Scripture, celibacy and paedophilia

Like Dr Joe Mizzi (The Sunday Times, November 9) and many others, I felt very bad about the alleged cases of child sexual abuse by Maltese priests. Mixed feelings of disappointment and anger found their place with love and compassion towards the victims of the alleged crimes; crimes that surely left indelible wounds in the lives of the sufferers.

We all expect that justice be done in due course and hope that it would be shown it has been done accurately. We expect that the perpetrators of such horrible crimes are helped to recognise the gravity of such offences and given the opportunity to rehabilitate.

For the victims, I wish they would be able to transcend the abrasions left by such awful experiences, and find help and courage to lead a peaceful life. What is unfortunate, and blatantly misrepresentative, is that a crime committed by a priest is given more prominence by the media than similar crimes committed by non-priests.

It is true that, as Christ said, we are like "a city on a mountain top", but I feel that the media are motivated by another agenda for publicising such offences.

I agree with Dr Mizzi that "both married and single men sexually molest children" and that "celibacy can be the occasion for sexual sin" as much as non-celibacy can be the occasion for sexual sin! Sins of the flesh, including paedophilia, do not depend on a celibate or non-celibate lifestyle. Many factors and circumstances may induce one to sin sexually, including psychological factors.

Paedophilia, in fact, could be a symptom of psycho-pathological neurosis or even a symptom of personality disorders. The human person is a complex phenomenon, in Karl Rahner's words; the human being is a vast universe to be explored.

Keeping this in mind we are led to be compassionate and non-judgmental on others' misbehaviour, not only moved by Christian love but also by human love. Charles Chaplin sensibly says it all in his famous dictum: "the ignorant condemn, but the wise pity".

This said, I feel that Dr Mizzi is not entirely correct when speaking about priesthood celibacy, especially when he tries to quote uncritically sporadic Scripture citations... it is as if I read a surgery or medical textbook, and pretend to be a surgeon or doctor!

May I remind Dr Mizzi that the true interpretation of Scripture is to be found within the Church. Scripture is a distinguished component of the the Church's Tradition; it is the Church which hands on to us the Word of God, because Holy Scriptures were formed in it and by it, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. It is not a question of choosing whom we are going to obey! Church and Scripture are inseparable companions!

Further, I find his remarks to be offensive and arrogant when ridiculing the call to celibacy. While calling and exhorting readers to compassion and love, he continually contradicts himself by similar unchristian remarks on the Church's leaders as if they impose celibacy on others.

Does not Dr Mizzi notice that even "the leaders of the modern Church... who ignore the Word of God whom they claim to represent, without any thought for the suffering, solitude and frustration" of the clergy, are bound themselves by this "callous medieval regulation"? Or does he think that there is the lower and the higher clergy - the former bound by this regulation and the latter exempt from it? For truth's sake, can we try to be logical and rational in the way we speak, discuss and write on our media?

As regards celibacy, one has to make a distinction between religious priests and secular or diocesan priests. While celibacy for diocesan priests was introduced by Church law, celibacy for religious priests is a different matter. Even if, hypothetically, in future the Church were to give future candidates for the priesthood the option of marriage, this would not be applicable to religious who also happen to be called to the priesthood.

Reference is being made here for those who embrace consecrated life in a particular religious order or congregation, with the emission of the vows of consecrated chastity, evangelical poverty and holy obedience and then, freely, if they feel called to, continue their way to the priesthood. Consecrated chastity and celibacy for these people is an essential element of their vocation.

This particular form of Christian living knows its origins not from the Church's law and discipline, but from the example of the celibate and chaste Christ himself who invites those who wish to dedicate themselves for the Kingdom to live a celibate and chaste lifestyle. His invitation was made in the context of a discussion about the question of divorce.

Peter, learning that Jesus rules out divorce, concludes egoistically, that it is therefore not convenient at all for man to marry (i.e., it is better to remain celibate), if he is not given the option of divorce (Mt 19, 1-12).

