Pope Francis' Comments On Gay Priests

[MithLuin]

As far as the priesthood goes, it's not like they don't screen seminarians.

 

Lots of people think they want to be priests, but either it's not a good idea or they have terrible reasons for it.  The Church has an obligation to consider the men applying, and to tell some of them...'no'.  And yes, sometimes this is for health reasons - including mental health.  But it's for all sorts of reasons; not everyone is cut out to be a priest.

 

I was recently working with the pre-novices for the Salesians in Ethiopia.  They had 11 young men, all of whom applied for the novitiate.  Three of them were denied.  For one, the decision was definitely mutual.  He had been frequently sick throughout his prenovice year, and just wanted to go home.  In addition, his English skills were weaker than the others, which meant the possibility of him successfully studying for the priesthood was slim.  I was (of course) not privy to any of the discussions or decisions about which ones to accept or which ones to send home.  So, I can't say for sure what the reasoning was.  But I do know they observed them living in community for a year, including their interactions with the children in the project, and that they sent them for a doctor's checkup (including an AIDS test) near the end before the final decision was made.  Any red flag would mean...sorry, you can't continue with our community and be a priest.  

 

I do know that at least one of the three young men who was rejected was considering joining a different Catholic order, so he at least had not given up on his desire to be a priest.  And one presumes that he was told 'we don't think you're a good match for the Salesians' rather than 'you should never be a priest'.  He'd been newly confirmed in the hopes of entering the novitiate, but maybe another order will be a better match for him.  

 

 

So to get back to the questions being discussed on this thread.  What if a young man is homosexual?  What then?  

 

Well... regardless of orientation, the Church is going to have some concerns about celibacy for all applicants to the priesthood.  So, in an American diocese, the man will be asked frankly when was the last time he had sex?  The answer could be 'never; I'm a virgin,' but that is not the required answer.  What the Church is looking for is an answer that shows he has some practice and experience living a celibate life.  If he says '2 months ago', they'll reject his application and tell him he's not yet ready to enter the seminary.  If he says '5 years ago', they'll see that he's committed to this lifestyle and knows what he's getting himself into.  Obviously, an applicant could be dishonest, but as I pointed out in the Salesian example, they could request that he be tested for STDs as part of the application process.  So, that's one question.

 

When the Church refers to 'deep-seated' tendencies, the focus is on people who are not willing to put aside that identity in favor of the identity as Catholic priest.  Now, I realize that putting aside an aspect of one's identity is hardly an easy thing to do.  But as the Church views the relationship of the priest to the Church in terms of a man and his bride, the man would have to be able to embrace that as he studied and prepared for the priesthood.  If a man is not capable of that, then he's really not cut out to be a priest, and yes, at some point in his training or application, he should be denied.  Just as many holy and wonderful men before him were denied entrance to the priesthood.  (As an example: Bl. Louis Martin, the father of St. Therese of Lisieux)  

 

Where I'm going with this is that being a priest isn't a 'right' - it's not something anyone earns or deserves or anything like that.  It's a mutual discernment process.  The man has to say, 'yes, I want to be a priest,' and the Church has to say 'yes, we want you to be one, too.'  (The Church in this case is represented by the bishop in the diocese or the leader of the religious order.)  If someone does not like the criteria the Church is applying, they are welcome to not offer themselves as a candidate to become a priest.  If the Church accepts every single applicant to the priesthood, then the meaning of the priesthood would be diminished (or even lost) and formation would be nearly impossible.  It would be... unwise... to forget to screen incoming seminarians.

 

 

That is, of course, a separate issue from how one should treat an ordained priest.  Obviously, such a person has met the criteria, completed his studies, and been given ordination by the Church.  So, it's now an issue of whether or not he is living out his priesthood in obedience to his bishop and following the will of God and the teachings of the Church.  If he's doing that... then the people of the Church really shouldn't judge him harshly for what they perceive to be his shortcomings (and that goes for lots and lots of issues).  

 

 

[BG45]

I love that the most accurate coverage I've seen on this came from The Daily Show.  I'm not kidding, guest host Jon Oliver (though mocking it) showed clips from Cardinal Dolan explaining how the mainstream media was getting the statements wrong.

[MithLuin]

And here is what Cardinal Dolan had to say:

 

http://cardinaldolan.org/index.php/what-the-holy-father-said/

 

[Socrates]

Here's some sane commentary on this from Phil Lawler of Catholic Culture to balance out all the "mainstream" media nonsense, and put Pope Francis' remarks in their proper context:

 

"Homosexuality and Forgiveness: the Pope's Surprising Message."