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| ON THE OTHER HAND |
| Staying Celibate
By Antonio C. Abaya Written July 16, 2007 For the Standard Today, July 17 issue If everything goes according to plan, some 508 individuals will get an average of $1.3 million each from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Los Angeles, the largest RC archdiocese in the US , as settlement of a $660 million law suit over allegations of sexual abuse by priests serving in the LA archdiocese. According to the Associated Press, this settlement pushes the total amount paid out by the US Church since 1950 to more than $2.1 billion. The LA archdiocese has so far paid more than $114 million to settle 86 claims so far. This is the biggest settlement ever since the clergy sexual abuse scandal in Boston erupted in 2002. The Boston archdiocese had to sell 16 churches to pay the $84 million settlement. The largest pay-out so far has been by the Archdiocese of Orange, California in 2004, for $100 million. Several religious orders in California have also paid multimillion-dollar settlements in recent months, including the Carmelites, the Franciscans and the Jesuits. Facing a flood of claims, five dioceses � Tucson (Arizona), Spokane (Washington), Portland (Oregon), Davenport (Iowa), and San Diego (California) � have sought bankruptcy protection. These million-dollar settlements promise to become a new cottage industry in litigious America . If one were to do some digging, one can come up with the names of the errant priests during which years in which dioceses, and then manufacture stories about how one was abused by Fr. So-and-So in the confessional box, or in the sacristy after serving Mass at five in the morning. The more lurid the details, the more hastily will the diocese rush to settle, just to avoid public embarrassment. I think many of these �cases� belong to the category of Holy Extortion. It beats working in a 9-to-5 job, or picking fruits in the Valley for minimum wages. On the other hand, this flood of clerical sexual abuse scandals � which will wax before it wanes - should compel Church reformers to rethink the concept of clerical celibacy. It is appropriate that this has come to a head in Los Angeles , by most accounts (such as mine) the Sodom and Gomorrah of the US . LA is the seat of the film and TV entertainment industry which, if it celebrates anything, celebrates sexual hedonism, materialism, self-gratification, pornography, illegal drugs, celebrity worship and everything else that offends and is an affront to Middle America �s personal and family values. Immersed in such a sea of moral putrescence, it is hard to see how any normal cleric with normal urges can resist the omnipresent temptations of the flesh and live up to his vows of chastity and celibacy. Perhaps those vows of chastity and celibacy have become obsolete and should be relevant only to monks who choose to spend their lives in a secluded monastery high up in the mountains. In the Roman Catholic Church, priestly celibacy is only a discipline. It is not a doctrine. According to Wikipedia, celibacy is only a Church regulation, not an integral part of Church teaching, and is not covered by the doctrine of papal infallibility. That means that priestly celibacy, like the recently vanished Limbo, can be amended, rescinded or revoked without too much fancy theological footwork. It is based on imitating the life of Jesus of Nazareth and his supposedly celibate way of life. But a contrarian reading of that life suggests the possibility that Jesus was married to Mary Magdalene and had a child or children with her. A possibility explored and exploited in The Da Vinci Code, but other, serious scholars and historians have looked into it even before Dan Brown made his fortune milking it. . At any rate, the first pope, Peter I, as well as many subsequent popes, bishops and priests during the Church�s first 270 years were in fact married men and often fathered children. It was the Council of Elvira (300-306 AD) that decreed: �It is decided that marriage be altogether prohibited to bishops, priests and deacons, or to all clerics placed in the ministry, and that they keep away from their wives and not beget children; whoever does this shall be deprived of the honor of the clerical office.� It was not recorded what Elvira had to say about this. During the Reformation, priestly celibacy was rejected by the Protestant Reformers who argued that it was contrary to Biblical teachings. Zwingli married in 1522, Luther in 1525, Calvin in 1539, the married Thomas Crammer was made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1533. It would be interesting to compare the incidence of priestly sexual abuse among the unmarried clerics of the Roman Catholic Church and the married clerics of the Protestant denominations. This could help determine the continued relevance of priestly celibacy in the 21st century. In the Ateneo of the 1950s, our Filipino Jesuit professor in, of all subjects, Moral Theology ran away with and married a colegiala from Assumption to whom he had been confidante and confessor. While everyone agreed that it must have been True Love, one can only imagine the moral anguish that they must have suffered as a result of their forbidden relationship. When my wife and I were running Erehwon Bookshop in the 1970s and 1980s, one of our regular customers for Playboy magazine was an American Jesuit who eventually married an American nun from nearby Maryknoll (now Miriam) College. Again, I bring this up not to mock the two, but to sympathize with them for the anguish that they must have endured, as they tried, unsuccessfully, to stay celibate. ***** Reactions to [email