When does unbelief set in with priests? (Priesthood Discussion)

by Peter Dresser , Kandos, Thursday, April 08, 2010, 14:46 (1139 days ago) @ Brian Coyne

Brian

You speak of your discussion with a friend last night and you write

A friend rang me last night to have a long conversation about the crisis. One of the points he made, and strongly, is that in his opinion one of the key problems is that many priests have simply stopped believing.

The question that immediately comes to my mind is "stopped believing in what?" I don't know of any priest who has stopped believing in God or in the person and teachings of Jesus Christ (but there may undoubtedly be some...although this would place their own sanity under extreme duress and their mental health would surely suffer if they were to continue preaching and teaching about the loving and compassionate God of Jesus Christ!). However there are several priests of my acquaintance who have serious doubts and questions regarding certain aspects of Catholic doctrine and dogma. I have just reread an essay written by Ian Elmer and published on Catholica some months ago regarding The Holy Family in the context of "Who is Jesus?" The conclusion he arrives at regarding whether or not Jesus had siblings is apparently the conclusion "almost unanimously accepted by modern biblical scholarship" and endorsed under the Imprimatur by the Catholic biblical scholar John P Meier is that Jesus, although born of a virgin, had younger brothers and sisters born to Mary and Joseph...and that the "entire patristic record of the first two centuries accepted without qualm that Jesus was not an only child, and that Mary had other children".

This is in contra-understanding to the perpetual virginity of Mary which was declared a doctrine of the Church at the Lateran Council of 649 CE.

I quote this as but one example of some dogmas and doctrines and theological opinions of the Church which are being discussed and analysed and prayed about by dozens of contemporary priests and theologians...and many are seeing these issues as "grey" areas or even unacceptable areas, and would see some of these doctrines and dogmas easily obfuscating or eradicating the essential teachings of the man Jesus.

I recall some years ago speaking with a young seventeen year old girl who was preparing for Confirmation. In our discussions she stated quite categorically that there were a few aspects of the Catholic faith that she found very difficult to reconcile with the teachings of Jesus. Hell was one of them ...Hell and Jesus did not mix! And the Doctrine of the Virgin Birth as per the Lateran Council was another.

I suggest there would be many priests struggling with these issues and who may very well have reached the point of "not believing". And therefore I would go along with what you wrote a little later although, as I stated above, I would find it difficult as a priest (even a retired one lol!) to remain agnostic while still proclaiming the message of Jesus

I suspect there are a lot of not only priests, but people in high positions in the lay administration, who essentially are agnostic today but they are adept at "going through the motions", or saying things they no longer actually believe because they have to say them if they want to keep their jobs or protect their superannuation...

My suggested answer is that there may be many priests still proclaiming the saving message of Jesus, presiding at the Eucharist and celebrating the Sacraments who have great doubts regarding some of the doctrines and dogmas of the church...but keep that to themselves for the sake of keeping the peace and their own job security. The "thought police" that you mention are ever active and it may well be for these undoubtedly good priests to keep their questioning minds silent. The message of the compassionate and freeing Jesus and his loving, all embracing and unconditional accepting God should be the principal preaching and proclamation of the priest.

I just conclude by printing a recent letter to "The Tablet". It was written by a lady in NSW but I will not divulge her name...but if you are reading this, Rosemary, thank you for a beaut and meaningful letter and one which reflects a little on what Catholica has been on about these last few days:

When I read that there are over "100 frock-coated papal gentlemen" (The Church in the World, 13 March), I wonder yet again how it is, with all that pomp and ceremony, we have strayed so far from the simplicity of the Gospel message. Even some of the Irish bishops appear to have been embarrassed over the papal formalities, which included the kissing of the Pope's ring. It reminded me of one bishop in Britain after Vatican 11 who wanted to break this latter habit. When asked by devout parishioners if they could kiss his ring, he would say, "Certainly. It is in my back pocket!"

Lol!

Peter