The Church is not abandoning priestly celibacy

Joseph Lavoie posted about the meeting regarding priestly celibacy (which is in fact regarding the actions of Archbishop Milingo).

Priestly celibacy is not going away.

I just wish people would get it through their heads. Priestly celibacy is rooted in so many ideas, so many notions that those who advocated for priestly marriage don't get.

For one thing, the point is not to ban priestly marriage as to choose priests among those who already have a vocation to celibacy.

If you already do not have a vocation to the celibate life, the Church will not consider you for ordination.

But that's not fair some might say.

But no one is entitled to be ordained. The Church has the right to make a church law for the benefit of the faithful.

Vocations are from God, but God works within the rules of the Church. When Jesus said to Peter "what you bind on earth will be bound in heaven", he wasn't just speaking of doctrine. If rules are made for the good of the Church, those rules God observes, as long as they are not immoral. So if the Church chooses to only have those with a vocation to celibacy as priests, God sends priestly vocations only to those who have vocations to celibacy.

He does not send vocations to those with a vocation to be married. The rules are different in the Eastern Churches, he works within those rules in the Eastern Churches.

Because what the Church binds on earth is bound in heaven.

It is not against nature for the Church to ask only those who have a vocation to celibacy to be priests. What is wrong, however, is that too many priests who do not understand this. If a priest feels like it's against his nature not to be married, he probably didn't have a vocation to begin with.