protected]. Other articles in www.tapatt.org and in acabaya.blogspot.com OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO Reactions to �Staying Celibate� I read your article on priestly celibacy with great interest, particularly that bit about your Jesuit professor of Moral Theology. I am almost certain this refers to my godfather who was a Jesuit and taught at the Ateneo at that time. One of my professors at the "other school" once told me that my godfather had been "one of the most brilliant lights of the order". I know he had taken his Ph. D from the Gregorian. The only picture I have of him dates from the time he was studying in Rome . He also counseled students from Manila 's most exclusive convent schools among whom he, apparently, had quite a following. The young woman he eventually married was from the Assumption, no less. My parents never told me about his marriage, until I was in my teens. I just want to know if it's him. The last I heard of him he had retired from the Foreign Service and was living at a ranch in Batangas that his wife had inherited. Alex Menez, (by email), July 19, 2007 (We are talking about the same person. ACA) wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Here is my take on your column today. A married clergy? why not? If the Latin church lacks priests to minister to Catholics, the church should seriously consider ordaining mature married men to the priesthood. The church could start doing so with men already chosen as eucharistic lay ministers. There are a lot of mature and holy married men whom the church could ordain priest. No, I am not a lay minister. About the only thing spiritual about me is of the bottled kind. Ordination to the priesthood (or diaconate) is currently a diriment impediment to matrimony - even in the Eastern Rite churches. If an ordained priest or deacon wishes to marry, he can apply for laicization to be allowed matrimony . . . but will not be allowed to exercise his priestly functions (except in extreme and extraordinary circumstances.). That, if I am not mistaken, is the dictate of canon law. This kind of dispensation is not easy to secure. As one old priest was telling his young coadjutor: "don't expect to have the rule of celibacy changed in the near future. Not in our lifetime. Perhaps in the lifetime of our children." Jesting aside, do you think clerical matrimony is the solution to clerical sexual abuses? It appears that the scandal rocking the American church is principally in the nature of pedophilia. That is criminal. The question I ask myself is why the institutional church have to pay damages to victims of personal crimes committed by priests? Unless church authorities are complicit in the acts of their priest by covering them up in their crimes. That would be a greater clerical error than sexual lapses. I am not unfamiliar with the moral theologian you referred to in your column. But was the colegiala married? In those days. colegialas were unmarried. Oh, yes, the colegiala subsequently married the priest. And the priest, if I am not mistaken, went on to become a diplomat. I suppose they may have lived happily ever after . . . Unlike some priest- friends who got married and rued the day they did. Celibacy can be hell. But so can marriage. Cheers. Ricardo. I. de Leon, (by email), July 18, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony: Celibacy is biologically unnatural. Unless priests are neutered, and therefore rendered eunuchs, they will continue to be subject to the powerful natural urge, as all normal men are, to engage in sexual intercourse, which is part of the natural order of procreation and the perpetuation of the species. One can say that the power of testosterone trumps any regulation to compel sexual abstinence. The Roman Catholic Church is paying very dearly for a regulation that human experience has adequately demonstrated to be obsolete, anachronistic and wrong-headed. Not only is the Church losing a lot of its treasure, which is bad enough. It is also losing its credibility and--what really matters--much of what it claims to be its moral ascendancy. It is no wonder that many Catholic churches in the U.S. are losing many adherents and that still more are forced to close their doors. I seriously suggest that it is now high time for the Vatican to urgently reconsider its regulation requiring priests to be celibate--for the reasons I have already advanced. If it is not impervious to reason, it must rightly consider celibacy to be a serious threat to its very existence. Mariano Patalinjug, (by email), Yonkers , NY , July 18, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Well said, Mr. Abaya. You�ve articulated very well what a fair number of Catholics worldwide feel but do not have the gift to do so like you do. Thank you for such thoughtful insights. I�ve often wondered when will the Catholic Church start reforms on this issue. E. Q .Abellera, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Very well-written and so true. I agree with you 100%. It would also help with the shortage of priests and the attrition rate. However, I don't think it's going to happen anytime soon with the conservative attitude of Pope Benedict. I was born and raised Catholic and still identify myself as a Catholic, but my beliefs are what I call Cathotant (combination of Catholic and Protestant). Sarah Nachin, (by email), Spring Hill , Florida , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Mr. Abaya, I hear your sympathy. But to abolish the rule of celibacy from the clergy would be disastrous. Let us assume, the Catholic Church allows Catholic priests and nuns ("What's good for the goose, is good for the gander, too." ... I presume) to