On The Origin Of Mandatory Catholic Celibacy: PART 2

Mandatory celibacy for Catholic priests is a foreign Practice that entered Christianity in the fourth century

(NEW YORK) - For nearly 2000 years the Catholic Church has proclaimed Church laws and doctrines intended to more clearly explain the teachings of Christ. But remarkably, while history reveals that Jesus selected only married men to serve as His apostles, the Church today forbids priestly marriage.

Also, today the Catholic Church is the only Christian denomination experiencing world wide condemnation from “scandalous” allegations of sex abuse committed against women and children by priests and bishops. Historically, scandals similar to these are known to have appeared only after mandatory celibacy laws were first instituted, centuries after Christ. Why were these changes made?

As children Catholics are taught that Jesus’ apostles ceased sexual contact with their wives in order to “Act in the person of Jesus”, by adopting His celibate lifestyle and devoting their lives to spreading the Gospel unencumbered by family responsibilities. But history reveals a different story, a story unknown by faithful Catholics.

Today the law of mandatory celibacy for priests has exposed a telling historical problem. If priests freely accepted celibacy in the beginning why did marriage later begin, and what authority today permits the Church to deny priestly marriage that Jesus permitted?

The answer can be found in historical events beginning around 366AD when a new and different explanation of our first priestly traditions began to appear. This event changed Catholic history.

So historically, how and why did mandatory celibacy come into the Church? In order to answer this question we must return to the time of Jesus, and our first Catholic traditions.

Jesus made few changes in existing Jewish law for His followers. But among the most important changes He instituted were those concerning marriage for Christians. Jewish men of the time were allowed to have more than one wife as well as concubines; Jesus forbade polygamy. They were allowed to divorce; Jesus prohibited divorce (Matthew 19:9). And most importantly, Jewish law required all Jews, including priests, to marry by age 20 (Genesis 1:28), but Jesus allowed Christians to remain unmarried if they freely chose to do so (Matthew 19:12). And, contrary to current myth, Jesus did not require His apostles to take a vow of celibacy or to abstain from marital sex in order to imitate His lifestyle; Christ allowed His apostles to freely choose either marriage or celibacy.

For these reasons the question of Jesus’ celibacy is pointless as justification for modern celibacy laws that entered the Church centuries later. As Jesus left the Church, an individual’s free choice to marry and propagate or to remain unmarried was permitted, and no restriction against future marriage by unmarried priests existed. Today many Catholic traditionalists have begun anew to examine these teachings of Jesus and to compare them to the modern law of mandatory celibacy, a law that did not exist in the beginning.

In order to understand the origins of mandatory celibacy modern Catholics must first come to understand the origin and misleading influence that apocryphal non-Biblical writings had on Jesus’ teaching before the New Testament was first identified as the only legitimate source of Christian Scripture, c.350AD, and their continuing influence on the Church today.

Catholics do not tend to turn to the Bible as a historical document in order to understand the foundational teachings of our faith.

Those who cite New Testament scripture in support of beliefs that may question Church teaching are immediately accused of Protestant sympathies, and of denying Catholic tradition. Such accusations are ad hominem, because scripture and Catholic tradition cannot be separated.

Catholics are taught about the Bible’s importance but are instructed to consult the Catechism for explanations of our first traditions (history), or to consult our priests for answers that will lead to the complete truth. They alone, we are taught, are divinely ordained by God to teach the infallible Gospel of Christ without error. Catholics are not permitted to challenge Church teaching.

Today, Church explanations of mandatory celibacy pose a great problem because it is acknowledged by all that apostles and priests during the earliest generations were married. More to the point, in the New Testament St. Paul specifically required bishops and deacons be married fathers, “capable of managing their families” (1Timothy 3).

Even more damaging to the idea of a required vow of celibacy, St. Paul specifically preached against newly converted Christian-Gnostics who brought with them a belief that all priests must reject desires of the flesh in order to successfully mediate between God and man. This ascetic and dualistic belief of conflict between flesh and soul was first taught by Plato c.428BC and spread across the western world with Alexander the Great before 300BC.

By Christ’s time it had made its way into all religions’ beliefs other than Orthodox Judaism and Christianity, who were unique among all beliefs.

In defense of married priests St. Paul confronted this new Christian-Gnostic belief. He strongly condemned mandatory celibacy and his teaching was continually supported by later popes who excommunicated Christian-Gnostic converts for their persistent support of mandatory celibacy.

