Azuka Onwuka
The
retirement of Pope Benedict XVI, which paved the way for the election
of Pope Francis last week, at a time Pope Benedict is still alive, was
both radical and revolutionary. It takes a man of exceptional conviction
and courage to take such a step. Pope Benedict XVI shocked many Roman
Catholics and non-Catholics, and put some fear into the hearts of many
Catholics worldwide that his unusual action could affect the reputation
and tradition of the Catholic Church.
In 2001, Pope John Paul II broke with
tradition by not just visiting a mosque in Damascus, Syria, but also
kissing the Koran in the mosque, being the first pope to do that. That
action shocked many Catholics and Christians. But it did not make Pope
John Paul II to apologise for it or stop him from more radical actions.
These instances show that even in a
conservative institution with a long tradition and history like the
Roman Catholic Church, a man can change the way things have been, even
if many worshippers initially find it shocking or unusual.
Stories of Catholic priests sexually
molesting male and female children have been on the increase in recent
years. Sometimes, such inappropriate sexual acts are not with children
but with adults. A few weeks ago, a Catholic cardinal, Keith O’Brien –
the head of the Catholic Church in Scotland and the most senior prelate
in all Britain – resigned after admitting to having had sexual relations
with some priests. Ironically, O’Brien had been a vociferous voice
against homosexuality in the United Kingdom.
It is not that such stories are not
heard among other Christian denominations now and then, but they are on a
large and recurring scale in the Catholic Church. It is not because
Catholic priests have a higher libido than other priests and pastors or
that they are worse in morals. The only reason for it is the compulsory
celibacy enforced among the Catholic clergy.
Such sexual molestation stories are not
rife in Nigeria. But it is not because they don’t occur – for Nigerian
priests are as human as their European and American counterparts – but
because of two main reasons: 1. There is still a deep stigma for rape –
victims prefer to keep silent to avoid being stigmatised; 2. since most
victims are usually Catholics, they and their families would prefer not
to tarnish the image of their beloved church by going public – they
would prefer to bear the trauma for life than be pointed to as the
“enemies” that wanted to drag the name of the Catholic Church through
the mud. So, the silence continues, and everybody pretends that nothing
untoward goes on in Nigeria. That I dared to write this at all will be
considered sacrilegious by many.
Has the priestly celibacy worked for the
Catholic Church? Yes and no. Yes, because it has helped to portray the
Catholic Church as different from other Christian denominations, and
therefore unique. It has helped to portray the priests as different from
the laity, thereby strengthening their power over the laity and
increasing their aura in their eyes too. It has helped to sustain the
image of the Catholic Church as an institution with a great tradition.
In addition, it has helped it to a large extent to have priests that are
not ruled by inordinate acquisition of wealth as well as priests that
are not too afraid to die in the line of duty.
But celibacy has not worked and will
never work for the Catholic Church, because it is against natural law.
Only VERY FEW men and women can be truly celibate for decades. And those
who want to be truly celibate do so without any compulsion. Some would
say that the Catholic priests are not forced to be celibate. That is
true, but a man who passionately wants to serve the Lord as a priest in
the Catholic Church MUST take an oath to be celibate, even if he
earnestly does not want to be one.
Celibacy was an introduction into the
church. The church was over a thousand years old when it took a definite
stand in 1139, at the Second Lateran Council, forbidding priests to
marry. In 1563, the Council of Trent re-affirmed that celibacy policy.
Curiously, celibacy is not a biblical
injunction. It is not in the Old Testament, neither is it in the New
Testament. It is not ordered by Jesus Christ or His apostles as a
condition for one to inherit the kingdom of God. Christ made it clear
that in heaven, there is no husband or wife, while St Paul said that
whether one marries or does not marry does not matter. In 1st Timothy 3,
Paul listed the qualities of a bishop or overseer, and said inter alia:
“A bishop must be blameless, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober,
of good behaviour, hospitable, an apt teacher, no drunkard, not violent
but gentle, not quarrelsome, and no lover of money.”
Christianity does not force its
adherents to kill their libido. Sex drive is a natural and healthy thing
that cannot be subdued by force. If it is subdued forcefully, it brews
like a latent volcano, exploding one day in a destructive and
embarrassing manner. It is a force that needs to be channelled to
fruitful ventures, not caged. It is like hunger and thirst. One can
control how much one eats or drinks, but one should not be forced to
abstain from food and water. Even animals are not taught by anyone to
engage in sex. In matters of sex, the difference between animals and
human beings is that unlike human beings, they don’t have the capacity
to manage and channel their sex drive properly.
Before becoming priests, many men would
be convinced of their ability to be celibate all their lives. They start
off well. But maybe a decade later, when the spiritual fire wanes or
burns out, they see that they cannot control the sexual urge that rears
its head in them regularly. And since they are not married and cannot
resign as priests and face the odium of such an action, they look for
the safest outlets: masturbation, paedophilia, homosexuality, and
fornication. Children are naturally the easiest targets. Children are
easier to deceive; children are easier to keep silent. CNN
reported that a priest told a 12-year-old girl he wanted to defile who
told him that such an act was a sin: “I am your priest. What I say is
sin is sin. What I say is not sin is not sin!” And with such superior
and fear-inducing arguments, he was able to disarm the girl, defile her
and keep her silent until she became an adult and went public with her
story.
Revolutionary men change things. Pope
Francis can change this policy if he wants to. Luckily, clerical
celibacy in the Catholic Church is not a dogma, but a regulation. A
dogma like male-only priesthood is a Catholic dogma, irreversible by a
Pope. But the ban on priestly marriage is a regulation, which can be
changed by a pope overnight if he wishes.
Mandatory celibacy in the Catholic
Church is an ill-wind that blows no-one any good. Just like the football
ruling body, FIFA, saw reason after fighting against goal-line
technology for many years for no other meaningful reason but to avoid
change and maintain tradition, Pope Francis has the opportunity to be
the pope that abolished compulsory celibacy in the Catholic priesthood.
Every Catholic who truly loves his church should be on the campaign for
the Catholic Church to discontinue that policy and save millions of
children from sexual exploitation by the priests they trust and
venerate, and also save the Church the embarrassment of constantly being
bombarded with such unpalatable news from different parishes and
dioceses.
Any time the story of sexual
exploitation of children by a Catholic priest is aired or published
anywhere in the world, it is not just the Catholic Church that is
adversely affected by such news. The entire Christendom is affected and
smeared too.
When a policy is not working, history
makers face reality and change such a policy, thereby writing their
names in gold in the process, while others prefer not to rock the boat
and just continue to go with the tide, whatever the unsavoury
consequences.
No comments:
Post a Comment