Arguments for married priests do not hold up

The last nine Popes, starting with St. Pius X in 1903, all sternly defended celibacy for diocesan priests. Popes Pius XII, St. John Paul II, and Benedict XVI stood by the traditional position, although Pope Benedict did allow a limited exception for former married Anglican priests with the creation of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter.

In a 2016 article in the Catholic Herald, freelance writer Jon Anderson describes efforts to persuade Pope Francis to overturn the ancient discipline.

The Pope’s views on the matter remain somewhat opaque, and there has been repeated speculation in recent years about Francis’s willingness to address the subject of priestly celibacy.

In his book On Heaven and Earth, published before his election, the then-Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio did not appear to see any reason to change the existing position. However, there is persistent speculation that he may be open to discussing the matter. Vatican communications have done little to clarify where exactly the Pope stands.

Bishop Erwin Kräutler of Xingu in Brazil raised the problem of a lack of clergy in his huge prelature and said that the Pope responded by urging him to make “bold, daring proposals.”

In 2013, Cardinal Karl Lehmann of Mainz, Germany, raised eyebrows by speculating that married deacons could be ordained as priests in the not too distant future.

In this confused situation, the wealthy and powerful German dioceses have come forward, especially certain liberal bishops. For example, Bishop Hans-Jochen Jaschke of Hamburg said that when German bishops met Pope Francis last November, they raised the question of married priests as a solution for the jurisdictions where there is a shortage of clergy. By their account, Francis “made no sign of refusal” and the Pope is considering devoting the next synod of bishops to this issue.

There are practical objections to some of these proposals, for instance Bishop Jaschke’s idea of allowing married priests in regions where there is a clergy shortage. While it is presented as a practical measure to help deal with a local situation, there is hardly a country in Europe that doesn’t have a serious shortage of priests. Ireland, which used to export priests around the world, now has to import them to fill its gaps.

So, where at present celibacy is a norm with a relatively small number of exceptions, loosening the discipline would effectively mean abolishing the norm in large parts of the world. If a shortage of priests is a compelling reason for change in Bishop Kräutler’s sprawling Amazonian territory, the same argument could be made in Western countries. Indeed, the shortage in Belgium has become so acute that there have been calls for laymen to be allowed to celebrate Mass.

Another proposal has been floated in Ireland – to restore the faculties of those who have left the priesthood in order to get married. This would be more limited in scope and it is uncertain that it would do very much to plug the gap.

We have no idea how many of these men would even be interested in returning to the priesthood, often after a gap of decades. And since the big boom in priests released from their vows in order to marry was in the 1970s and early 1980s, quite a few would now be approaching retirement age. It should also be pointed out that all other major denominations allow married clergy, and most are having difficulty attracting new vocations.

Finally, there is the financial aspect. The late Cardinal Basil Hume once joked that, despite the theological objections to women priests, the Church could at least afford them, while it couldn’t afford married priests.

The Catholic Church globally is famously asset-rich but cash poor (though this may not be a problem for the German Church, cushioned as it is by its government-collected church tax). Also, the Church doesn’t have centuries of experience of providing for married clergy with families as the Church of England does. The rule of celibacy means that Catholic priests cost much less than their Anglican counterparts, and the ad hoc arrangements to cater for married ex-Anglican priests have caused plenty of headaches, even given the small numbers involved.

But what is more important to consider is that the move to suppress celibacy would be only for secular or diocesan priests. Religious orders such as the Jesuits, Oblates, and Franciscans make a vow of chastity by which they consecrate their lives to God excluding marriage.

Personally, I thank God for the privilege of the practice of celibacy, and pray that God will protect His Church from abolishing celibacy as a norm. 

Of all the spiritual sacrifices we Catholic priests offer to our beloved God, celibacy is the greatest oblation to him.