© Copyright 2002 Grace D. MacKinnon
Grace MacKinnon is a syndicated columnist and public speaker on Catholic doctrine. Readers are welcome to submit questions about the Catholic faith to: Grace MacKinnon, 1234 Russell Drive #103, Brownsville, Texas 78520. Questions also may be sent by e-mail to: grace@deargrace.com. You may visit Grace online at www.DearGrace.com.
On these two issues regarding married and women priests, the Catholic Church has spoken very definitively, and one would think that it should end there, but apparently it has not. This question has been asked over and over, and it is amazing to see once again how clearly it demonstrates the tendency in some persons to attempt first to seek what appears to be the easiest and quickest solution rather than be faithful and obedient to Church teaching. They fail also to look more deeply into the root of the problem of our priest shortage.
On women being ordained to the priesthood, the Church has taught clearly that priestly ordination has always been, and always will be, reserved to men alone. In a letter to the archbishop of Canterbury, dated November 30, 1975, Pope Paul VI states the position of the Catholic Church:
“She holds that it is not admissible to ordain women to the priesthood, for very fundamental reasons. These reasons include: the example recorded in the Sacred Scriptures of Christ choosing his apostles only from among men; and her living teaching authority which has consistently held that the exclusion of women from the priesthood is in accordance with God’s plan for his Church.”
Because the question continued to be addressed, in 1994, Pope John Paul II, wanting there to be no doubt on this issue, declared firmly and with supreme authority,
“I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful” (Ordinatio Sacerdotalis, n. 4).
Let us look at Scripture. Mark records for us that Christ “went up the mountain and summoned those he wanted and they came to him. He appointed twelve [whom he also named apostles] that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach and to have authority to drive out demons” (Mark 3:13-15, Luke 6:12-14). In the Gospel of John, Jesus answers Simon Peter by asking, “Did I not choose you twelve?” (John 6:70). Then, in the Book of Acts, we read about how the Lord, even after he had risen, appeared to the “apostles whom he had chosen” in order to instruct them in what they were to do (Acts 1:2).
What we see clearly in the Scripture is that it is Jesus who chose those through whom he would extend his messianic mission. They were not the ones who chose him. He chose them! In other words, becoming a priest is a calling. And also notable is that he chose men and only men for this role. Women have also been chosen by God for certain exclusive tasks. Are men able to bear a child? Some men might even say they wished they could, but they cannot. And why not? They cannot because God did not choose them for that role. And we may not have women priests because it is not what God has willed.
Married priests are another issue, and there has been much misunderstanding on this, especially in recent times. Yes, it is true that the law requiring a celibate clergy developed over centuries, but we find, however, that not only is the ideal of celibacy found in the Gospels, but that it was practiced from the very beginning of the Church. To abandon everything for Christ was considered to be truly a gift from God. It is an invitation, a calling, and not something forced on a man.
It is not some sort of unfair discrimination that the Church does not ordain married men or women to the ministerial priesthood. As the Catechism states, “The whole Church is a priestly people. Through Baptism all the faithful share in the priesthood of Christ” (CCC #1591). But we are not all called to fulfill the same roles. And no one should be offended or feel slighted. We should be grateful for whatever God chooses.
“No one has a right to receive the sacrament of Holy Orders. Indeed no one claims this office for himself; he is called to it by God. Anyone who thinks he recognizes the signs of God's call to the ordained ministry must humbly submit his desire to the authority of the Church, who has the responsibility and right to call someone to receive orders. Like every grace, this sacrament can be received only as an unmerited gift” (CCC #1578).
When we ponder deeply on the matter of the shortage of priests, should we not wonder if perhaps something else has caused it, like a lack of obedience? If we, the Christian faithful, were living in greater accord with God's will, then our lives would surely reflect a holiness that would be readily seen — and desired — by the world. If young men were to recognize this in their families, neighbors, friends and church communities, we would doubtless see many more responding to God's call to become priests for his Church.
We do not need to ordain married men or women to solve the priest shortage. What we do need is more Christians leading more holy lives. This, of course, is the solution to most of the problems in our world.
