Cardinals Draft New Rules

[Sandman]

Strike One, You're Out is a step, but why don't they simply make celibacy optional?

[midnight Target]

I don't think celibacy has anything to do with it. Pedophiles tend to go to jobs where they will have easier access to their victims. The Priesthood is one of those jobs, just like coaching, teaching or day care.
Priesthood doesn't create pedophiles.

[AKSWulfe]

Priesthood may not make pedophiles, but it's a catalyst.
-SW

[Gunthr]

I'm not sure that most of these sex crime cases involving priests are pedophile cases. Don't most of them involve teens? If that is true, it may be that these errant priests are homosexuals, not pedophiles.

I suspect that if a young teenage kid is struggling with his sexual identity and finds that he feels gay, he starts looking around, thinking, "How the heck am I going to fit in this world?"

Suddenly, he thinks he's got a calling from God, a calling that doesn't allow him to become sexually involved with women.

It solves his essential problem so well that it probably does feel as though it is a calling. (lightning bolt from the sky) boom - perfect way to live a productive life and get respect - become a priest and dedicate your life to God.

As with many, many good intentions,  they fall short of the Glory of God, and the libido leaks out.

But I wonder why you don't hear much about hetero priests engaging in sexual misconduct... ?

Maybe there is something to the suggestion that the priesthood attracts individuals who like the position of being in a position of trust and power over young people.

[miko2d]

Originally posted by Sandman_SBM
Strike One, You're Out is a step, but why don't they simply make celibacy optional?

 If you read your history, you will see that they did just that repeatedly. There are plenty of religions (including christian) where celibacy is optional. If some people still insist on sending their children to one full of sex-starved priests, it's their inalienable right.

 miko

[Eagler]

real shame

I think the Catholic faith is suffering a major setback. The pervs need to be punished and flushed from the system. Sent to the state pen where they can play with harden turd burglers.

 The crap they agreed to in Rome is nothing but crap!

I feel a priest can and should be celibate. If his sexual desire is that strong an urge, he needs to find another profession. His energies should be directed towards finding God and leading others to Him.
Not his crotch .....

[Hortlund]

Never fear, justice will prevail.

[StSanta]

Eagler, there's nothing sinful about having a sex drive. It's as natural as having a desire to eat when one is hungry, or to explore when one can. To play, to love. To hate.

Perhaps priests should be asked to do away with all aspects not strictly necessary to ensure performance, so God can get more of them?
I think it's asking too much.

I think 'being married to God' is the issue, and that's what prevents them from having a normal marriage. As other forms of Christianity has shown (was born into the Lutheran faith myself), it's just a matter of interpretation, not a strict necessity.


Priests. Priests are humans who've been misled to believe they're closer to God than other people. Or perhaps are percieved to be closer to God than others. Scrutiny of the Bible will show they're not.

In other words, this false lifting up-to-superhuman-state is BS in my eyes.

At any rate, Rome is now saying that if the abuse is a one time affair, the priest might continue on.

Imagine that in a kindergarden; a guy molests your child. His supervisor says "oh, first times, yes? Well, don't do it again" and sends him out to yer kid again.

It's utter bull manure, but that's to be expected, given the authority

[Eagler]

StSanta
I agree with you on the BS they decided on in Rome. It's crap.
Don't agree on the sex drive, everyone has to have sex to be healthy blah, blah.
It's an urge, stronger in some than others. The Catholic faith and others require their leaders to choose God over their noodle. If one's desire to play with his noodle is stronger than his desire to find God, he needs to find a faith that allows both. Not to change the ones that don't ...

[Hortlund]

Originally posted by StSanta
Priests. Priests are humans who've been misled to believe they're closer to God than other people. Or perhaps are percieved to be closer to God than others. Scrutiny of the Bible will show they're not.

In other words, this false lifting up-to-superhuman-state is BS in my eyes.
 

Not to be rude or anything, but wtf do you know about the relationship between priests and God?

[Gunthr]

I'm disgusted with the equivical way the Pope handled this abomination.



Maybe celibacy is asking too much of priests.

But if they did away with celibacy, can you visualize homosexual priests throwing down a rubber mat on the floor in the rectory on a Friday night and having a gay orgy that would be technically allowable?

It might not go over too well with the flock.

[Sandman]

Originally posted by Eagler
real shame
...I feel a priest can and should be celibate. If his sexual desire is that strong an urge, he needs to find another profession. His energies should be directed towards finding God and leading others to Him.
Not his crotch .....

From what I gather, Catholic priests were allowed to marry for the first 1,200 years of the church. In fact, there is scripture to support married priests.

In First Timothy, Chapter 3 verse 2, Paul says, "A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober minded, of good behavior, hospitable, able to teach."

In 1 Timothy 3:5 he continues, "..if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?"

According to this site and others (do a search on catholic history), celibacy was adopted for priests for financial reasons, not spiritual...

A list of canons of St Pauls in London shows that in the eleventh century many were inheriting the position from their fathers. Even bishops became hereditary. To stem this haemorrhage of church property into clerical families, requirements of celibacy began to be built into church law, beginning in the sixth century with decrees from Pope Pelagius I (556-561AD).

In the history of the Catholic church, 39 Popes were married.

Pope John Paul II has publicly stated that celibacy is not essential to the priesthood.

[Eagler]

So you think letting them marry would get rid of the pervs?

I like my spiritual leaders more monk like than most I guess

I think finding/teaching God should be a 24/7 job.

Nothing against those preachers/faiths with families/children (mistresses ), just would like mine 100% consumed with his faith, not family - wife - sex issues.

[XMSR]

If I was the POPE I would....

recall all priestly pedophiles and qiuetly lock them away for ever in a concrete and steel section of the vatican with no windows and only porage and water to eat and drink. No visitors. No phones. No TV. All must pray all day long till death do us part. Mabey include any others that tick me off like the odd cardinal that drops the ball enough times. This makes much more sense then letting the police/system handle these vile people. The system may let them out some day and that is not an option! Gotta lock them away forever and ever.

Cheers!!

[Sandman]

Originally posted by Eagler
So you think letting them marry would get rid of the pervs?

I like my spiritual leaders more monk like than most I guess

I think finding/teaching God should be a 24/7 job.

Nothing against those preachers/faiths with families/children (mistresses ), just would like mine 100% consumed with his faith, not family - wife - sex issues.

I think celibacy is sexually deviant behavior and people who practice lifelong celibacy are (to use your word) perverts, so yes... letting priests marry will reduce the number of perverts. Will this have any effect on the pedophiles? Who knows? Is there a link between celibacy and pedophilia? I doubt it, but one has to wonder why other churches that don't have celibate clergy also don't seem to have the problem with child molestation that the Catholic church has.