If You Were Made The Pope, The Most Immediate Change You Would Make Is To Allow

1. 76

   ngurecoposted 15 years ago

   If You Were Made The Pope, The Most Immediate Change You Would Make Is To Allow Priests Get Married?

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2. 68

   Anti-Valentineposted 15 years ago

   Probably yes. It would stop those catholic priests from getting in the news all the time.

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3. 60

   Hiperionposted 15 years ago

   No, i don´t think Priests should get merry.
   For that situation already exhists another type of person. A married person may do almost all the things a Priest does, with only some limitations, if he study for that.
   It´s better this way: that persons may merry, a real Priest shouldn´t.

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4. 58

   xLMTPxposted 15 years ago

   I wouldn't allow priests to get married. One of the things they promise to do is to remain in chastity. I think this is something important to do. I know St. Therese was never a priest, but she was a nun and nuns make the same vow of chastity. I remember she would call herself, "The Bride". She served God. And the reason why priest don't marry is Jesus wasn't married. He served God as a virgin never married. If you are thinking of getting married, you can always be ordained as a Deacon. That's if and only if God is calling you to do this.

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5. 77

   Uninvited Writerposted 15 years ago

   Priest used to be allowed to  marry but it was banned in the 4th century. As was allowing women to become priests. However, by the 15th century only 50% of priests were unmarried.
   
   Also, Orthodox priests are still allowed to marry.

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6. 37

   lmpowelljrposted 15 years ago

   I do not have sources so to speak, but after speaking with a former Catholic, friend of mine.  She shared with me that Priests used to be allowed to marry, but the church changed it due to property rights or something after a priest died. 
   
   Before I become someone's target, I am admitting that I do not know if this is true and haven't found it documented anywhere, but just wanted to write what I have heard.
   
   After trying to look it up, I've found many other possibilities.
   
   The Bible is clear that a person should marry as opposed to burn with lust.
   
   1 Corinthians 7:9 (New King James Version)
   9 but if they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.

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7. 60

   Miss Dposted 15 years ago

   It would certainly be on my 'must do' list, along with allowing women to become priests, excommunicating priests guilty of paedophilia and giving my blessing to the use of condoms in order to curb the spreading of STDs. I would also put a stop to the condemnation of homosexuals - somehow I don't think I'd ever get to be pope with these views, even if I was the right sex!

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8. 60

   yes2truthposted 15 years ago

   I am a son of God, so how could I be made Pope? It would be impossible.
   
   One has to be a counterfeiter - a man of religion with the sole desire to make lots of money in order to be made Pope.
   
   If priests knew their Bible they would marry and tell the Pope to go take a run and jump!!
   
   Peter the Apostle was married and had children by that marriage.

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9. 60

   HOOWANTSTONOposted 15 years ago

   I would shut down the Institution, loose all the stupid clothes and open up the best Gospel preaching place in the world. Take the money and start farms in Africa, so Europe doesn't have to supply charity without real getting dirty stuff. Build hospitals without politics, and create the worlds biggest African Evangelist movement preaching the Gospel.
   
   Unfortunately, or maybe Fortunately God is going to Destroy Rome and the Catholic Institution, and do this whole thing anyway.
   Praise God

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10. 60

    Gregory Lutherposted 15 years ago

    A priest can be married,just not in the Roman Rite.  There are plenty of other rites in the Church where priests may be married.  In the Roman Rite the priest stands in persona Christi and as such stands in the same state as Christ, which is single.

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11. 60

    MomintheMiddleposted 15 years ago

    There is a reason why priests have been asked to abstain from having a romantic life. I've come to believe that God had a plan and this is wisdom. They should not be distracted from leading a church, or the other work they do, by personal issues. I would encourage my priest to seek help for his worldly desires or if he did not feel that he wanted help for it, he consider that his calling was not true and he should depart the priesthood, at least not remain Catholic.
    Look, I came to this church late but one thing I can tell you the true Catholic believes: this church table is not spread with a buffet where you can pick and choose what you want. This is a table with a dinner, and you take it all or don't eat nothing.

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12. 61

    FedResposted 15 years ago

    I was told by a man in seminary school that priests could once get married, and that the only reason the church stopped it was because they didn't want to have to pay for a priest's wife's expenses, travelling for missionary services and such.
    
    I don't know the facts, but it sounds like a frugal business decision, and the Catholic church is the richest business in the world.

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13. 61

    topgunjagerposted 15 years ago

    If I was the Pope, I'll sell all my bling and my castle because every little bit helps the needy and I'm not going to let the priests be transferred to another church when they get caught having sex with children and cover it up=)

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14. 61

    Shafron's Worldposted 15 years ago

    The Catholic Church is not going to abandon its position on celibacy as requirement for the priesthood any time soon.
    
    While married priests were ordained in the earliest days of the Church, they were special cases - not the norm.  Married priests were expected to remain celibate, but there was no specific vow that required them to do so.
    
    After the Church realized that many married priests were not celibate, the practice changed to ordain only single men who had to vow to lifelong celibacy.
    
    The most pressing change I would make would be to put greater emphasis on teaching priests the proper way to handle their sexual urges and give them the help and support they need to remain celibate.
    
