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Excellent statement haydukovich!
For the past two or so years at the end of Sunday Liturgies we have been praying a special prayer for vocations - is anyone listening "upstairs"?

Also, our bishops are accepting married priests from Ukraine, yet won't ordain American born married men. Can someone please explain that logic?

This thread has sort of meandered, but I want to follow up these last posts with a question about the restoration of married priests in the EC churches in North America. (Please feel free to move it however you wish.) Have the American Eastern Catholic bishops actively turned down suitable married candidates? Or have they done it more by omission failed to adequately support a married priestho0d (financially, etc.)? It seems unlikely or odd to me that there aren't suitable married candidates presenting themselves. But it seems odder still that bishops who talk about wanting to restore a married presbyterate have still managed not to ordain any suitable married candidates. I have also seen it said and repeated many places that the Canadian bishops represent a different sort of practice--where do things stand there? Also, do Eastern Catholic bishops meet at the national level, besides in the USCCB itself, and do they meet at all as Eastern Catholic bishops outside of their specific synods--I mean, do Eastern Catholic bishops meet at national or regional levels with bishops from the various other Eastern Catholic jurisdictions/churches?

Now over two years ago in a synod at the Vatican, its bishops in the Middle East, i.e. the "sui juris" homelands officially asked, again, for the particular law to allow them to ordain married men in their "diaspora," over a decade overdue.
http://catholicreview.org/article/l...rictions-on-married-eastern-rite-priests

Somewhere I just saw the brizarre claim that priests cannot have relations with their wives 40 days after their ordination. Which is odd, given the tradition of a priest celebrating the 40 days after his ordination.

Here is an article on yet another conference in Rome on this subject and a link to Protoptesbyter James Dutko's paper presented at the conference. (Fr. James is a priest of the ACROD).

http://acrod.org/news/releases/rome-conference

Well, I know at St. John the Baptist Cathedral here, we have an American-born Deacon that was married before he was ordained (Deacon Andrew Nagrant, I think), and he has kids, and has a family, etc... Although the only priest in the Eparchy that I know of is married is from Slovakia, and is the pastor of St. Nicholas in Barberton. So there are some examples like that in the Ruthenian tradition where there are married clergy, but outside of those examples... Not sure if much else is true about anything.

Thanks for sharing the article--I have to admit that I still don't completely understand the issue. I see repeated calls to ordain married men to the priesthood, I see canonical arguments to the effect that no ban presently applies. Here's what I don't get: If there is widespread agreement among Eastern Catholic bishops in North America that (1) it would be desirable to restored the married priesthood here and (2) that the Eastern churches have the lawful authority to do it [and (3)maybe pragmatically important--though certainly not decisive--if the Latin bishops won't take any action to oppose it], then what's the hold up? Why do they continue to say at the same time that they should be allowed to do it and continue to ask permission for it? That's why I was asking about the degree of coordination between Eastern bishops in this country--do they lack the consensus?

The North American Latin bishops do oppose it, and the Vatican has requested/instructed the EC bishops to adhere to the status quo (most recently as last year). The Melkites have have announced their intention to ordain married candidates in the diaspora (not sure of any follow through). The Ruthenian heirarchy is characteristically mum.

Re: last year: http://www.patheos.com/blogs/deacon...-america-as-essentially-inconsequential/

And honestly, what married candidate would consider joining a church in which he is not wanted?

Yes an entire eparchy have to my knowledge not had a successful deacon candidate in over 4 years - let alone a priest - one was ordained 3 years ago - not married - celibate - and there have been no others accepted even though viable valid men (myself included) have applied and expressed interest.

The last thing I was told was that I pissed off the vocations director by asking him why they don't allow married men to be ordained.

The vocations in my eparchy are a disaster - but hey - if that's what they want - that's what they'll get NO PRIESTS because they are not even accepting celibate men now.

It makes people mad - mad enough to leave the church and return to Orthodoxy.

I get the strange sense that these men in charge have their roles carved out and don't want others to invade their space.
- God help me for judging him.

this is a pet peeve of mine ... it really does need it's own thread ... and of course it's been discussed countless times.

Why is the vocations director of my Eparchy not contacting me - inviting me - conversing with me - developing me - knowing full well that I want to belong -

and please replace the me with ANYONE ELSE who applied - it's not just me - they can reject me all day long I can understand that - I'm probably too much of a sinner anyway - I'm atypical of a religious guy - I'm a real man (who happens to love sex with my wife) i work hard, repair my own trucks, sometimes curse, and I love God love Jesus and try to serve my church as best I can. But my brothers they are rejecting anyone - who in their eyes is not perfect - and so far that is EVERYONE WHO HAS APPLIED as far as I know.

If I had a church - and if I was a Bishop - I would encourage anyone and everyone who ever applied - visit with them personally e ascertain their calling, help them learn the faith more and more (what harm could that do?) at least the vocations director should ...

I know lots of people will tell me what a great guy he is but how do I know? - he refuses to talk to me - as if I have leprosy or something

It's very low class - very derogatory - and almost an in your face outright rejection of your personhood your spirit the core of yourself - cold, rejecting, suspicious of why you are asking, secretive.

I went to an Episcopal Church service the other day - WHAT A DIFFERENCE - the people are interested in you - spend time with you - pay attention to you - Smile, laugh, talk about God,kids, job FRIENDLY IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT and it's infectious from the Pastor on down
(high class, polite, manners, and proper etiquette - The Anglican way - God they are just NICE PEOPLE PERIOD)

Does anyone ever get greeted like that in our Byzcath churches?
I bet if I told them I wanted to be a priest in their church they'd sweep me up as fast as they could because they have actually taken the time to get to know me - to know what I am -
and they let me say Byzantine prayers in their chapel - something the Roman Catholic Church in town has refused me despite repeatedly asking them if I could just simply pray on the grounds.

One more post ...

The ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH accepts married Episcopal and Anglican priests (not many but it is happening) into the Latin Rite.

Men with kids etc etc.

Yet they refuse the Byzantine Catholics the right to follow their own traditions.

This is Noted amongst the Orthodox who have the ammunition with all this to state that Uniatism really is a slap in their face - and when we don't act Orthodox as we are supposed to - it really shows them that we are just subjugated.

How can they ever want union / communion / reunion with a church that won't even allow their own it's rightful traditions and won't bend a bit in the direction of orthodoxy?

Well rest assured when Cardinal Timothy Dolan is the new Pope - he'll fix it.

I was. And we do, always, at both the parishes to which I have belonged. My wife ran the welcome table for a while, too.

I wouldn't bet on that if I were you. I was turned down by an Episcopal bishop, in spite of already having the MDiv degree, and needing only 1 year of formation in an Episcopal seminary. It was abundantly clear that my rejection, as well as that of everyone else in my parish who was submitted to the bishop to be considered for ordination, was due to the traditional stance taken by my pastor on the issue of the ordination of active homosexuals to the episcopate.

You would certainly find that kind of greeting at our BCC mission. I have never met a Roman priest who would tell you you couldn't pray however you choose in the church or on the grounds. I am sure there are more than a few facts left out of that statement. Why not provide all of the details.

Episcopalians are generally nice people. My wife and her family were Episcopalians. Of course, when you meet every three years to vote on what will be right and wrong for the next three years I guess and pretty much any moral position has the potential to find a home you develop a certain desire to not discuss theology and concentrate on the quality of the coffee and donuts after church.