“The Spirit has explicitly said that during the last times there will be some who will desert the faith and choose to listed to deceitful spirits and doctrines that come from devils; and the cause of this will be lies told by hypocrites…they will say marriage is forbidden, and lay down rules about abstaining from food which God has created to be accepted with thanksgiving by all who believe and who know the truth.” (1Timothy 4:1).

It is important here for Catholics to understand that all New Testament scripture such as this, from either Jesus or His Apostles, are declared by the Church to be the “Deposit of Faith”, which ended c.98AD. These teachings are unchangeable, immutable, and any “new doctrine” that would change the Deposit of Faith after that time is forbidden. In theological speak the Deposit of Faith is the original Ordinary and Universal Magisterium.

Evidence is abundant that mandatory celibacy was a late entry into Christianity, and did not exist in the second or third centuries. As a matter of fact, the Church today acknowledges that “no law of celibacy as we know it today existed in the beginning”.

More enlightening, we have witness in ancient Church literature from Apostolic Fathers such as Bishops St. Ignatius of Antioch and St. Polycarp of Smyrna, they were ‘hearers’ of St. John the apostle. As married bishops and disciples of St. John, they realized that Jesus permitted men to remain celibate if they freely chose to do so, but viewed them with caution.

Priests of the time were married men who also worked to support their families when celibate pagan converts began to appear in large cities, often resulting in conflict. Many celibate priests believed their ascetic chastity elevated them spiritually in the eyes of God to a superior spiritual plane, even superior to married bishops.

In his letter, 110AD, Ignatius asks Polycarp to instruct priests and their wives thusly: “Speak to my sisters [wives] that they love the Lord and be content with their husbands [priests] both in the flesh and in soul. In like manner exhort my brothers [priests] in the name of Jesus Christ to love their wives as the Lord loved the Church. If anyone is able to remain celibate…let him remain so without boasting. If he boasts about it he is undone, and if he seeks to be more esteemed than the bishop he is corrupted.”

This was an important event in the second century. From such ancient records we find that after the Deposit of Faith, as it was left by Jesus and His apostles, priests continued to choose either marriage or celibacy and that mandatory celibacy did not exist. So, when and how did things change?

Edgar Davie is a 75-year old Catholic layman and the author of Illicit Celibacy and the Deposit of Faith. He has quietly read ancient literature, scripture, and Dogmatic Catholic theology for 30 years, and explains this heresy both historically and theologically.

He notes the most intriguing problem seems to be that life-long Catholic scholars are taught to 'think in the box' and have therefore failed to see an error lying in plain view for 900 years. Because this story develops over 2000 years it cannot be reduced to soundbytes. It's really a simple story but must be read.
IllicitCelibacy.com also contains a theological summary.
Write to Edgar Davie at: DavieBooks@gmail.com

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Leroy May 3, 2012 9:27 am (Pacific time)

Did the Discovry Channel do a story about a King,in the 1500's,that made a law forbiding priest from marrying?

Carlos B. April 28, 2010 3:48 pm (Pacific time)

Nobody throws a stone to a death dog prays a popular saying... But evil is constantly throwing bunches of stones and all kind of garbage against the pillar and fundament of the Truth like the same Word of God says... Poor carnal people that only thinks in sex and pleasure for their flesh, trying obligate everybody think like them...Exactly like evil wants everybody loose the Grace of God and get condemned like him... They don't understand a calling from God to Consacretion, The Priest are annointed (If him like any person fails, Him like person is going to render counts in front of God... Don't be ridiculous and blame Celibacy or Priesthood)... Pedofillia is Not a matter of celibacy or Priesthood... Is a matter that evil trying to drag people (personal) to hell... In what side you are... Side of Christ or Side of Evil? In the side of davinci code, in the side of discovery channel, in the side of hollywood... like mention the footnote of the picture... etx. BUT DON'T WORRY CATHOLICS.... WE HAVE THE PROMESS OF JESUS HIMSELF.... THE DOORS OF HELL WON'T PREVAILL AGAINST YOU, I'LL BE WITH YOU TIL THE END OF THE TIMES.... MORE THAN CLEAR CAN NOT... GOD BLESS YOU.

