An Open Letter to Our Spiritual Fathers
Fathers, please preach boldly about sin and demand excellence in the spiritual life.
What Attracts Homosexuals to the Priesthood?
Why would a young homosexual man today, in a time of general acceptance of homosexuals in all walks of life, choose the priesthood?
The Case for a Diocesan Priestly Promise of Poverty
A diocesan priestly promise of poverty could make the priesthood more appealing to the right men and less appealing to the wrong.
The Curé Few Want
There is a major identity crisis today in the priesthood. It is a rupture, or at the very least an attempt to disconnect from the burden of its deep-rooted identity as one who offers sacrifice.
The Themes of Holy Thursday
The Holy Eucharist, the ministerial priesthood, and fraternal charity are intimately bound together in the mystery of Holy Thursday.
What Does It Mean to Be a Priest? (Guest: Fr. Ezra Sullivan, O.P.)
Priests are, quite literally, the mediators between us and God. What does it mean to be priest? What are the challenge and the joys? We’ll talk to a priest today about the sacred priesthood, and how the laity can help their priests.
Clericalism Is Dead. Long Live Clericalism!
The clericalism that was once considered the realm of clergy who treated lay people like children has transferred its loyalty to a new generation of priests, who clothe their power-seeking ways in faux humility and New Yorker lingo.
Catholic Priests: Perpetual Signs of Contradiction
Good Catholics are rightly shocked and even scandalized by the wickedness of men called to be “other Christs” in the celebration of the sacraments and throughout their lives.
What You Can Do to Help Our Priests
The priesthood of Jesus Christ, in which every Christian priest shares, is the source of holiness in the Church and the impetus for all evangelization. Through the ministry of the priest, Christ’s lay faithful are nourished with the Word of Life and the Bread of Life; their sanctification makes possible the sanctification of the world. … Read more
Your Father, Your Friend
I’m sure we’ve all heard by now about the death of Father Harkins, a young priest from Kansas City who committed suicide. The news deeply shook our Catholic community in St. Louis, particularly since Fr. Harkins had attended seminary here and was friends with priests in the area. There’s something shocking about a priest dying … Read more
Flight of the Lady-Bishops
In mid-January, it was made public that His Excellency Bishop Barry Knestout (my local ordinary) had made arrangements with the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia to allow an invalid consecration of a female “bishop” at St. Bede’s Catholic Church in Williamsburg. The public outcry was so intense that the Episcopalians chose to move the event … Read more
An Old Testament Justification for Priestly Celibacy
God ordered Moses to consecrate the Israelites “today and tomorrow,” and have them wash their garments, so that they would be prepared to see the Lord descend on Mount Sinai on the third day. Moses consecrated and instructed the people accordingly. He also told them to abstain from sexual intercourse (Exod. 19:10-15). Why did God … Read more
Skepticism over New Calls to Abandon Priestly Celibacy
In the wake of ongoing new reporting regarding sex scandals among many clerics, we have witnessed increased calls for the Catholic Church to loosen celibacy restrictions for the priesthood. Even many devout Catholics have begun to believe celibacy represents an unhealthy repression of sexual urges. To stem the tide of clerical abuse, the Church must … Read more
Male Homosexuality and Priestly Formation
There is no homosexuality. Of course, there are homosexuals, but there is no one thing, no one condition or syndrome that is homosexuality. If we are to address the “homosexual problem” in the Church, then we must first understand what we are talking about, and whatever that is, it is not a thing called homosexuality. … Read more
The Superiority of the Priesthood Does Not Justify Clericalism
The teaching of the Catholic Church with regards to the priesthood is that the priest is ontologically superior to the lay person. This superiority occurs at the moment of ordination. Ordination, like baptism, confers an indelible mark upon the soul of the priest, and it is this mark that causes the superiority. There are a … Read more
Spiritual Egalitarianism Is Deadly
“It’s not going to be long now,” says the doctor, as you stand beside the bed of your loved one. “Shall I send for the head of the Liturgy Committee?” Some years ago, on the island where we live during the summer, the bishop assigned a new priest and told him that his job was … Read more
The Times Pushes a Tired and Flawed Gay Priest Narrative
In its recent Sunday edition, America’s newspaper of record ran a front-page article on the challenges facing gay Catholic priests titled “A Silent Crisis for Gay Priests.” It is the most recent specimen of the journalistic genre of suffering-gay-Catholic-priests-in-an-unwelcoming-Church. The narrative is well-known by now: a Church which fails to welcome gay priests, whose leaders … Read more
Celibacy and Priests with Same-Sex Attraction
In recent conversations concerning the Church and the priesthood, it seems that the main focus when discussing the issue of celibacy is the idea that the one who “chooses” a celibate life is one who willfully forgoes the enjoyment of sex. While this feature of celibacy is without a doubt true, looking at celibacy from … Read more
The Final Conversations of a Dying Priest
Father Arne Panula died quite publicly and for a very long time. We kept hearing the end was near, but he kept on going and going. Besides in his coffin, the last time I saw him was when he took the podium at the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast and offered a prayer. This movie-star-handsome man … Read more
Why Seminary Formation Must Be Scrutinized
“Amen I say to you, unless you be converted, and become as little children, you shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” ∼ Matthew 18:3 Ever since I seriously embraced my Catholic faith, I’ve lived with the sensation of biting into an orange right after brushing my teeth. Toothpaste has a chemical in it that … Read more