marry. Then, after being married, these priests or nuns beget a child or children (for in the Catholic Church, the purpose of marriage is to beget children). Consequently, some married priests/nuns decide to have one child. Twenty other married priests/nuns decide to each have 10 children. Question: How will these married clergies support themselves and their 10 children e.g., provide food, shelter, clothing, and education? Suppose each of the 20 married clergies want to send their 10 children to private Catholic schools instead of public schools. How and where will these married clergies get the money to support their life style? Will all of them demand their "right to freely dip" into the faithful's' Sunday Mass contributions/collections? Suppose the Sunday Mass contributions/collections are not enough to support them? Suppose I and others like me, strongly object to any part of our Sunday Mass contributions being siphoned to support any of these married clergies' families, but instead prefer our contributions going directly to the Catholic Church? ["They (the married clergies) made their bed. Now they have to sleep in it"). Matt 6:24. No man can serve two masters. For either he will hate the one, and love the other: or he will sustain the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon. Nemo potest duobus dominis servire aut enim unum odio habebit et alterum diliget aut unum sustinebit et alterum contemnet non potestis Deo servire et mamonae Mammon... That is, riches, worldly interest. (Source: http://www.newadvent.org/bible/mat006.htm ). Per website: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,289828,00.html , 14th paragraph: "� The vow of celibacy which Catholic priests take is not the cause of pedophilia or homosexual acts with minors (the vast majority of abuse has involved post-pubescent young men.) That�s ridiculous! As I mentioned above, healthy people don�t experience the slightest bit of temptation to abuse kids, and even less so, kids of one�s own gender." Pierre Tierra, (by email), Great Falls , Virginia , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww As a student of the dynamic Jesuit school, the Ateneo, I learned that the "ejaculation" taught to me in Catechism classes in grade school [i.e. Oh Jesus, Mary Joseph...Oh Lord Jesus Christ...and the like] also had other meanings. More, shall we say, delightful ones as I experienced them in later years as I ventured into the phase called adult living. Just like the over-anxious bride, you CAME walking down the aisle! I guess these individuals who vowed - but faltered in their desire to serve their God had succumbed to the "sperm of the moment" urges. Tony Joaquin, (by email), Daly City , California , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Well presented case, Tony - one would think that instead of ignoring the problems and scurrying to cover up, there would have been intelligent, compassionate clergy to speak up in favor of marriage. Even early on, I've often questioned how priests could possibly advise married couples (especially on sexual issues) when they have not had much, if any, experience. I honestly think the Catholic Church would not lose as many vocations or be so fraught with its present problems if they had made celibacy a personal choice long, long ago. But then dinosaurs have always been slow to adapt to changes. So glad you brought this out in the open! Cayo Marschner, (by email), Moraga , California , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi, Tony. I believe there are very strong practical reasons or advantages why priests should stay celibate. The demands of a job for a priest, more so for a bishop, are already so difficult to fulfill as they are. The entire parish is the family of a parish priest while the entire diocese is the family of the bishop. To add the duties and responsibilities of his own personal family to these demands would just aggravate the situation and would surely divide his limited time, energy, attention and focus. I am just a lay minister and a co-ordinator and the demands of my job sometimes already run in conflict with my duties and responsibilities as a family man. What more a priest, a bishop or a cardinal! One cannot compare the duties of a Catholic minister with that of a Protestant minister because the duties and responsibilities of a Catholic minister is much much more. Consider the Masses and the homilies he has to prepare for everyday, while a Protestant minister only does his services on Sunday. Consider the other sacraments that a Catholic minister does, such as Baptism, Confirmation, Matrimony, Penance, Extreme Unction and so forth which a Protestant minister does not do. The patron saint of parish priests, St. John Vianney and also St. Padre Pio, would hear confessions 16 hours a day. The size of his flock is also much bigger. I would agree with you that a cleric would find it difficult to remain celibate. But nothing is impossible with the grace of God, especially the sanctifying grace of Holy Orders. I personally believe that if they run a survey, they would see a high correlation between priests who have forgotten their prayerful lives and priests who succumb to their urges and allow themselves to get into sinful occasions. However I am not one who would condemn priests who do fall into temptation. I would rather pray for their sanctification as the devil is really busy at work trying to destroy the priesthood founded by Christ. Cheers! Bobby Tordesillas, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww The reforms instituted by the Council of Elvira, celibacy among them, were man-made and did not come from the Holy Bible. Just as reforms were instituted in the