4thought.tv

Nonsense. Humanity NEEDS the deep thought , consideration and wisdom of individuals who can shed light on the human experience. This includes sex, death, debt, fear, love, laughter and even drugs. Priests are simply hiding from life and can add nothing but more nebulous anxiety.

This makes me feel sad and have your say but how about the facts!.

The only reason the Catholic church insisted and insists on celibacy is historical because the church did not want to pay for the wife and kids of the priest in accommodation and relocations. The Catholic church is simply a very successful business and like insurance companies and the US Government, it sells fear.

This makes me feel glad. It reinforced what I already believed.

Very refreshing to see celibacy explained for what it is: something positive.

So why does the Catholic Church allow married former Anglican priests to be ordained as Catholic priests? And, of course, the first Archbishop of Westminster was a widower - again a former Anglican priest!

Thank you Fr Marcus!

The Truth and wisdom you impart here is invaluable and I feel it is essential for anyone watching to approach this with an open mind and an open heart. Some questions to think about before commenting further is why do we exist? What is my body's purpose in the first place?

We are certainly created to live in community, and each single person exists to serve and contribute in some way to community. Very few people appreciate the sacrifice priests make in order to commit themselves as spouses of the mystical body of Christ (meaning us lot, in our particular regional communities!).

It would be so much more difficult for a young Catholic woman such as myself to come closer to the heart of my faith, and to care for my own soul if we didn't have celibate priests to be that example of self-sacrifice for us...
and self-sacrifice is the most genuine act of love any one person in any community can receive.

This makes me feel angry.

How ironic from a priest who has imposed so many of his tastes on his parishioners. Perhaps it's better the like of Fr Marcus don't marry, clearly he would not be good at it as he is the centre of his own universe but in denial of it.

All he said was true, but not of himself. Let's start with the Communion rails.

This makes me feel glad. It reinforced what I already believed.

Thank you for your witness Fr. Marcus, and for your commitment to your vocation. It demonstrates tremendous strength of purpose and the effect of grace on your life. I was very pleased you mentioned being wedded to the Church and the fact that we live in a highly over-sexualised society, a fact which causes all kinds of problems for us!

There is no scriptural requirement for celibacy. Paul wrote that if able, the single person can devote himself entirely to Gods service. But if one feels it necessary to marry, then let him marry. As a married couple ones are still able to be in Gods service and be acceptable to Him. I think the Churchs view that all priests should be celibate is a man made requirement.

Dear Fr Marcus, its priest like you, with your gentleness and wisdom, your manifest deep love for God and fidelity to His Truth, that are cause for great optimism for the future of the Church. Its rare these days to hear speak of sacrifice - but to hear of sacrifice spoken in such uplifting terms is very rare indeed! In our self-gratifying age, we have ended up making idols of ourselves and our wants - we too often forget that sacrifice is in fact the flip-side of love. To the extent that we are prepared for sacrifice is the measure of our love. Ad multos annos, Fr Marcus! May the Lord bless you and give you the joy of bringing many, many souls to Him.

To allow your sexual morality to be interpretted by a celibate institution is one of the funniest twists of nature I have ever encountered. Humanity is truely a wonder!

This makes me feel happy.

Thank you for your words.We think you are very brave,telling all this things that some people wont agreed with. When we,married people, are lost in the middle of this secularised world, see priests like you, our faith becomes strong again. We see in your lifes ,celibacy and uniforms ,a constant reminder, that there is really and eternal life, and that every effort to get closer to God is worthwhile.

Abstinance is one thing but I can't believe that any loving god would want to prohibit you from having children and the associated joy/heartache/love etc that they bring about. But then, this is the same god that got Abraham to the point of murdering his own son to prove his faith. Still, I suppose the pragmatic way to look at this is that priests are putting themselves up for a Darwin Award and leaving the gene pool, so it's not all bad!

A good exposition of the reasons for celibacy. On the flip side one could cite many examples of clashes between vocation and family commitments among married clergy within the Anglican Church, and sadly instances where children have rebelled or spouses divorced due to this.

A celibate clergy is an especially good idea, because it tends to suppress any hereditary propensity toward fanaticism.

I have the urge to eat food, but that urge does not rule my life because I eat when I'm hungry. If I didn't do this then that urge would dominate my life and I would think about food every second of every day, even when trying to concentrate on something else. The urge to drink or sleep or procreate act in exactly the same way. You are doing the complete opposite of what should do to avoid thinking about sex.

Wonderful stuff!!Thank you Fr Marcus & God bless you!