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BACKGROUND In some Christian churches, Priest s and/or Bishop s must remain unmarried, while in others, married men may be ordained as Deacon s or priests but may not typically remarry after the death of their wife. In conjunction with Christian views prohibiting Sex outside of Marriage , this implies a life of Sexual Abstinence , and, essentially, abstinence from sexual or romantic relationships, including Dating . In some cases it also discourages social contact with members of the opposite sex in private or without a Chaperone . In some Christian churches, a Vow of Chastity is made by members of Religious Order s or monastic communities, along with vows of Poverty and Obedience , in order to imitate the life of Jesus of Nazareth. This vow of chastity is different from clerical celibacy because the promise is made directly to God, while the promise of clerical celibacy is made to the church alone. Celibacy for religious and monastics (brothers/monks and sisters/nuns) and bishops is upheld by both the Catholic Church and Orthodox Christian Traditions . In Latin Rite Catholicism, however, all priests remain celibate unless given special permission, while in most Orthodox traditions, and in the Catholic Eastern Rites, priests may be ordained if already married, but may not marry a second time, while bishops must be unmarried men. Neither the Catholic nor the Orthodox tradition has officially considered the rule of Celibacy to be among the Infallible Dogma s of the church. Rather, those rules are considered to be in the power of Pope s, Ecumenical Council s, Patriarch s, or Synod s to adjust if they feel it is correct. Rules of celibacy in the Catholic tradition have been modified a number of times. In some branches of Buddhism , priests, nuns and monks also are bound to celibacy, although Zen Buddhists , in particular, are not. RULES Rules on celibacy differ between different religious traditions and churches:
CELIBACY IN THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH The Catholic Church's stated reasons for clerical celibacy in are both that chastity is the superior state of life, and his desire expressed in I Corinthians 7:7-8, "I would that all men were even as myself {Link without Title} —but every one has his proper gift from God; one after this manner, and another after that. But I say to the unmarried and the widows. It is good for them if they so continue, even as I." In terms of practical justifications, the reasons for celibacy are given by the Apostle Paul in I Corinthians 7:7-8;32-35: "But I would have you to be without solicitude. He that is without a wife is solicitous for the things that belong to the Lord, how he may please God. But he that is with a wife, is solicitous for the things of the world, how he may please his wife: and he is divided. And the unmarried woman and the virgin thinketh on the things of the Lord, that she may be holy both in body and spirit. But she that is married thinketh on the things of this world how she may please her husband. And this I speak for your profit, not to cast a snare upon you, but for that which is decent and which may give you power to attend upon the Lord without impediment." Celibacy for priests is a ''discipline'' in the Catholic Church, not a ''doctrine'': in other words, a church regulation, but not an infallible divine teaching. It is based upon the life of Christ and his apparent celibate ways, however the first pope, St. Peter , as well as many subsequent popes, priests, and clergymen during the church's first 300 years were in fact married men, and often fathers. The practice of married clergy fell out of favour around the time of the Council of Elvira and it was made Law in the 800's. It remains law today for Latin-rite (Roman) Catholics, but not for Eastern-rite Catholics. However, in North America, even Eastern-rite Catholic bishops will generally only ordain unmarried men because it is still feared that married priests in North America would create scandal. Exceptions are sometimes made (including in Latin-Rite Catholicism), granted by authority of the Pope, when married Protestant clergy become Catholic. Because the rule of celibacy is a law and not a doctrine, it can, in principle, be changed at any time by the Pope. Doctrines, on the other hand, cannot be changed. Nonetheless, both the present Pope, Benedict XVI , and his predecessor, spoke clearly of their understanding that the traditional practice was not likely to change. (''For a detailed history of celibacy in the Catholic Church, see the Catholic Encyclopedia's article on "Celibacy of the Clergy" at http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03481a.htm.'') Among the early Church statements on the topic of sexual continence and celibacy are "Decreta" and "Cum in unum" of Pope Siricius (c. 385 ), which claimed that clerical sexual abstinence was an apostolic practice that must be followed by ministers of the church. Two Canons from the following councils also help us understand the Roman Catholic position regarding continence and celibacy of the early church's priests:
:(Canon 33): ''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.''
:(Canon 3): ''It is fitting that the holy bishops and priests of God as well as the Levites, i.e. those who are in the service of the divine sacraments, observe perfect continence, so that they may obtain in all simplicity what they are asking from God; what the Apostles taught and what antiquity itself observed, let us also endeavour to keep... It pleases us all that bishop, priest and deacon, guardians of purity, abstain from conjugal intercourse with their wives, so that those who serve at the altar may keep a perfect chastity.'' These canons are purely local to Latin-rite Roman Catholics, as the prohibitions are not even extended to the Eastern-Rite Catholics in communion with Rome. OPPOSITION TO CLERICAL CELIBACY DURING THE REFORMATION Celibacy as a requirement for priests was an important point of disagreement during the was made Archbishop of Canterbury in 1533. The Council Of Trent (1545-63) stated in response to the Reformation that celibacy and virginity are superior to marriage, thus rendering a change in policy a more delicate question for the Roman Catholic Church even today. CLERICAL CELIBACY - A RECENT DISPUTE Today, the topic of celibacy for catholic priests has again become a point of a heated discussion in the public and within the catholic church, possibly in part as a reaction to the difficulties in recruiting new priests, but also in the wake of discoveries of longstanding pedophilic behaviour of a number of Catholic priests in the USA. The association of pedophilic behavior with celibacy is controversial [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Catholic_Church_sex_abuse_cases , and in view of the abundance of priests in the regions outside of Europe and the United States, the Roman Catholic Church has yet to take any action which might lead to lifting the current requirement of celibacy. CELIBACY IN THE EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH IN AMERICA In the Evangelical Lutheran Church In America (ELCA), Pastor s, or "ordained ministers," must live in either opposite-sex marriage or celibate chastity. This therefore precludes Same-sex Unions and opposite-sex Cohabitation . According to the ELCA's guidelines for pastors (called ''"Vision and Expectations"'' {Link without Title} ): :"Ordained ministers who are homosexual in their self-understanding are expected to abstain from homosexual sexual relationships." Therefore, Gay and Lesbian , and Bisexual pastors are required to make a promise of sexual abstinence (or, in the case of bisexuals, to marry only opposite-sex partners). This policy's future is currently being debated. SEE ALSO
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