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not turn away an ordained convert because he was married. The question of whether priests should be permitted to marry addresses the generality, not the exceptions. When a man chooses to respond to God's call to the Holy Priesthood, he is prepared to be celibate for his entire life.

Priests today, as a result of this sacrifice, sometimes end up lonely. When the number of priestly vocations was higher, rectories often housed more than one priest, and parishes could support a staff in the rectory. This is not usually the case today. But the loneliness is another cause for joy in the Catholic priest. Through suffering, we are drawn closer to God. A priest knows this and can offer this suffering in reparation to God. Through this selfless act of "offering it up", enduring the loneliness and celibacy with joy, a priest can impact both the Church Militant and the Church Suffering. As parishioners we are called upon to care for our father in faith by inviting him to our homes for meals, holidays and celebrations. This is how the suffering becomes a bit more bearable for the priest who gives so much of himself in the service of our Lord. Priests have been celibate through the history of the Church. There is no reason to change that and permit priests to marry. A divided heart would make his vocation much more difficult to fulfill.

NOTES:
(1)http://www.scborromeo.org/c cc/para/1579.htm
(2)Mt 19:12
(3)1 Cor 7:32

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