Many gay men, lesbians and their families will be feeling some smug sense of schadenfreude, after Cardinal Keith O’Brien’s admission yesterday that, yes, their was truth after all in the allegations by four (now five) priests/ former priests that he…
Tag Archive for Celibacy
Priest in gay porn primary school accident says goodbye
The Catholic priest who accidently showed 16 gay porn images to a group of 30 parents at a primary school in Northern Ireland is to leave the area. Father Martin McVeigh, the parish Priest of Pomeroy in County Tyrone, announced…
Relaxed rules on ex-priests not imminent, Vatican official says | National Catholic Reporter
The Vatican has denied speculation that there will be any “relaxation of church rules to allow former priests to play greater roles in parish life”. I am less interested in the denial, than I am in the simple fact that…
“Celibacy strangling the Catholic Church” – Cathblog
The courageous Bishop Daley of Derry (pictured), protector of the innocent on Bloody Sunday, has said something everyone in the Catholic Church from the hierarchy to the occasional Mass-goer knows: the rule of celibacy for the diocesan clergy is strangling…
More catholic rebellion: Irish Bishop calls for end to celibacy, Changes in Bishops’ Appointments
The Bishop of Derry, Edward Daly, has added his voice to the calls for an end to universal, mandatory celibacy for Catholic priests ordained under the Western rite. As he points out, it is ludicrous to insist that this is…
John Paul II, and the “Dysfunctional Vatican Monarchy”
A frequent theme in the assessments of John Paull II runs along these lines, written in this case by E. J. Dionne at Commonweal: When historians look back, John Paul’s greatest achievements will inevitably be seen as liberal, in the…
The Myth of Clerical Celibacy, Revisited
One of the key points in the recent declaration by German theologians (now joined by others, worldwide), is the urgency of ending the current insistence on compulsory clerical celibacy. This is my cue to revisit, and expand on, some points…
Exceptionalism: failing to learn from history
Exceptionalism (Wikipedia; Collins English Dictionary) is the perception that a country, society, institution, movement, or time period is “exceptional” (i.e., unusual or extraordinary) in some way and thus does not need to conform to normal rules or general principles. In…
Catholic Revolution Gaining Momentum: Germany, Ireland
German Theologians Call For Radical Reforms. Within hours of my post earlier today on the Catholic silent revolution, came news of a dramatic corroboration, with a solid band of German academic theologians in open revolt. In September this year, Pope…
The Incarnation and Celibacy: Reflection on a Reader’s Comment
One of the joys of blogging is that I sometimes get to learn so much from my readers. This response to my post on Jesus and the Beloved Disciple set me thinking: One of the points traditional theology makes on…