    See Wikipedia article:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clerical_celibacy_(Catholic_Church)

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15. 57

    Joseph Tposted 15 years ago

    The priest who was chosen among us, the best among us to
    serve God, the Church, and the religional community. I think the priest should not marry if he want to serve God and people with the best he has

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16. 47

    bretya craneposted 14 years ago

    Jesus chose Peter to be the Bishop of Rome - The First Pope.  He was married.  The Popes which came after are all single.  Jesus said at the time to leave mother, father everything and following me. That is why all future popes are single.  Jesus people nowadays could have chosen a single man but chose Simon later called Peter.  Jesus - Son of God like God works in a mystery way.  That is why Catholic Priests are single.  Something which people find difficult.
    
    Popes are chosen when they are older not younger.  Therefore men should think longer before they enter into the priesthood.  There has to be self control.   
    
    Simon called Peter ws married not Jesus.
    
    As for popes being single yes they will continue to be so like priests.  Mary - Virgin Mother of God spoke to children in Yugoslavia years ago and whether she commented of this no one knows yet as nothing by them has been told to the public unless I have heard it myself.  They have to be careful as they can only say what she told them. Especially when they speak on television. 
    
    Perhaps she did give them an answer but it is for them to keep it to themselves.  Some questions are private - kept only to the children she spoke to.

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17. 0

    loriamooreposted 14 years ago

    There is a reason why priests are not allowed to marry.
    
    Although I'm not a Catholic, my understanding of priests is that their first priority is to God.  With a family or spouse, their interests would be divided. 
    
    Plus, once a priest or nun devotes himself or herself to their calling, they never own possessions and are fully supported (food, clothing, housing) by the Catholic Church.  The Catholic church isn't prepared to support families and it would be difficult for children and non-pastoral spouses to accept not owning anything.
    
    I know several Christian men and women who aren't dating right now because they want to first focus on their relationships with God and they know that a dating relationship could potentially distract them.

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18. 60

    fyxerposted 14 years ago

    If i was the pope i the first thing i would do is change the laws so all the priests could marry if they so desire,where did this idea come from that a priest cannot devote his life to the lord and have a family at the same time,millions of men all over the world do that everyday,before a man becomes a priest he was a man,after he becomes a priest he is still a man.

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19. 61

    terced ojosposted 14 years ago

    The Eunuchs who are made Eunuchs by God are called to priesthood. The power of lust is greatly diminished in these individuals because they have been spiritually set apart for service to God.
    
    Following the Creed of Nicea a great corruption entered the church and the decisions of men replaced the decisions of God.
    
    The church would build a foundation on the sand of human wisdom and not on the Holy Spirit of the living God.
    
    The priesthood would become a man made office as opposed to a divine appointment of God; hence all the priests unable to control their desires for women.
    
    Celibacy is a spiritual gift from God and men who have received this gift have been set apart by God to be priest.
    
    The sexual relationship is one in which you are giving so much of yourself and energy to.  For the priest this energy along with all of the priests energies are given to God for the service of the church; that the priest, pastor, reverend may receive greater spiritual discernment and direction for the congregation.

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20. 61

    Dave Mathewsposted 14 years ago

    In The Holy Bible it is written and spoken by Jesus, "You cannot serve two masters."
    
    The Catholic Church saw this as meaning, that the church and the congregation of a priest deserved 100% of the priest's undevided attention and that having a wife and a family would detract from the priest's responsibilities to his parish, seeing the wife and family responsibilities as a second master so to speak.
    
    Hopes that makes a little sense out of this question.
    
    Brother Dave.

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21. 54

    T J J Elliottposted 7 years ago

    I feel that this is a very challenging question to answer. As someone who has done a lot of studying into the Catholic Church, when a pope dies, the cardinals all gather and elect one man, usually one of them (however there have been cases of external nominations).
    
    The issue I have with the nature of this question is that when you are nominated for pope, you don't run in the same way one would for president or prime minister. You don't create a platform of "This is what I promise you if I am elected!". You may be asked questions by the cardinals on topics such as your values, what you hold as more important, or even on your personal philosophy, but you do not create campaigns.
    
    To say "If I was pope, the first thing I would do is to change this!" is quite improper. You could say "If I was pope, I would gather a council to look at the possibility of married priests," but not something definitive. The pope actually doesn't have unlimited power. The pope has the right to veto certain actions, but only to allow the maintenance of current teachings. An example is the publication of the encyclical letter "Humanae Vitae". A council of people were gathered in order to discuss whether or not the Church would uphold it's teachings on contraception. The majority report (the majority vote) said that the Church would change it's teachings on contraception, allowing it. Pope Paul VI, who was on the side of the minority report, vetoed it and decided to maintain the original teaching. If the next pope decided that he was on the side of married priests, he could not just "legalize it" in the same way that countries would legalize a new drug or service. He would have to order a council and they would have to have the majority report accept allowing married priests. If the majority report chose to uphold the teaching on celibate priests, the pope could not just veto it and change the teachings.
    
    There are other rites in the Catholic Church that do allow for married priesthood, such as the Byzantine Catholics, just not the Roman Catholic rite.

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