Vatican II, celibacy may just as well be allowed to save the Church from further harm and embarrassment because of weak priests who took the vow and now want to have the best of two worlds. Perhaps, in the future the Church may also consider having two levels of priestly service. A lower level for ordinary married priests that administer the same priestly chores like saying Mass, hearing confession, etc., and a higher level for celibate priests who, besides doing the same chores as ordinary married priests, assume an elevated position in the Church for their absolute devotion and sacrifice to serve God. Cesar M. de los Reyes, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony, I wouldn't minimize the extent of damage done by these guys. They take their vows perhaps with no intent to live by them, but merely as a means of opening the door to their own perversions. It discredits the Church, for which blood money is the only way to stay in business. Perhaps there should be a bankruptcy law as relates to moral misdeeds, that forces the Church to do penance by going out of business for a while. I'll bet that if such were to be the case in the Philippines , the Church would long ago have become a pauper and the birth rate would have declined. Amen. Frank Holz, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Our usually vociferous clergy who are very outspoken on almost every issue, from human rights, population issues, dress codes, jueteng etc. are suddenly muted. Why the eerie silence ? What gives ? Any ideas? Sincerely, Auggie Surtida, (by email), Tigbauan, Iloilo , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (Copy furnished) Hi, Ric: Also, I believe that one major reason why the Catholic Church seems to have attracted a lot of homosexuals (especially during the past when gays were ostracized) is it provided a haven for singles who did not have to disclose their sexual preference. Thus a lot of perverts were able to hide under the sautana. Manny Herbosa, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Tony: I am forwarding this request from Father Dave. He's an Anglican priest, married, and has three children. You may wish to check his website to see what Father Dave's all about. And please let me know your decision. Jimmy (Pimentel), (by email), Sydney , Australia , July 19, 2007 ----- Original Message ----- From: Rev. David B. Smith To: 'Jaime K Pimentel' Sent: Thursday, July 19, 2007 12:14 PM Subject: RE: Staying Celibate Brilliant article, Jaime. Do you think your friend would mind if I reprinted it on www.fatherdave.org? I think our readers there would appreciate it. Yours in the Good Fight, Fr.Dave www.fatherdave.org wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, You got it all wrong. Staying celibate � Manila Standard Today, July 17, 2007. I am afraid you have a distorted view of what the priesthood means. To blame celibacy for the sins of a handful of priest, who should have been removed when the first offense took place, is to be very unfair to the Church. Celibacy is a treasure and a pillar of strength in the Catholic Church, and which is today under attack by those who advocate a hedonistic culture. Celibacy is a sign of generosity in the path few are called to follow. It�s celibacy for the �Kingdom� To blame celibacy for the crisis is to be ignorant of what is going on. So we could also blame adultery on the marriage vows. Marriage can note the solution to sexual liberation. Discipline and obedience must be the moral foundation , and not sexual liberation. There are many reasons for the situation that the Church now faces, including the love media has to glamorize everything that can be controversial. Gone are the days when you cover with the mantel of charity the failures of the family. What a pity. CNN, BBC and others are fast behind any story that can tarnish the Catholic image. And some journalist would love for Catholicism to just down grade to another form of Protestantism. A priest is a man set apart, chosen by God for a very specific purpose. There are no bad priest just sick ones. What he needs are our prayers. Sincerely . Juan Jose Berenguer- Testa, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Ay, Sr. Antonio, the boy friend of the Assumptionista was my classmate and eventually a colleague in our law office. Even years later, he would still painfully recount how his girl would come every Saturday afternoon to her father-confessor for spiritual advice, which was how he lost her. The early apostles had a choice. Marry (otherwise burn) or be celibate. Somehow celibacy became one of the priests' holy orders. Lionel Tierra, (by email), Sacramento , California , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony, The Catholic Church in Los Angeles in hindsight could have tapped the services of Philippine Al Capone lawyers who are diabolical geniuses in avoiding accountability. The Pepsi lawyer magicians are the best any corrupt party can tap. Incidentally I understand they handle Ayala Corporation, and therefore this company enjoys above the law immunity from accountability. I suggest that you view www.pepsi349.com to see for yourself how the rights of the righteous are trampled upon by the right of the wicked. Vic del Fierro Jr., (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Tony: In Defense of Celibacy The Catholic Church's adoption around 300 AD for priests, nuns, monks and the papacy to practice celibacy meant raising the bar to the idea of purity of sainthood. It is a goal of the highest order to establish a pathway to heaven entering eternal paradise. It is similar to the stages needed to attain enlightenment in Buddhism. The Catholic Church, the one true church, in