www.byzcath.org Forums News & Events Church News Panel recommends ending married priest ban for american ECs

I think I speak along with Fr. Peter and every Greek Catholic churchman Fr. James has worked with, and just about this whole board: we're trying to make this right for you.

While the ban is still effective, Australia has had no issues ordaining married priests since 1998; thanks to the Catholic Bishops' Conference.

Here is something pertaining to the Eastern Catholic church which I think will make most of you happy--
Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation Urges Church
To Lift Ban on Ordination of Married Priests in Eastern Catholic Churches in North America

Action would affirm Eastern Rite tradition

Would encourage restoration of unity between Catholic, Orthodox Christians

Would enhance spiritual lives of Eastern Catholics

June 6, 2014

NEW YORK - The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation voted in early June to encourage the �lifting of the restrictions regarding the ordination of married men to the priesthood in the Eastern Catholic Churches of North America.�

�This action would affirm the ancient and legitimate Eastern Christian tradition, and would assure the Orthodox that, in the event of the restoration of full communion between the two Churches, the traditions of the Orthodox Church would not be questioned,� the consultation said in a statement releasedJune 6.

�We are convinced that this action would enhance the spiritual lives of Eastern Catholics and would encourage the restoration of unity between Catholic and Orthodox Christians,� the statement said.

The Theological Consultation agreed to the statement at its 86th meeting, June 2-4, at the Saint Methodios Faith and Heritage Center in Contoocook, New Hampshire. The meeting was hosted by the Orthodox co-chair, Metropolitan Methodios of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of Boston; the Catholic co-chair is Archbishop Joseph W. Tobin of Indianapolis.

The Theological Consultation issued the statement on the occasion of the 85th anniversary of the promulgation of the 1929 decree Cum data fuerit from the Vatican Oriental Congregation, which oversees the Eastern Catholic churches.

In the early 1900s, Eastern Catholic immigrants to North America from Eastern Europe and the Middle East brought with them the tradition of a married priesthood. This Oriental Congregation decree effectively limited future ordinations to celibates, and resulted in divisions in Eastern Catholic communities and even families over this issue.

The agreed statement cites two documents of the Second Vatican Council which call for Eastern Catholics to return to their authentic ancestral traditions, and exhorts those men who have received both the sacraments of priestly ordination and marriage �to persevere in their holy vocation.� Consequently, the Consultation �encourages the lifting of the restrictions regarding the ordination of married men to the priesthood in the Eastern Catholic Churches of North America.

At this meeting the Consultation also continued its study of the relationship between the clergy and laity in the two Churches. The members also examined the December 2013 statement by the Patriarchate of Moscow on primacy in the Church and the response by the Ecumenical Patriarchate. The Consultation also reviewed the recent meeting between Pope Francis and Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in Jerusalem.

The North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation was founded in 1965 and is sponsored by the Committee for Ecumenical Relations of the Assembly of Canonical Orthodox Bishops of the United States of America, the USCCB Committee for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, and the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops. Its agreed statements are available on at www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings...orthodox/orthodox-dialogue-documents.cfm [usccb.org] and
http://assemblyofbishops.org/about/scobaresources/orthodox-catholic/

The full statement follows.

Statement of the North American Orthodox/Catholic Theological Consultation
On the Occasion of the Eighty-fifth Anniversary of the Promulgation of the decree Cum data fuerit

The year 2014 marks the eighty-fifth anniversary of the promulgation of the decree Cum data fuerit. In 1929, the Sacred Congregation for the Oriental [Eastern Catholic] Churches issued this document, which stated that �priests of the Greek-Ruthenian Rite who wish to go to the United States of North America [sic] and stay there must be celibates� (Article 12). This statement led to a general prohibition of the ordination of married Eastern Catholics to the priesthood in North America. This resulted in divisions in Eastern Catholic communities and even in families.

The Second Vatican Council spoke of the importance of preserving the legitimate traditions of the Eastern Churches. In the decree, Orientalium ecclesiarum, the Council emphasized the need to preserve the �legitimate liturgical rite and � established way of life� of Eastern Catholics. The Council continued, stating that Eastern Catholics �should attain to an even greater knowledge and a more exact use of [this rite and way of life] and if in their regard they have fallen short owing to contingencies of times and persons, they should take steps to return to their ancestral traditions� (par. 6). Furthermore, the decree Presbyterorum ordinis states, �This holy synod, while it commends ecclesiastical celibacy, in no way intends to alter that different discipline which legitimately flourishes in the Eastern Churches. It permanently exhorts all those who have received the priesthood and marriage to persevere in their holy vocation� (sec. 16). Nevertheless, until recently, very few married Eastern Catholic men have been allowed to be ordained to the priesthood in North America.

