Is the male-only priesthood a discipline or essential to the nature of being a priest? Sr. Vassa (again unflinchingly taking up a contentious topic by climbing up the ladder to the highest platform and then jumping into the deep end head first) dives right in and says there is no reason beyond personal preference to not have female clergy. You know, when people ask me about women in priesthood, they say, 'Sister, why can't women be priests?' And I say, 'Women CAN be priests. We don't WANT them to be priests.' Because you see, God can do anything, and the Church, by divine authority, uh, can do anything, but, the Church doesn't want to - and that's a legitimate reason. What I don't like is when we TRY to pretend that there are other reasons for this, because it's legitimate not to want something, and there are reasons not to want this - right? - but, we shouldn't pretent that there's some... reason, that, for example, the maleness...
For wan election of whom? The UCC's primate's title is major archbishop not patriarch.
ReplyDeleteThat depends on the person you ask. If you ask a Greek Catholic they might well say Patriarch. If you ask Rome (for primarily political reasons) they will say Major Archbishop . Major Archbishop is really a made up term that just came about in the last 50 or so years.
ReplyDeleteWhat is it with allot of "Eastern Catholic" priests and Hierarches not having beards. Isn't that a latinization?. I can understand if you can't grow one. Icons painted in the future with male Eastern Catholic saints without beards is going to look very odd indeed.Just a thought.
ReplyDeleteRobert: Short answer: yes.
ReplyDeleteUpdate on patriarchal title issue:
ReplyDeletehttp://whispersintheloggia.blogspot.com/2011/03/priority-1-patriarchate.html