Priestly celibacy: Part 4

Priestly celibacy: Part 4

"Continence, My child, is the sacrifice asked by the Father. You cannot divide yourselves; there must be a full dedication to the will of God." - Our Lady of the Roses, March 24, 1974

Note: TLDM is presenting a series of articles, excerpting quotes from some of the most eloquent defenders of the Church's discipline on priestly celibacy. In this series, we will be quoting from Pope Paul VI, Pope John XXIII, Pope John Paul II, Cardinal O'Connor, Cardinal Stickler, and Dietrich von Hildebrand.

John Paul II on priestly celibacy:
Excerpts from his Wednesday audiences

"Let us not forget that the only key to understanding the sacramentality of marriage is the spousal love of Christ for the Church (cf. Eph 5:22-23)--Christ, the Son of the Virgin, who was Himself a virgin, that is, a 'eunuch for the sake of the kingdom of heaven,' in the most perfect meaning of the term." - General audience of May 5, 1982

"Those who in life choose continence for the kingdom of heaven do so, not because it is inexpedient to marry or because of a supposed negative value of marriage, but in view of the particular value connected with this choice and which must be discovered and welcomed personally as one's own vocation. For that reason Christ said: 'He who is able to receive this, let him receive it' (Mt 19:12). But immediately beforehand He said, 'Not all men can receive this precept, but only those to whom it is given' (Mt 19:11)." - General audience of March 10, 1982

"The human being, male and female, who, in the earthly situation where people usually marry (Lk 20:34), freely chooses continence for the kingdom of heaven, indicates that in that kingdom, which is the other world of the resurrection, people will no longer marry (Mk 12:25). This is because God will be 'everything to everyone' (1 Cor 15:28). Such a human being, man and woman, indicates the eschatological virginity of the risen man. In him there will be revealed, I would say, the absolute and eternal nuptial meaning of the glorified body in union with God Himself through the 'face to face' vision of Him, and glorified also through the union of a perfect intersubjectivity. This will unite all who participate in the other world, men and women, in the mystery of the communion of saints. Earthly continence for the kingdom of heaven is undoubtedly a sign that indicates this truth and this reality. It is a sign that the body, whose end is not the grave, is directed to glorification. Already by this very fact, continence for the kingdom of heaven is a witness among men that anticipates the future resurrection." - General audience of March 24, 1982

"... continence for the kingdom of heaven bears, above all, the imprint of the likeness to Christ. In the work of redemption, he himself made this choice for the kingdom of heaven." - General audience of March 24, 1982

"In the tradition of the old covenant, marriage and procreative fruitfulness in the body were a religiously privileged condition. The departure from this tradition had to be effected especially on the basis of the example of Christ Himself. Only little by little did it come to be realized that 'for the sake of the kingdom of heaven' attaches a particular meaning to that spiritual and supernatural fruitfulness of man which comes from the Holy Spirit (Spirit of God), and that fruitfulness, in a specific sense and in determined cases, is served precisely by continence for the kingdom of heaven." - General audience of March 24, 1982

"... continence for the kingdom of heaven--as an unquestionable sign of the other world--bears in itself especially the interior dynamism of the mystery of the redemption of the body (cf. Lk 20:35). In this sense it possesses also the characteristic of a particular likeness to Christ. Whoever consciously chooses such continence, chooses, in a certain sense, a special participation in the mystery of the redemption (of the body). He wishes in a particular way to complete it, so to say, in his own flesh (cf. Col 1:24), finding thereby also the imprint of the likeness of Christ." - General audience of March 31, 1982

"In His pronouncement, did Christ perhaps suggest the superiority of continence for the kingdom of heaven to matrimony? Certainly, He said that this is an exceptional vocation, not a common one. In addition He affirmed that it is especially important and necessary to the kingdom of heaven. If we understand superiority to matrimony in this sense, we must admit that Christ set it out implicitly. However, He did not express it directly. Only Paul will say of those who choose matrimony that they do 'well.' About those who are willing to live in voluntary continence, he will say that they do 'better' (1 Cor 7:38). That is also the opinion of the whole of Tradition, both doctrinal and pastoral. The 'superiority' of continence to matrimony in the authentic Tradition of the Church never means disparagement of matrimony or belittlement of its essential value.... The evangelical and authentically Christian superiority of virginity and continence is dictated by the motive of the kingdom of heaven. In Christ's words recorded in Matthew (Mt 19:11-12) we find a solid basis for admitting only this superiority, while we do not find any basis whatever for any disparagement of matrimony which, however, could have been present in the recognition of that superiority." - General audience of April 7, 1982