Jesus puts the question of celibacy on a higher level, making it acceptable when it is embraced as an eschatological sign, pointing towards the coming of the Kingdom of God, where people do not engage in marital relationships! (Mt. 22, 30).

Paul, in his first Letter to the Corinthians, as an answer to certain questions raised by the Church in Corinth, encourages those who embrace celibacy to be concerned with how to please the Lord with their way of living (1 Cor 7, 32-35). Doing this, he does not fail, however, to encourage the married couple to please and take care of each other.

As regards the promise of celibacy made by priests at their ordination, together with the promise to respect and obey one's own bishop, it is also an eschatological sign of the Kingdom to come and also a sign of total dedication to the service of God and humanity.

Celibacy configures the priest to Jesus Christ, Head and Spouse of the Church. The theological and practical understanding of priestly celibacy is to be found in many documents of the Church, including the recent Second Vatican Council decree Presbyterorum ordinis, Pope Paul VI's Encyclical Sacerdotalis coelibatus, John Paul II's Apostolic Exhortation Pastores dabo vobis and his various letters addressed to priests for the annual celebration of Maundy Thursday, and the Direc-tory for the life and ministry of presbyters published by the Congre-gation for the Clergy.

As a relatively young priest and religious, I assure Dr Mizzi and others that my will was not "forced" or "twisted by more subtle means", to embrace this lifestyle by anybody; on the contrary there were instances, where I was wisely reminded that I was free to leave. During the ten long years spent in formation, before being ordained to the priesthood, I was free to step aside and hold another lifestyle other than the priesthood.

The post-Vatican II Church's policy reserves such a long period for formation not only to promote intellectual, theological and spiritual preparation of seminarians before they enter priestly life, but also to evaluate the personal maturity on the human level, including psychological equilibrium, of the candidate with the aid of human sciences (cfr. Lettera circolare su alcuni aspetti più urgenti della formazione spirituale nei seminari - 1980; Direttive sulla preparazione degli educatori nei seminari - 1993). I wonder if there is any other institution which takes the human and intellectual formation of its members as seriously as the Church does for the candidates to the priesthood!

I think Dr Mizzi completely missed the point of his argumentation when portraying the typical young man "motivated by a sincere desire to serve God and the Church in the ministry" as a sort of sacrificial lamb being immolated by the hierarchy!

In this regard, I think one should speak of a courageous commitment to God, His Church, and humanity, instead of sacrifice, a word which by the way comes from the Latin sacrificium, namely to make a holy offering! If the priest "sacrifices" his feelings, do not married couples also "sacrifice" themselves to remain faithful to their partner, in a life of total offering and dedication of the self? Obviously today it is perhaps more difficult, since the ideal of a lifelong commitment is suffering a profound crisis.

I do not wish to sound as if I were discarding the "suffering, solitude and frustration of men in the priesthood", but even here we should avoid sweeping statements, speaking about "thousands". Each case is to be dealt with on its own, in respect of each individual's personal history. I also take into serious consideration the considerable number of priests and religious who are very much at ease and happy with their vocation.

May I remind Dr Mizzi that, according to a recent survey conducted by the local Church, the majority of priests serving our people in Malta are very happy with their vocation, even though they recognise difficulties which need to be addressed. Realistically speaking, would anybody claim to be able to live one's own life peacefully without encountering any difficulties or frustrations?

Finally, celibacy as a gift of God, has to be taken care of by each individual priest and religious, with all the necessary instruments the Church provides us with, especially prayer, spiritual direction, a healthy lifestyle, brotherly love and care among the priests themselves, and also a sense of personal responsibility towards the commitment taken.

Speaking from my experience as a religious-priest myself, I appeal to Christian readers to be humane, understanding and compassionate towards their priests. Many a time, the priest feels he has given so much to all who asked for his helping hand in difficult situations, and in their needs, petty and acute alike, to find then that rarely does anybody care about his needs!

Let us remember that if it is true that the priest is responsible before God and people for his life, the Christian community has a responsibility towards those who give themselves to the service of God and humanity.