Topic 30 Celibacy

Question 1

what is celibacy?

Answer 1

• being unmarried and having no sexual relationships so you can attain full religious devotion and ethical purity
• it is thought that Jesus and St Paul were celibate
• since 4th century Roman Catholic Church clergy have been celibate although protestant reformers denied this form of living

Question 2

Outline non religious responses to celibacy

Answer 2

• some non religious people argue that temporary celibacy is beneficial in relationships, because it strengthens bonds between two people on a non sexual level
• some non religious people do not accept the roman catholic view about celibacy, because they believe that sex is a biological need and can lead to sexual frustration, as well as isolation, if the priest does not have a family (homosexuality, same view, goes against human rights)

Question 3

outline two religious responses to celibacy

Answer 3

• RCC -> all monks, priests and nuns remain celibate, as it is believed that if a man is called by god to this vocation, given gift of celibacy, because one should be cultivating a spiritual relationship with God rather than an earthly relationship, as this would provide distractions from priestley duties and go against canon law
  -> 1 corinthians 7 paul ‘the unmarried man is anxious about the things of the lord, how to please the lord. but the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife and his interests are divided’
  -> canon law, canon 277 ‘celibacy is a special gift of god by which.. ministers.. can dedicate themselves more freely to the service of god’
• CofE -> priests not celibate, because marriage is a human desire, with Genesis 2 menioning how ‘it is not good that the man should be alone’, also allows priests to more effectively advise on issues concerning relationships if they themselves have a family -> but for homosexuals, vicar must be in a celibate civil partnership

Question 4

Explain why some people are against celibacy

Answer 4

2. 1. CofE -> priests are not celibate. This is because the cofe places authority on Bible, as long as it is used alongside God given reason to interpret it to be most relevant to our lives. thus, look to apostles in bible who has wives and families, to support view that priests should not have to be celibate, as their experiences of marital and familial problems will aid them to give better advice and support to their congregation, additionally gen 2 ‘it is not good that man should be alone’ -> marriage = necessity that should be accessible to all including those who wish to dedicate their life to god
3. Liberal Christians, who do not read bible literally, and instead use god given rationality to deduce what is relevant to today from bible, believe that promoting celibacy presents marriage as something negative that can prevent one from having a full relationship with God. would interpret multitude of evidence in bible that suggests we should procreate eg genesis 1:28 be fruitful and 🍎 multiply, to suggest that procreation and marriage = gift from god and should be allowed to be enjoyed -> people should be able to love god and a partner, only a select few may be called to celibacy
4. Sex as a biological need, and both men and women can become sexually frustrated if celibacy is enforced upon them, argument for celibacy increasing risk of sexual abuse within the church