recognition of the power of the flesh, celibacy was decreed to recognize and separate the worldly, the weak of flesh, those without virtuous and phony pretenders from the elite members of the ministry who are dedicated to the work of God and serving God. There are millions of soldiers of the church working for the good of man and of God. The weak and evils of the ministry should never be the basis of lowering the bar; or legitimizing bad people with decadent morality. It is tantamount to accepting and giving a free pass to mediocrity and evil. The Catholic Church is too honorably important for billions of followers of Christ. As the adage says there is always bad apples in an apple tree but it does not mean everything is bad. We realize of course, that no amount of cash settlement would cure the ills and blasphemous acts these priests have committed. And neither would it completely stop. With better recruitment and psychological testing of priest candidates, less administrator cover-up, eliminating a stance of silence when it occurs and implementing better and stronger review process and administration of the flock would produce less commission of abuse. Any member committing sacrilegious act must be excommunicated period. This will weed out the undesirables. What these suits are about is to bring awareness and consciousness to the public. This is good because it is no longer in the closet. The priests and the administrators (bishops, archbishops and cardinals up to the holy see) are now put on notice that abuses can no longer be swept under the rug. There is a price to pay. The protection of the church image should be the primary consideration and without question. The state of silence and cover-up is no longer acceptable and viable. The public and victims are now encouraged to report such abuses and any acts or events that are bad. The cloak of secrecy within the church is over. Gone. It is worth addressing the sins of commission and omission and the reason why it continued for years. Firstly, there were no standards in recruiting priests. There were no psychological test given to the predators. There was no provision to disbarred and/or excommunicate bad priests; Instead there was a practice of moving those who have committed crimes from area to another. The cover-up and keeping silent was so prevalent that abuses continued to escalate until very recently. The administrators were obviously aware but went along with the practice. Sad indeed. Now they must be held accountable. Finally, as a Catholic I experienced a period during my youth questioning many practices imposed by the church that did not make sense. I went searching to the extent of attending Protestant churches and Jewish synagogues. With maturing and reading I concluded many of the things I questioned were man made or initiated. The Catholic Church remained pure through the ages. Surely we can debate the madness, the historical, political, celibacy, marriages, concubines and the whole gamut of sordid past, if you will. But the fact remains that all of these were man issues. The Church remained true to the teachings of Christ. While visiting Jerusalem a few years back I found myself truly overcame with emotion with tears rolling down my cheeks praying before the Jewish Wailing Walls. As a Catholic I could not explain why. When it was over, we regrouped to discover everyone had experienced a similar small miracle. And yet here we were Catholics, Protestants, Jewish and Buddhists, etc. We left the square with the exalted feeling we've received a most profound gift from God that day. Sometimes it is best to keep silent and not to question why. Keep plugging, my friend, and remain healthy and sage. Oscar Apostol, (by email), Roseville, California, July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww The clamor for abandoning celibacy for priests is understandable, especially in a world soaked in relativism and moral decadence. In fact there was a US study on this phenomenon. The general distribution of sexual abuse cases among ALL clergy(Catholic or otherwise; celibate or otherwise) was about 2%, which is lower than the incidence of sexual abuse based on US population norm. Perhaps we need a more compelling reason to abandon priestly celibacy other than the natural urge to seek a sexual partner. The selection criteria for Navy SEALS includes psychological assessment that requires them to disregard the natural urge to pity a dying adversary when in an actual combat situation. This might sound unnatural but that is the design of the job. As they say, it goes with the profession, part of the contract when you sign up for that job. Otherwise he has no business being a Navy SEAL. Applying this criteria to the job of a priest, the natural urge to hook up sexually needs to be disregarded in order for the priest to fulfill the job. This part of the selection criteria was already there when one signed up to be a priest. Similarly this may sound unnatural but, again that is the design of the job. Unless, of course, we want to change the job to suit the applicant. If the hiring criteria for Navy SEALS is understandable, I don't see why this is not the case with that of the priest. Ike Eslao, (by email), July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Tony, Firstly, let�s separate these horrible sexual abuse cases by the Catholic priests in Los Angeles from incidents of seemingly natural, consensual and long term heterosexual relationships that some Philippine clergy get themselves into, whether it ends up in marriage or just a long term sexual dalliance. It is very clear to me that the former is a classic example of abuse of power and outright despicable acts of evil