Should Priests Be Allowed To Marry?
With the newspapers carrying stories of sexual abuse by priests with the Catholic Church it raises the ongoing question….Should priests be allowed to marry?
There is a strong argument given by those who believe priests shouldn’t marry. Many feel that priests who are dedicated to their church and religion should be free of family ties and the complications that come with them. They feel that a priest should be available twenty four hours of the day to help those in need and that would take time away from their families. They also feel that if there is a problem going on at home then they wouldn’t be able to fully concentrate on their religious duties and obligations.
There is also a strong argument given by those in favour of priests marrying. People feel it would give priests more understanding when dealing with family issues and problems. They feel that no matter how much theory a priest may have about potential family problems it is impossible for them to fully understand those problems if they have not been part of a typical family unit.
As more incidents of sexual abuse by priests are uncovered there are more people feeling that priests should be allowed to marry. They feel that if the priests had families of their own sexual abuse would be drastically lowered.
In the past there were many political reasons why priests should not marry but times have changed and it appears that more and more articles are being written suggesting that it is time that priests be allowed to marry if they want to.
In some parts of the world priests are allowed to marry. As time progresses there are fewer men entering the priesthood so perhaps it is time to seriously look at the possibility that there would be more men wanting to become priests if they weren’t so restricted.
April 21 2008 04:50 pm | General Religion
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