Celibacy

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Celibacy

Celibacy is the practice of remaining unmarried for religious reasons. The term derives from the Latin caelebs and caelibatus, meaning "single" or "alone," and usually refers to the state of being unmarried. The practice of celibacy includes the intentional abstinence from sexual relations. While the word directly pertains to the state of being unmarried, a marriage may be described as "celibate" when a couple chooses to refrain from genital sexual activity.

Celibacy is adopted for various purposes, but most commonly for spiritual and ascetical reasons. Seeing it as a spiritual discipline that can enrich the life of prayer, religious traditions acknowledge that celibacy involves self-denial and renunciation. The practice of celibacy is found in various forms in Hinduism, Buddhism, and Christianity. Permanent celibacy is rare in Confucianism. In American Judaism, which places great emphasis on marriage and family, the practice is all but nonexistent. In Buddhism and Christianity, persons who choose celibacy often reside together in religious communities.

The practice of celibacy is generally not widespread within mainline Protestant communities in the United States. However, one Protestant group known as the American Shakers did adopt strict observance of the practice. Beginning in the 1840s, this Christian group practiced celibacy as protection from what it saw as threats by the sensual, physical world. By the late twentieth century only a small number of American Shakers remained. Among U.S. Christian churches, the practice of celibacy is most often identified with the Roman Catholic Church, which requires a promise of celibacy for members of religious orders and for priests and bishops.

Origins and Historical Development

In Christianity, the practice of celibacy has a long and complex history. The earliest origins of the practice can be traced to religious cultic observance and to customs of sexual abstinence. Jewish Levitical laws of ritual purity and cleanliness influenced the liturgical practices of the first Christians. For centuries, Christianity has understood the celibate lifestyle to be a radical following of the example of Jesus Christ, who was unmarried. Christians believe that through the renunciation of the positive values of married life the celibate person embraces a deeply intimate spiritual relationship and union with Jesus Christ. Early believers were required to abstain from sexual activity in preparation for reception of the Eucharist, as priests were required to abstain from sexual relations for certain periods of time prior to offering sacrifice at the altar. At the end of the fourth century these customs led to sexual abstinence laws for then married priests. The monastic movements of the tenth and eleventh centuries also influenced the practice, as the celibate lives of monks gradually came to be seen as an ideal for all priests. Economic issues also played a role in clerical celibacy as churches dealt with questions related to the inheritance of church property by the children of priests. In the twelfth century, ritual laws of sexual abstinence for priests led to official church laws on celibacy. At the First Lateran Council, in 1123, the Roman Catholic Church formally required celibacy of all members of the clergy. During the Second Lateran Council, in 1139, canon law forbade the ordination of married men to the priesthood. Since the twelfth century in the West, celibacy has remained a universal requirement for ordination to the Roman Catholic priesthood. In the East, Christianity followed a different course, as many churches allowed the marriage of priests and deacons prior to ordination while forbidding marriage after ordination. Some Eastern churches continue to require a promise of celibacy by bishops.

Two major forms of the practice exist in present-day Christianity. First, celibacy is a monastic or ascetical practice whereby an individual makes a commitment to a religious way of life that precludes marriage. In this view, celibacy is seen as a symbolic manifestation of a Christian's status as a stranger or pilgrim in the world. Second, clerical celibacy is a practice whereby priests, bishops, and ministers remain unmarried as part of their service in the church. In this view, celibacy is seen as integral and necessary for clerical life in the church. The Christian practice of celibacy has often been described as a special gift "for the Kingdom of God" (Matthew 19:10–12; 1 Corinthians 7:7; 32–33) that enables ministers to be uniquely available for the service of others. Celibacy is seen as a gift and a special calling that is accepted by some Christians as a way to live their faith in the world.

Contemporary Questions

For centuries, Christians have both embraced and questioned the practice of celibacy. In recent years, the practice of mandatory clerical celibacy has become the subject of considerable debate in the U.S. Roman Catholic Church. Since the close of the Second Vatican Council in 1965, studies have predicted that a present shortage of priests will worsen due to retirements, fewer men entering seminaries, and departures from active priestly ministry. The requirement of priestly celibacy is frequently cited as one explanation for the decline in the numbers of U.S. Catholic priests. In 1975, approximately 57,500 priests served a Catholic population of about 48 million persons. In 1998, the Roman Catholic Church was the largest single U.S. religious denomination, with more than 61 million members. In that same year there were approximately 47,500 priests in active service. Since church law requires that a priest preside at the celebration of the Eucharist, theologians continue to study how these recent trends may affect this important Catholic ritual. In recent years, theologians have also begun to examine the relationship between celibacy and the nature of the priesthood itself. In 1965 the Second Vatican Council declared that celibacy "is not demanded of the priesthood by its nature," but the council strongly affirmed the suitability of the practice for priestly ministry. In the United States and elsewhere there have been calls for study of the feasibility of ordaining married men to the priesthood. Some bishops from Eastern Christian churches in North America—such as the Melkite Catholic Church—have recently ordained married male deacons to the priesthood.

Scholars continue to study how ecumenical dialogue between Eastern and Western Churches may be affected by these developments. Since 1965, the Roman Catholic Church has reaffirmed its teachings on mandatory priestly celibacy. Vatican II's decree on the priesthood, Presbyterorum ordinis, states that celibacy is "in harmony with the priesthood" and is "a feature of priestly life." In 1967, Pope Paul VI warmly praised priestly celibacy in the encyclical Sacerdotalis caelibatus and taught that the practice signified a love that "is open to all." Since 1978, Pope John Paul II has consistently endorsed and reaffirmed these earlier teachings. It is likely that discussion and debate about celibacy will continue in the U.S. Catholic Church for years to come.