With these things in mind, the North American Orthodox/Catholic Theological Consultation encourages the lifting of the restrictions regarding the ordination of married men to the priesthood in the Eastern Catholic Churches of North America. This action would affirm the ancient and legitimate Eastern Christian tradition, and would assure the Orthodox that, in the event of the restoration of full communion between the two Churches, the traditions of the Orthodox Church would not be questioned. We are convinced that this action would enhance the spiritual lives of Eastern Catholics and would encourage the restoration of unity between Catholic and Orthodox Christians.

MEDIA CONTACT ONLY:

Sister Mary Ann Walsh
(M) 301-325-7935
(O) 202-541-3201

Archimandrite Nathanael Symeonides
(M) 617-953-7385
(O) 212-570-3593

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It would also help fight loneliness!

But one must always choose the right person to be a Presbytera.

A role that is not for the faint of heart . . .

Alex

Well, this is encouraging news. A few years ago, the decision to permit married priests in Latin ecclesiastical territories was placed in the hands of the episcopal conferences. If the USCCB supports it, it won't be long before the change occurs. Of course, the Catholic members of the Theological Commission only comprise a portion of the USCCB, but let's keep our fingers crossed.

Blessings

Hi mardukm. Possibly I'm misunderstanding you, but I don't see how the highlighted statement could be true. Wouldn't that imply that the Latin bishop have "a say" in the matter?

Once the Ruthenian Church stops caring about panels and commissions and openly ordains married priests (reference of their wives and families was omitted from the most recent Light of the West) the sooner I can take it seriously. Hiding it is worse than not doing it at all.

I hate to sound uncharitable but they do more harm than good to the cause of ecumenism - a cause I hold very dear. And it is frustrating.

The Eparchy of Phoenix has 19 parishes, 5 of which are currently served by married priests. That is more than 25 percent of parishes. Two of these priests are "home-grown", and, contrary to your statement, they were openly ordained; their ordinations were not held in secret, nor are their wives hidden from sight. Rather than lament the past, let us look to the future. Change isn't going to happen immediately, for logistical reasons if nothing else, but it is happening. Let us give credit where credit is due, and it is definitely due to Bishop Gerald for stepping out and being willing to ordain married men to the priesthood and to welcome married priests with open arms.

Yes, they let the wives attend, they just omitted any reference to them in their husbands' biographies and photos in the eparchy newsletter when it was announced. I was looking closely to see if they were married or not and put the bulletin down thinking they were not.

If I wasn't taking people's word for it on an internet forum I would have thought some more celibate priests had joined the ranks. As did anyone else who read the news without vetting it on this forum.

What's to hide? More harm than good is done by keeping these things secret.

If this is a secret, it is an extremely poorly kept one. I knew that they were married because my pastor told me that Bishop Gerald was ordaining two married men. A few months after the ordination, Bishop Gerald mentioned it himself. Hardly a secret. It was a little strange that Light of the West made no explicit mention of their wives, but they were in the pictures.

It's not strange at all, it was not intended to be made public beyond word-of-mouth.

How did you know their wives were in the pictures? They weren't identified.

I know their wives were in the pictures because I asked.

It is possible that the eparchy deliberately chose to conceal that these priests are married. If that is indeed true, I would disagree with the approach, but we don't know that it is true. The reality is that these priests will serve the eparchy for years to come, as married men. Their wives are not and will not be hidden from sight. This will have much more impact in the long run than an article in a newsletter with extremely limited circulation.

The more I read here the less I get this! Concealing wives like its some kind of embarrasment! The BC needs to stand on its own two feet and defy those who deny its rights and traditions supposedly guaranteed by the Unions. What are they afraid of? Excommunication? For what? Its no sin and never was. Sorry but this all sounds ridiculous in the 21st century.

No wife was concealed. No wife is currently concealed. Five married men currently and openly serve as priests in the Eparchy of Phoenix. Two of them were ordained in the U.S. They continue to live with their wives, who are not concealed. Their wives were present at the ordinations. The upcoming Light of the West will feature Bishop Gerald's visit to Sacramento for the baptism of the 6th daughter of our pastor and his wife. I just don't get the idea that this is somehow being hidden. Sure, there was no mention of wives in the article in Light of the West. Was it oversight or deliberate? I don't know, but in the big picture, I don't see how it matters. It doesn't change the facts, which are most important.