Nathan April 17, 2010 5:10 am (Pacific time)

Wow, why are Catholics so desperate to defend the institution of celibacy? This is not a rhetorical question. I am sorry but the popes did not write the Bible or even compile or translate it. Doctors of the church like Jerome did with a great deal of assistance of Jewish Rabbis. The institution of pope is a bogus one and completely without scriptural merit so relying on their decrees that fly in the face of scriptural precedent is tautological. Only someone desperate to defend a bogus sect would deny the precedence of the teachings of its founders. A life dedicated to God is what Jesus and his disciples demanded of their ministers which is not necessarily compromised by marriage but enhanced by it as thousands of married Jewish and Protestant clergy demonstrate. The same cant be said for celibacy which only gives a superstitious aura of rectitude to gnostically minded individuals and creates doubt in the minds of the less naive.

ebd February 24, 2010 8:01 am (Pacific time)

Ferdinand; "That celibacy was made a condition for priests does not mean that the faithful people of God are forbidden to marry" Wrong! Men who would be priests are forbidden. Jesus and the apostles allowed the sacramental grace of ordination for married priests. What authority changed this doctrine? 1 Tim 4:2-3 was written against the authors who wrote apocryphal Gospel of the Egyptians c.60ad insisting priests should not marry.It was about priests. Also, read Polycarp and Ignatius.

Ferdinand February 22, 2010 11:10 am (Pacific time)

Cradle Catholic, can you please site the source of the statistic "With the priesthood being composed of an abnormally high number of homosexual men (over 50%)". Dona (Feb 12)"some would fall away from the faith speaking lies...forbidding marriage.." 1Timothy 4:2,3. The church has always defended the institution of marriage. That celibacy was made a condition for priests does not mean that the faithful people of God are forbidden to marry. Not everyone is called to the priesthood and not everyone called is chosen. I am also aware that under certain conditions there are exceptions where a priest can be married. I also know that the sacrament of holy-orders is irreversible like baptism.

Cradle Catholic February 18, 2010 1:22 pm (Pacific time)

Wow - it is sobering to know St. Peter would be refused entry into any Latin rite seminary today, just because he was married. He would also be denied the position of "bishop" in the Eastern rite traditions, just because he was married. In fact NONE of the apostles Jesus chose then could be priests or bishops today - with the exception of the very young apostle, John, and HE would be eliminated because he didn't have a college degree. A college degree is of utmost importance and in anything secular (accounting is good) not knowledge of Scripture.

ebd February 17, 2010 2:12 pm (Pacific time)

It's this simple, today St. Peter could not become a priest, he was married.

Cradle Catholic February 16, 2010 4:08 pm (Pacific time)

Natalie- There are no Scripture verses that support a priest be unmarried. The verse the Vatican uses to support celibacy is (if memory serves) Matthew 19. But the verse is taken out of context to support celibacy. It can more easily be used to support castration for priests upon their ordination. Castration would be a sacrifice and perhaps a better choice to keep priests sexually inactive, both homosexually and heterosexually. With the priesthood being composed of an abnormally high number of homosexual men (over 50%), their castration would be an indication of the man having a real vocation and not just choosing the priesthood as an acceptable career where he is honored and acclaimed, just for not being married to a woman. ALL official qualifications for a man in ministry is that he BE married, and with a family, when you read the teachings regarding men in ministry, IN CONTEXT. It would apply to all ordained clergy: deacons, priests and bishops. In order for Scripture to indicate clergy *not* be married, it would mean Scripture would have to contradict itself. It does not. Scripture is consistent. Only when a verse such as Matth. 19, taken out of context can it be possible for it appear for Scripture to be inconsistent. That is why even the Vatican agrees celibacy is only a practice that can be changed tomorrow, if the Pope wanted to change it. Even Rome accepts Scripture as the inspired Word of God - and not to be tampered with by rules made by mere men, ordained or not. The "promise" not to marry, by the way, is NOT made to God, but to one's bishop. The priest also must "promise" to OBEY his bishop and the bishop's successors - both promises made by the priest to his bishop: another man. These two promises are not made to God. Ordered priests also promise to be chaste and to live a life of poverty. A diocesan priest does not promise chastity or poverty. All these "promises" that are not made to God are all too often "gray areas" that can be too easily broken, by a priest that rationalizes his life, after a few years of living solo. Let priests get married - the Roman church in the US is already ONE BILLION DOLLARS in the hole due to payouts and look at the devastation it has caused in terms of victims, their physical and their faith lives (if you can't trust the church, who CAN you trust!) and their families lives... All for what? God does not expect a man to live without a wife - Donna (Feb. 12th) is correct with the verse: "some would fall away from the faith speaking lies...forbidding marriage.." 1Timothy 4:2,3. Catholics - and parish priests- please get educated about this, for the health of our church.

