Letters to the editor Wednesday September 5 2018

Updated September 5 2018 - 9:02am, first published 1:00am
HOLY ORDER: Reader Neville Aubrey queries whether the concept of celibate priests relates to outdated concepts of the body and soul favoured in the past.
HOLY ORDER: Reader Neville Aubrey queries whether the concept of celibate priests relates to outdated concepts of the body and soul favoured in the past.

REGARDING the present debate on clerical celibacy, I make two observations: firstly, celibacy is not in accord with apostolic tradition. Jesus was not married (as far as we know) but he did not impose celibacy on his disciples. Peter was married (Mark 1:30) and other Apostles too (1 Corinthians 9:5). Paul was a confirmed bachelor and not keen on marriage (1 Corinthians 7:8) though he conceded marriage was preferable to lack of sexual control. But remember that Paul’s view of marriage like much else was controlled by his belief in an imminent end to the world. What was the point in long term relationships when the world was soon to disappear? The point here is that the church of the first century did not regard celibacy as mandatory. So, if Jesus and his immediate followers did not insist on celibacy, why is it practised in certain churches today?

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