Celibacy. When most people hear this word they may think of abstinence from sexual intercourse. However, being celibate means the state of being unmarried.
“I was taught being celibate meant not having sex with anyone. Not that you just couldn’t get married,” said Julie Clark, a devout Catholic.
Sources reveal celibacy first gained acceptance in the 12th century. However priests and even popes continued to marry and have children for several years afterwards. In fact, the Eastern Catholic Church still has married priests. In the Latin Church, one can be a married priest if he’s a Protestant pastor first, or if he’s a life-long Catholic but promises never again to have sexual relations with his wife.
The vast majority of the Roman Catholic clergy are celibate, but some are also married or engaged in sexual behavior with other adults.
“Marriage is a huge sacrifice. People should not be judgmental, because priests are devoting their whole life to God,” Clark added. “People don’t understand what they are going through.”
Data also shows not all priests take a vow of celibacy, but they choose to make a promise to remain celibate before the bishop. Still, some Catholic churches require priests to be celibate.
Paul Midden, clinical director of the St. Louis Consultation Center, takes a look at the role of sexuality in the life of a celibate in his fiction novel, Absolution. Midden discusses whether priests should be allowed to marry or have families and how recent sex scandals have affected the reputation of the Catholic Church.
“(The book) reflects how priests think. With all the sex scandals around the country the reputation of priests has been in the dumps,” said Midden, who has worked as a psychologist for 25 years counseling Catholic priests. “But with my experience most priests that get into trouble are decent people. They just have difficulty living the life they live.”
The lives of priests may be challenging because researchers have discovered that every human being has sexual tendencies that result in mankind desiring to be touched, admired and loved.
“You can live without sex,” added Midden. “But it’s really hard for most people to live without friendships, closeness or intimacy.”
Since celibacy does not mean one cannot have lovers or sexual relations, experts conclude that may be why many sex scandals have occured in the Catholic Church.
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops released a national study in 2004, which concluded 4 percent of all U.S. priests since 1950 have been accused of sexual abuse of children. It is important to note the vast majority of priests, whether heterosexual, homosexual or bisexual, don’t molest or sexually abuse youth.
“I’m sympathetic toward priests. It was important to me to bring this book out in a (sorrowful) light,” Midden explained. “People put priests on a pedestal and really they are human beings, trying to live a certain life they value.”
A name was changed due to privacy concerns.