"It seems that the complementarity of marriage and continence for the kingdom of heaven, in their significance and manifold importance, adequately corresponds to Christ's words recorded in Matthew (19:11-12). In the life of an authentically Christian community the attitudes and values proper to the one and the other state--that is, to one and the other essential and conscious choice as a vocation for one's entire earthly life and in the perspective of the 'heavenly Church'--complete and in a certain sense interpenetrate each other. Perfect conjugal love must be marked by that fidelity and that donation to the only Spouse (and also of the fidelity and donation of the Spouse to the only Bride), on which religious profession and priestly celibacy are founded. Finally, the nature of one and the other love is 'conjugal,' that is, expressed through the total gift of self." - General audience of April 14, 1982

Christ said "that this continence is at times required, if not indispensable, for the kingdom of God. With this He pointed out that continence, in the kingdom which Christ preached and to which He calls, constitutes a particular value in itself." - General audience of April 21, 1982

"So in the light of Christ's respective words reported by Matthew (19:11-12), the depth and the gravity of the decision to live in continence for the sake of the kingdom emerge above all, and the importance of the renunciation that such a decision implies finds its expression. Undoubtedly, throughout all this, through the gravity and depth of the decision, through the severity and the responsibility that it bears with it, love appears and shines through--love as the readiness to give the exclusive gift of oneself for the sake of the kingdom of God." - General audience of April 21, 1982

"It is natural for the human heart to accept demands, even difficult ones, in the name of love for an ideal, and above all in the name of love for a person. (By its very nature, love is directed toward a person.) Therefore in that call to continence for the sake of the kingdom of heaven, first the disciples themselves, and then the whole living Tradition of the Church, will soon discover the love that is referred to Christ Himself as the Spouse of the Church, the Spouse of souls." - General audience of April 28, 1982

"In order for man to be fully aware of what he is choosing (continence for the sake of the kingdom), he must also be fully aware of what he is renouncing.... In this way, Christ certainly demands a mature choice." - General audience of May 5, 1982

"[St. Paul] says, 'The unmarried person is anxious about the affairs of the Lord, how to please the Lord' (1 Cor 7:32). Each word of this statement deserves a special analysis. The context of the word 'to be anxious' or 'to try' in the Gospel of Luke, Paul's disciple, indicates that one must truly seek only the kingdom of God (cf. Lk 12:31), that which constitutes the better part, the unum necessarium, the one thing necessary (cf. Lk 10:41). Paul himself speaks directly about his 'anxiety for all the churches' (2 Cor 11:28), about his search for Christ through his concern for the problems of his brethren, for the members of the Body of Christ (cf. Phil 2:20-21; 1 Cor 12:25). Already from this context the whole vast field of the 'anxiety' emerges, to which the unmarried can totally dedicate his mind, his toil, his heart. Man can 'be anxious' only about what is truly in his heart." - General audience of June 30, 1982

"'To please the Lord' has love as its foundation. This foundation arises from a further comparison. The unmarried person is anxious about how to please God, while the married man is anxious also about how to please his wife. In a certain sense, the spousal character of 'continence for the sake of the kingdom of God' is apparent here. Man always tries to please the person he loves. Therefore, 'to please God' is not without this character that distinguishes the interpersonal relationship between spouses." - General audience of July 7, 1982

The amazing Bayside Prophecies...
These prophecies came from Jesus, Mary, and the saints to Veronica Lueken at Bayside, NY, from 1968 to 1995.

WEAR THE HABIT
"High priests of God and foolish virgins who have given themselves to the world, why have you chosen to go down the path to ruination? Your example have set many on the road to hell! Are you ashamed to stand forth and wear the habit of your order? No, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven by entering the world!" Our Lady, October 6, 1973

GARMENT OF PURITY
"Holiness and piety! Man--men of God, you must wear your garment of purity, dedication, and piety. What manner of foul deeds do you perform for the destruction of your sheep! For what? Material gain and pride and arrogance? You shall be cast into the abyss! Rank shall give you no advantage when you come over the veil." St. Michael, December 24, 1975

FAR SUPERIOR
"A priest, My children, is a chosen man of God; a true legally ordained priest is far superior than any man, as he represents Me in the Godhead." Jesus, May 23, 1979

Directives from Heaven...

D172 - Priestly Celibacy

Related Articles…

The Celibacy of the Priest, by Pope Paul VI

Celibacy isn't the problem, by Cardinal John O'Connor

Celibacy of the clergy (Catholic Encyclopedia)

Celibacy dates back to the Apostles, by Fr. Anthony Zimmerman, STD

The logic of priestly celibacy, by Fr. Anthony Zimmerman, STD

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