perpetrated on the young and innocent boys and girls, while the latter can be classified (but not excused) as, maybe, a romantic by-product of a close and long term association by two normal human beings � or maybe it�s just plain lust, who knows. Nevertheless, it does not in any way excuse any priest or any nun, who willfully - I assume nobody put a gun to their head - engages in prohibited sexual relationships, in the way they consciously and deliberately break a most sacred vow � of celibacy, a centuries-old vow which to this day thousands of hard working priests and nuns worldwide still adhere to very strictly - temptation or no temptation, and they do so lovingly (for the Lord Jesus) and willingly, with no fuss. I am sure you know several priests and nuns in your community, over the years, which have lived up to this noble tradition of celibacy very nicely indeed, I know a few myself, and they have my utmost respect and admiration. I don�t pay much attention the whiners and complainers among the clergy, as nothing will ever satisfy this bunch of restless and misguided souls. Some of these distracted priests� idea of sacrifice these days is that they�re limited to watching old 20� TV sets, and not being allowed a 50� big plasma screen TV which some of their friends may have. As you probably know, this celibacy debate in the Roman Catholic Church has been going on for centuries, it�s nothing new, and it has its ebbs and flows, depending on the current social and theological environment locally and worldwide. Just to set the record straight, the Vatican does allow married men to become priest (you have to be married first then go into priesthood) in extreme cases, and in some diocese in Africa it�s quite common to see some priest that are married and have families, but, of course, the Vatican will not want to publicize these exceptions, and make no mistake these are but exceptions to the rule. The rule, to this day, as it stands, is this: if you want to be ordained as a Catholic priest, you have to be celibate and continue to practice celibacy throughout your entire priesthood, otherwise, if you want to get married then you must leave the priesthood, hopefully with your dignity intact - before any scandal breaks out in your parish. We can spend countless hours and days debating the celibacy issue � and still not arrive at a consensus. I�m sure there are very persuasive arguments on both sides of this issue. However, I would rather delegate these debates to professional theologians, in and out of the Vatican, as they have the time, the knowledge (about our church), and most importantly, the historical and traditional resources needed for an intelligent study and consultation in order to arrive at a doctrine that will ensure the health and long term well-being of the Catholic church. In the final analysis, that is the most important criteria here � the long term well-being of the Catholic church - not the temporal, corporal, and sometimes unwise, but mostly selfish needs of a few disgruntled clergy. Yours truly, Julius V. Corazo, (by email), Hamilton , Ontario , Canada , July 19, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Kasi naman, how can you not love them these Assumptionistas? Louie Fernandez, (by email), New Jersey , July 20, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Tony, Your article on the above subject is a welcome respite for you and your readers in dealing with day-to-day Philippine issues. Coincidentally, I was just given a book written by Bo Sanchez (you must have heard of him and read his books) a lay evangelist from the Philippines . What strikes me is the fact that this guy is a perfect example of what a priest should be in our present time. Going over his book made me believe that he practices what he preaches and is a down-to-earth person, witty, with an extraordinary sense of humor. Now, I do not want to sound like a propagandist or promoter of Bo, but I think he is the epitome of success and the shape of future things to come. Furthermore, If ever I happen to have some marriage problems, I will be more comfortable going to Bo than a priest. Let's face it. The guy has got experience. If sometime in the near future that the Catholic Church makes celibacy optional, I can see an increase in priestly vocations and a lot of clergy getting married, even the older ones. So many thoughts played in my mind influenced by your article and my new found friend Bo up to the point of me fantasizing about a dream team. Now listen to this. I can see you as President of the Philippines and Bo as the head of the Catholic Hierarchy. Call it wishful thinking if you may, but I suspect that if I managed to live long, I might be able to see a realization of my fantasy or something very similar or nearly similar. The future is here. Regards, Noe Castanos, (by email) Toronto , Ontario , Canada , July 22, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (Copy furnished) How anyone can pass up one of the greatest, if not the greatest, pleasures of life is quite frankly beyond me. Just the thought of a lifetime of celibacy is enough to make me sick. And that's probably the cause of the emotional and psychological illness that those who in some way were prevented from expressing their natural physical urges. Not having sex is not an act of self-sacrificing homage to one's deity, IMHO, it's an act of stupidity! Raul Serion,. (by email), July 21, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww (Copy furnished) It was a hard-nosed strategic decision about wealth, power, and domination -- the accumulation, concentration, and further accumulation of these most human and unholy desire. Nothing to do with these nice