Ferdinand February 15, 2010 10:10 am (Pacific time)

I read that St Gregory the great (Pope 590-604)decreed celibacy for all priests. He was the 1st pope from a monastic background and this background definitely was a basis for the decree. I think he also passed the decree that only ordained priests could be consecrated bishop. Gregory is the only pope other than Leo that is referred to as great and one of the reasons for this were his reforms. I am not aware that the Church and neither have I encountered a priest or religious, assert celibacy as a Christian doctrine of the Church. It is a decree (law) and all popes from Gregory(I) have not bothered to tamper with it. And why should they? Beyond celibacy, there are so many such laws we Catholic faithful obey example; not eating meat on ash Wednesday; fasting during lent etc. These laws are not embedded in scripture but are instituted by the authority which Christ himself gave the Church and is guided by the Holy Spirit. Our faith that sacred scripture (the Holy Bible) is the word of God, is founded on the authority of the Pope to say so. This is no different for even non Catholics because what we have today as sacred scripture is what was authorized by the papacy as what should be included. It does not matter that there are shorter protestant versions today. If the authority were not so, they should not have been limited to just deleting part of the original bible text, they should have added to it. The point I am making is that we have the bible as a result of a papal decree. So what! if celibacy for priests is a papal decree? We might as well question the authenticity of the bible. It is the guidance of the holy spirit that will inspire Gregory to enact such a decree that will preempt the possible embarrassment of a gay priest marrying a male partner.

Natalie February 14, 2010 1:56 pm (Pacific time)

Cradle Catholic: I'm aware of the verses that support priests being married. I would like to look at the one that DOES NOT aprove that. So far, nobody mentioned any. Or is it just general understanding and 'foreign influence' without any material proof? One more question: if the real problem is in money, would be a priest allowed to marry if he refuses benefits for his family because his wife can afford it through her job?

Cradle Catholic February 14, 2010 1:20 pm (Pacific time)

Natalie- The verses that indicate priests SHOULD be married are best contained in: 1Corinthians 9:5 - where St. Paul wrote that he and Barnabas had a "the right to marry a believing woman" like Cephas (St. Peter) and "the rest of the apostles"? Further, in 1Timothy 3:1-5, St. Paul reasoned MEN in the ministry be married,for "if a man cannot manage his own little family with dignity, how can he take care of the church of God?" To Ray Marshall - Regarding support of a married priest and his family - Scripture instructs us not to "muzzle and ox". That means YES! we support the married priests and their families. They do not have to be given so much money they could afford sable underwear, but they ought not be lacking anything either. Moderation is key. We see it in other denominations, such as Eastern Orthodox, that has an unbroken tradition of allowing married men to serve as priests. Lastly, only a small percentage of priests (2 or 3%) have molested children. Celibacy is NOT the cause for the inclination to abuse a child. NO ONE with any amount of good sense claims that. But celibacy IS the cause of priests that stray from a life of complete abtinence and that have a "Lapse" in their vows - sex with a woman or with another man, which is very, very, very common and NOT acceptable. For all of you married people out there reading this post, if every few years, your spouse told you they had a "lapse" with another person (an adult woman or man) and they were sorry and they'll TRY to not let it happen again, but they can't promise that - because they are 'only human' and under a lot of stress, how would you handle that? Would you look the other way? Would you come to believe it were normal? Many priests believe these "lapses" are normal, and to be expected from time to time. That is outrageous. I must mention a "lapse" isn't just a one night stand although it could be. A "lapse" for a priest may last from 4-8 years, or longer. During his 30 years as a priest, he could have had sexual relations with 3 or 4 different women(or men) and it could be for even up to 25 of those years he was a priest. Bottom line - they get the sex and can live double lives, with the people in the pews accepting it because "Father tries so hard to be holy and he is under SO much stress." Excuses, excuses - and it's always the priest that is supported. Everyone else is considered a bad influence to them - yet it's the priest that should know better. When the priest is outed (like Fr. Cutie of Florida, who was so beloved by his parishioners and TV followers) the jig is up. Let priests be honorable men and get married. There are too many "Father Daddies" out there too. The priest being allowed to have it both ways, and live two lives. It causes them to lose their integrity and results in NO trust on the part of a thinking laity. What husband or wife would approve of their spouse having a "lapse" with another person during their marriage, calling it normal? By the way, per Scripture there must be NO women priests. So the call for a married MALE priesthood does not translate with accepting women as priests. As far as I can determine from Scripture, which is the Gold Standard of measure for Jesus's church, women (over the age of 40, per tradition) may be ordained as "Deacons" which is a service oriented role. But only MEN are to be priests. If someone else has concrete data from Scripure or UNIVERSAL Church Tradition to refute that - please let me know. Thank you -

