The truly longstanding tradition in the church is that some are called to celibacy. Some feel called to it. But the church has never supported that celibacy be mandated for someone not called to it. It's never imposed on someone.
Celibacy is the worst form of self-abuse.
Marriage may often be a stormy lake, but celibacy is almost always a muddy horse pond.
I'm not unlucky at love, just incredibly lucky with celibacy.
As to marriage or celibacy, let a man take which course he will, he will be sure to repent.
If Jesus were to ask me, as He did that poor demoniac in the Gospel: "What is your name?" I too would have to reply: "My name is legion, for there are many of us" (Mk 5:9). There are as many of us as there are desires, plans and regrets which we harb...
Celibacy is not just a matter of not having sex. It is a way of admiring a person for their humanity, maybe even for their beauty.
I've tried everything but celibacy, and I really want to know what it feels like to be touched by someone with a mental touch and not a physical touch.
The church may hold whatever it holds with regard to clerical celibacy.
Love me until Venus gasps with envy. Love me again until Eros swears celibacy.
Everyone agrees the celibacy rule is just a Church law dating from the 11th century, not a divine command.
If, hypothetically, Western Catholicism were to review the issue of celibacy, I think it would do so for cultural reasons, not so much as a universal option.
Celibacy is not a matter of compulsion. Someone is accepted as a priest only when he does it of his own accord.
To some extent a life of celibacy is a picture of how all of us are to live, containing our passions for God’s purposes.
In any love-story there are usually two stages or phases. There is the initial stage, where love is expressed by the giving of gifts, especially the gift of self. Then there comes a time when it is no longer enough to give gifts to the beloved, but o...
There are times, Kruppe murmurs, when celibacy born of sad deprivation becomes a boon, nay, a source of great relief.
The vow of celibacy is a matter of keeping one's word to Christ and the Church. a duty and a proof of the priest's inner maturity; it is the expression of his personal dignity.
When you really see how much God loves you, there's no greater love than that, and I had to match that amount of love He had for me, which is the reason why I decided to take a vow of celibacy.
For the standard of Christian life was to be strained to a higher pitch; more fasting was required, and more careful separation from the manners and enjoyments of the world; celibacy and martyrdom had great value set upon them, and second marriages w...
You know, in some ways, the celibacy tradition goes back to the tribe of Levi and, certainly, sacrifice and the notion of sacrifice. In the Old Testament, the shedding of blood was for a man to perform. It was not for the woman, who gave life.
Christians throughout history have affirmed that lifelong celibacy is a spiritual gift and calling, not a path that should be forced upon someone.