words: divine, spiritual, godly, holy and such. That is why they had to burn books, and expurgate and redact passages (Jesus's lost years) in those too-important-for-them-to-destroy books in order to hide the fact that Jesus was married to Magdalene! The church elders found out that with married priests, their total control on them is significantly diminished, if not outright demolished, because there was always that problem of divided loyalty between the priest's family and the Organization. In addition, the cost of supporting a family was just horrendous, and leadership of churches were being taken over by the sons of the priests. Yup, just like we see in many Protestant and Orthodox churches today, a glaring example of which is Franklin Graham taking over his dad Bill's ministry, all of which could only result in an inept, if not corrupt, nepotistic family dynasties. Louie Fernandez, (by email), New Jersey , July 21, 2007 P.S. Oh, perhaps, they are not married, but you can take it to the bank, Raul, that a whole lot of them are not stupid and are enjoying sex somehow! wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww From: Carlos H. Castro To: ABE ; USE Sent: Saturday, July 21, 2007 7:10 PM Subject: Fw: [AlumniBlueEagle] Fw: Staying Celibate "In other churches, with no celibacy, the rate of sexual abuse is 12%, while in the Roman Catholic Church is less that 2%" http://biblia.com/christianity/clergy.htm Comparing the figure 12% of the 300 Protestant clergies surveyed admitted to sexual intercourse with a parishioner to the 1.6% (800 convicted out of 50,000 priests) is like comparing apples and oranges. The convicted figure is most likely just a small tip of the iceberg, for victims, more often than not, would rather keep the whole thing quiet out of embarrassment, or perhaps they were induced to do so with hush money. William Reid has written that "careful studies have indicated...that child molesters commit an average of sixty offenses for every incident that comes to public attention." 7 But Thomas Fox estimates that the "average pedophile priest abuses 285 victims." 8 http://www.religioustolerance.org/clergy_sex6.htm In short, most cases probably never even reached the courts. We have no information if the sexual intercourses with parishioners by the 12% of the Protestant preachers were overwhelming homosexual abuse of teenagers (hebephilia) which seems to be the case with the errant priests. In 2004-FEB, CNN was able to view a draft copy of a survey prepared by the church. It reveals that 4,450 of the 110,000 Roman Catholic clergy (4%) who served between 1950 and 2002 have been accused of molesting minors. http://www.religioustolerance.org/clergy_sex6.htm Two widely circulated estimates suggest that approximately 2% to 6% of Roman Catholic priests abuse children and youths. This compares with other common estimates: that perhaps 1% of all adults and 2% of all adult males are abusive pedophiles. http://www.religioustolerance.org/clergy_sex6.htm Although not perfect, the above is a better comparison: a Macintosh Apple with a Red Delicious apple, i.e., comparing a celibate male subgroup with the general adult male population. So the range is from the low 1:1 (celibacy makes no difference) to 3:1 ratio of "widely circulated estimate" celibate priest pedophilia vs general adult male population. Using the CNN report in the paragraph farther above which is based on the Church's own report of the priests' sexual abuses.4% gives us a 2:1 ratio. That is DOUBLE the rate which is indeed troubling, for it suggests that celibacy has much to do with Louie Fernandez, (by email), July 21, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Dear Mr. Abaya, Thank you for continually daring to say what others fear to. The idiot insistence of the Catholic Church upon a celibate priesthood is an affront to the very nature of humanity as created by God, and is rooted in the perverted misogyny of ancient times The ruling has had a devastating effect upon the Church, placing many a good priest in torment and leading others into twisted sexuality, sin and crime. For some priests, whose natural sexual orientation is problematic, celibacy may be a prudent option - indeed it might be regarded as a gift, but why inflict it upon others? In the West, in particular, the Church struggles unsuccessfully to attract vocations, but willfully excludes many honourable and gifted people who experience a genuine call from God. Why do we, the hundreds of millions who make up the Church, tolerate such stubborn stupidity? Regards, Tom Hewitt, (by email), Essex, England, July 22, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Tony, A casual reader will agree with what is mostly said in your article, stop the requirement of celibacy for priests. But did you really say it? Well, you did not, actually, because you know you do not have the facts to support your call. You did mentioned something about how interesting it would be to compare sexual abuse by priests and pastors. But of course you did not make the comparison. Well, in the absence of data, you can just float around again the idea that Jesus Christ could have been married. Yes, you can even point out again that the first popes were married men and had children and it was only around 300AD that celibacy was required for priests, as if they mattered without pointing out that those first popes and priests stayed away from their married life while being priests. And yes you can say, that even some priests buy playboy mags (hello?). Do you really sympathize with the supposed "anguish" of priests and nuns trying to stay celibate, or do you just want to take this grand opportunity to attack the catholic