wouldn't married priests help stem the century old, paedophilia problem in the RCC? CM
Well, that marriage is common in society outside the RCC, and non-RCC pedophiles commit their deeds in society as well, it appears that marriage is not the problem solver nor does it have much to do with pedophilia.
There may be more married pedophiles in society than unmarried ones ... and there may well be far more pedophiles who are not RCC priests than there are RCC pedophiles inside the RCC.
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That's also like saying getting married will cure a man's addiction to pornography.
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Thanks Wolfgang for your contribution to the thread. However, let's not get into the numbers game of Non-RCC groups vs RCC, in who commits more sex-crimes of paedophilia, than the others. There was an attempt of doing this before in these forums. See the exchanges between Bill and me in 2018: https://www.christiandiscourse.net/discussion/comment/6636#Comment_6636 The thread: "Another Cardinal (Theodore McCarrick) Getting to the bottom: Self-Investigation or Special Counsel"? Under the subheading, "Holy House: A Cesspool of Deviancy".
So, the position or argument that:
"there may well be far more pedophiles who are not RCC priests than there are RCC pedophiles inside the RCC".
It is weak, at best. Furthermore, it cheapens the heinous crime of rape, boys, and girls, robbing them of their innocence.
Marriage is an institution established by God in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. Besides, "It is not good that man should be alone" (Gen. 2:18). Companionship includes all human beings, not just Adam. While the context of Genesis 2:18 is Creation week and the relationship of a man and a woman as husband and wife, the principle found in this verse applies to all humans, regardless of their status. Why would the RCC and its priests think they are exempted?
God did not create us to be alone and certainly not to ever feel lonely. He created us for companionship either through the marriage relationship, family, friendships, or all three. Don't you think God, who made man, would know better than the RCC? Denying these men in the RCC is inviting temptation. Especially, since many children and seminarians are predisposed to molestation in churches, rectories, altars and schools, the RCC needs to do what it can, to help its priests. Marriage is not a cure-all, but it a move in the right direction.
If priests are further denied to marry, it against God's will. On the other hand, society should step up its efforts to jail all RCC pedophile Priests and shut down those institutions of sex-crimes, "Holy House: A Cesspool of Deviancy." Why is this institution, as a body, seems to get a pass when it comes to molesting children? Wake up, America! Yes, Germany, too! And all around the world, it's a sad reality that the RCC sprinkle "Holy water" and spread Pedophile Priests around the world. When will it stop? CM
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It's not today's headlines, but families current pain and struggles. What will stop Priests from molesting? CM
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What will stop Priests from molesting? CM
the same that stops non-priests from molesting ...
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Don't be shy. Do tell! CM
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Don't be shy. Do tell! CM
There are plenty of molesters - perhaps a majority - who are not priests ... why are those "outside the picture" ? What stops them would apply also to priests, wouldn't it? Also, many molesters are married, and some molest even members of their household ...
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Don't be shy. Do tell! CM
"Priests" in the biblical sense are no longer part of the biblical church of God since there are no sacrifices left to be offered.
Ministers with various responsibilities in the church of God may be married or single ...
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Wolfgang, please read this entire thread: https://www.christiandiscourse.net/discussion/comment/6636#Comment_6636
CM
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