Reference Publications

St. Peter's mistake - Letters

National Catholic Reporter, Sept 13, 2002

* Carol Meyer's critique of priestly celibacy (NCR, Sep. 3) demonstrates not why celibacy should be discarded, but rather why it is so needed. She makes the mistake of St. Peter in considering the topic solely from a human standpoint. She implicitly acknowledges what she fails to see herself--that celibacy only makes sense in a life radically centered in God. The will of God is not one of the considerations of her argument. There it fails. True, celibacy is not for everyone. True, it is not easy. But it is a great offense to me and to the many holy men who are my brothers in the religious life and priesthood, to portray the majority of priests as a bunch of swingers living a lie. She says, "Most priests didn't really choose celibacy." On the contrary, they did. And even if they would be married otherwise, God asked them to make that choice and they accepted. She presumes to speak for "most priests" with little justification for doing so. Though I am at this point but a priest-to-be, in training to be a Jesuit, I have already been living a vowed celibate commitment for many years. I would like to say she does not speak for me.

MARK MOSSA
Tampa, Fla.

Carol Meyer speaks with the wisdom of the late Bernard Haring and with the pastoral love of John XXIII. She in no uncertain terms gave us a most needed demonstration of what John XXIII demanded--semper ecclesia reformanda. He wrote, "The archaic rule of celibacy harnesses the church and the Spirit." So for the good and well-being of our church, let us all do what we can to make our church be what Jesus did and continues to do. He said nothing about celibacy.