SIDDIQUE MUGHAL February 14, 2010 7:43 am (Pacific time)

I LEARN ABOUT THIS TEACHINGS JESUS CHRIST SAYS US MARRIAGE IS IMPORTANT FOR US.

Jeff February 13, 2010 11:06 pm (Pacific time)

I think you have a misunderstanding of the history of priestly celibacy, and a rather skewed idea of the proportion of Catholic priests committing the horrific child abuse cases vs. other denominations without priestly celibacy.

There are several pretty good books on the subject, but I don't have time to look them up at the moment. But here is a podcast of a radio show on the history of priestly celibacy that might be of interest to some:

http://www.catholic.com/radio/event.php?calendar=1&category=&event=4507&date=2007-03-02

As to the claims that priestly celibacy "causes" pedophilia, or that it is primarily a Catholic problem, I think Philip Jenkins' book on the subject dispells that misconception quite convincingly:

A Review Essay of Philip Jenkins's Pedophiles and Priests
By William A. Donohue
http://www.catholicleague.org/research/pedophiles_and_priests.htm

See also:

10 Myths about Priestly Pedophilia
http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/facts/fm0011.html

Natalie February 13, 2010 8:41 pm (Pacific time)

So, celibacy is then not a discipline really, but rather a result of perishers not being able to support pastor's wages? Isn't it selfish? I would support a pastor that puts his family first. That means that he can take care of his parish also and his assistant should help him whenever the pastor is not available. That's what the assistant is for. Just my opinion.

Ray Marshall February 13, 2010 3:00 pm (Pacific time)

"Edgar Davie. . . .explains this heresy both historically and theologically."----- What qualifications does Davie have to declare celibacy to be a "heresy?" I've never seen "quietly reading for 30 years" on any resume'. ----- Celibacy is a discipline and could be changed at any time. But it won't be in the near future. ------- For starters, if and when priests were permitted to marry, how much would Davie be willing to increase his contributions to his parish so that the pastor and the assistant could get living wages and provide for health insurance and education for his children? ------------ Would he object if the married pastor would place his family responsibilities ahead of his duties to his parish?

Ray Marshall February 13, 2010 2:41 pm (Pacific time)

"Mandatory celibacy for Catholic priests is a foreign Practice that entered Christianity in the fourth century" Virtually everything was a foreign practice that entered the Church in the fourth century. That's when the persecuted Church became "Legal" for the first time. All the Popes up to that time had been martyrs, as no doubt were a great many of the priests. No doubt there was already a tradition of celibacy by that time since hiding in catacombs was not conducive to courting.

Natalie February 13, 2010 12:33 pm (Pacific time)

I still don't get on what verses celibacy discipline is based on. As far as I understand, a man (for feminists let's say people) was created to fill the earth and increase in number, thus to create a new life, and God found it to be beautiful, right? Then, why the method of creating that beautiful new creature is considered to be something sinful? Do we really know more than God knows? I'm not talking about sleeping around, and not being sarcastic, just wondering.

Doug February 13, 2010 4:31 am (Pacific time)

Celibacy is a discipline of the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church, while many of the Eastern Rite Catholic churches have never practiced celibacy. Furthermore, the bulk of today's priestly sex abuse scandals are homosexual in nature. Additionally, Jesus is on record in the Gospels as affirming the value of celibacy, for those who could handle it, as is St. Paul. Your theories and explanation, while well thought out, simply does not square with the facts.

Donna February 12, 2010 3:24 pm (Pacific time)

Your article is correct. Further proof is found at 1 Timothy 4:2,3, says "some would fall away from the faith speaking lies, hypocrisy, teachings of demons...forbidding marriage.." So the Bible clearly exposes those who forbid marriage as those teaching demonic doctrines.

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On The Origin Of Mandatory Catholic Celibacy: PART 2

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