Why can't priests get married?

Question

Is it against some commandment or something. Why can everyone else get married but not the leader which should be the role model? I have been wondering about this for along time. Thanks.

Answer 1

Girl!!! I agree!! How can you tell me or help me with my marriage when you don't have one of your own??

Answer 2

There is no Biblical commandment for priests or anyone else to not get married. In fact, the apostle Paul wrote that it is better to get married and have tons of sex with your spouse rather than remaining single and giving into sinful desires (although Paul himself never married - he believed that relationships were a distraction). Look in the book of First Corinthians, I think it's in Chapter 7.

I don't know where the Catholic thing against priests getting married originated, but there is no commandment from God telling us this.

Answer 3

Priests are to keep their minds on both God and their parish instead of wandering around chasing women, searching for a mate, or fathering a bunch of children, all of which will take their focus off of God's work. They are married to the Church.

However, I suspect that the REAL reason is historical. In early Christianity, priests could marry and own property. The children of priests were inheriting a lot of property that the Church officials wanted. So they passed a ruling saying that priests couldn't marry or have children, because the children could inherit the land. The land was then confiscated by the medieval Church. It was a political and economic move, more than a religious one.

Answer 4

The only commandments that I know of are the ones of moses(pbuh). It does not say any such thing. Once again, mankind always loves to create false doctrines. I mean, every spiritual leader of any other religion can have a wife. But buddhism I am not to sure of. But the only true reason is he is from a society that would kill or castrate too many children of a household. The amount of children they could have was limited. So the buddha would take them in after he denounced his rightfull place as king and just try and learn to "BE".(So what I am lead to believe). But I do not know why priests can not marry. My friend's grandmother just married the deacon of her church about 3 weeks ago. Nothing wrong with that.


I have a good question that might get me thumbs downs. Jehovas witnesses believe there shall only be 144,000 allowed to be closest to christ. Now that is not 144,000 for this lifetime, but from the birth of jesus till now. And there are over 144,000 nuns and priests in the world. If they seem to be favored in the eyes of GOD, then what will happen to the rest of the christians? Keep in mind, it is no more than a "belief" that one religion is better than the next, does not mean at all it is a "fact". For all I know jainism could be the truest. Or even islam.

EDIT: Ooh, I just came up with a theory to that question above. It is believed that the amount of TRUE prophets that walked this earth is roughly around 30,000. Now what if they are of the 144,000. That would mean that the 144,000 is not referred to the closest to jesus, but to GOD himself alone. But that still leaves the question of what is to become of christians? And truthfully, they ask themselves that question everyday. And I will be damned if they deny that truthfully. "That boy is a genius. Maybe I should start my own religion". Pardon self, for that was highly blasphemous of me. I am very religous but I am not of the christian faith. PEACE!

Answer 5

Priests go into the priesthood with the knowledge that they will never marry. So it is their choice. They choose to be ambassadors of Christ instead.

There are many trains of thoughts on this and I believe it is right that they don't marry for the simple reason that they would be distracted with the events going on in their own family lives rather than their parish as a whole.

We learn in life that if we want to be successful in anything we set our mind to we have to be completely focussed whether it is in sport, music or business. Therefore a good priest should be completely focussed on his parish if he is to be successful in his chosen career.

When you meet a successful priest, you know you have met someone special. After all, look what he has given up to be that person. That is not to say that there are some awful priests our there as well and if you meet one, don't let him put you off altogether – there are many good ones out there.

Answer 6

No, there is no commandment "not to marry" Jesus and Paul encouraged singleness, but did not make it a command.

On the contrary Forbidding marriage is actually a teaching of the devil (1 Tim 4:1-3)

Peter was married, The requirement for being a bishop is to be a husband of one wife.

If a man can't take care of his family, then he is not recommend to be a bishop in the congregation. (1 Tim 3:4,5) NKJV

Answer 7

It comes down to us from Tradition. This verse may have contributed to the tradition since most men called to the priesthood were not married yet. A married priest from another faith like Lutheran may convert to Catholicism as a priest and maintain his marriage.

[1 Cor 7:20] Everyone should remain in the state in which he was called.

Answer 8

The idea is that they are married to the Church. Quite literally, they really don't have time for a wife. Mass is conducted every day, Not just once or twice a week.

The parish priest is the "Father" of his parish and all of his time, totally 100%, is devoted to his parish. Seven days a week with Mass, marriages, funerals, hospital visitations, baptisms, confession, you name it. Most of the Catholic Priests welcome celebacy. They understand its part of it before going in.

Discerning his vocation as a priest, and all that goes with it, is a very long process that can take years. There is time at the seminary as well, which is also quite a long time, amounting to years. A priest knows all that is required to be a priest for years before becoming ordained. They are free to follow another path at anytime throughout this process before taking their vows and receiving Holy Orders.

Answer 9

Priests were allowed to marry for several centuries. However, inheritance laws passed church land to the surviving wife, so the church changed the rules and required all priests to be single and celibate.

It was essentially all about money - now there's a surprise when talking about the Roman Catholic church!

Answer 10

It is only Catholic priests who cannot marry.

Orthodox priests marry.

Those who forbid marriage say that having an earthly spouse distracts one from one's duty to one's congregation.

Those who promote marriage say that having a spouse is an aid and comfort for someone who works hard dealing with the problems of so many others.

Answer 11

It is a man made doctrine not of God that was actually predicted would occur in 1 Timothy 4:1-3.

"But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron, men who forbid marriage and advocate abstaining from foods (both doctrines of the Catholic church i.e. celibacy of the priesthood and lent), which God has created to be gratefully shared in by those who believe and know the truth."