church yet again? Serafin Dudeo, (by email), California , July 24, 2007 wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hai, Tony, I enjoy reading your views about various subjects and especially the politics of the Philippines . You articles enlighten me to know more about the country. I am writing this in response to your article titled, "Staying Celibate". I agree that many of the dioceses in the States have bankrupted because of the clergy abuse. But relating pedophile to celibacy is a tunnel view. In many cases the allegations against the Catholic Church are exaggerated. So far we are not in any way sure that how many cases were genuine. pedophilia or fantasy on the part of an adult of engaging in sexual activity with a child or children � it should be understood that the inclination towards child abuse is due to the distorted past and various other reasons. It is common to both married and unmarried persons. The problem of religious and clergy is not celibacy but chastity and fidelity. This is even applicable to married life. Today's struggles among the clergy men reflect the state of the post-modern secularised world. Even in the so called conservative societies infidelity (sexual or emotional) is becoming a common phenomena due various factors like connectivity, work pressure, economic boom and rapid growth of communication. To revoke celibacy in the Catholic Church is not the solution to bring fidelity and chastity. Seclusion is also not a solution. We are called to be in the world. The call to religious life is a a very human act though it has the divine orientation. Nobody is forced to embrace this life. There may be "Playboy" priests and "unfaithful" nuns but what about majority of the people who chose this life and live it faithfully? Consider the 96% priests who were faithful to their call. Think also about the married clergymen who brought scandals in their church through gay marriage and child abuse. Such kind of comparisons (as I have given below) won't help. What we need to do is to help both the victims and the accused (married and celibate). Celibacy has served its purpose for many centuries � and hence it is not a good option to nullify it. The Church also emphasise on the thorough screening of the candidates to avoid any kind of scandals. We need to support the Church (Catholic or Protestant) in the difficult times. Are we faithful and loyal to the gift of life we have received�? Statiscs: � US clerics accused of abuse from 1950-2002: 4,392. About 4% of the 109,694 serving during those 52 years. � Individuals making accusations: 10,667. � Victims' ages: 5.8% under 7; 16% ages 8-10; 50.9% ages 11-14; 27.3% ages 15-17. � Victims' gender: 81% male, 19% female � Duration of abuse: Among victims, 38.4% said all incidents occurred within one year; 21.8% said one to two years; 28%, two to four years; 11.8% longer. � Victims per priest: 55.7% with one victim; 26.9% with two or three; 13.9% with four to nine; 3.5% with 10 or more (these 149 priests caused 27% of allegations). � Abuse locations: 40.9% at priest's residence; 16.3% in church; 42.8% elsewhere. It should be noted that 30% of all accusations were not investigated as they were deemed unsubstantiated or because the accused priest is dead. Here is a comparison:The mainstream media has all but ignored the recent Associated Press report that the three major insurance companies for Protestant Churches in America say they typically receive 260 reports each year of minors being sexually abused by Protestant clergy, staff, or other church-related relationships. In light of the sex abuse scandal that rocked the Catholic Church beginning five years ago, religious and victims' rights organizations have been seeking this type of data for years. It has been hard to come by since Protestant Churches are more de-centralized than the Catholic Church. Responding to heavy media scrutiny, the Catholic Church has reported that since 1950, 13,000 "credible accusations" have been brought against Catholic clerics (about 228 per year.) The fact that this number includes all credible accusations, not just those that have involved insurance companies, and still is less than the number of cases in Protestant churches reported by just three insurance companies, should be making front page of The New York Times and the network evening news. It's not. Sources: http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,287409,00.html www.catholicnews/data/data/abuse/abuse.htm www.usccb.org/ocyp/finalannualreport Thank you, Br. Johnson Kumari SDS , (by email), Bangalore , India , July 25, 2007 Slavatorians wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww Hi Antonio, Please pardon my ignorance but is the publication you write for based in Manila ? I'm based here in Salisbury , Maryland , USA and have been to the Philippines before. I'm still trying to get familiar with all the newspapers published there. My wife is from Las Pinas. We have two daughters. One is soon to be 4 and the other is 2-months-old. We last visited the Philippines in 2005. The next time we go back, perhaps we can meet. I appreciate your commentaries. I may or may not agree with everything you write but you're expressing your freedom of speech and the press and that's something I'm passionate about as well. I'm not Filipino but I love the people and the culture and I'm glad there's people out there who are speaking out for justice and common sense. Keep up the good work. Incidentally I work as the executive editor of www.wboc.com , the Web site of two TV stations here where I live. Take care, Kye Parsons, (by email), Salisbury , Maryland , July 27, 2007 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO |