In a surprising move, last week the Vatican approved a document opening ordination to gay men in Italy, overturning longstanding precedent denying priesthood to anyone who identifies as homosexual.
It's a momentous decision that indicates a change of heart for the Catholic Church, which has historically barred gay men from becoming clergy.
There are some catches though. For one, the document only approves a three-year trial run of the program. All clergy candidates are also required to remain celibate. So, while a gay priest may no longer be turned away, acting on those feelings would still be disqualifying.
Gay Priests Allowed (With Strings Attached)
Gay men have long been exempt from clergy eligibility solely on the basis of their sexuality. With these new changes, which are rolling out in Italy only on a three-year trial basis, they may be considered for the priesthood – and their sexuality will be considered but not explicitly exclusionary when it comes to possible ordination.
The document in question, "The Formation of Presbyters in Italian Churches. Guidelines and Rules for Seminaries," formally opens the door for gay priests in the Catholic Church for the first time, allowing gay Italian men to join the priesthood in Italy if they are otherwise a suitable candidate.
“My reading of this,” says Reverend James Martin, a popular advocate for LGBTQ+ outreach in the Catholic Church, “is that if a gay man is able to lead an emotionally healthy chaste and celibate life, he may be considered for admission to the seminary.”
From No Way to Yes Gay
Many were surprised at the about-face, considering the Catholic Church’s historically contentious relationship with the LGBTQ+ community.
The Church does not support nor recognize same-sex marriage, and once called it “gravely evil” and “intrinsically disordered.”
"There are absolutely no grounds for considering homosexual unions to be in any way similar or even remotely analogous to God's plan for marriage and family,” reads an official Church communication on the subject from 2003. “Marriage is holy, while homosexual acts go against the natural moral law."
In 2005, the Catholic Church reaffirmed its longstanding commitment to excluding “those who practice homosexuality, have deeply rooted homosexual tendencies or support the so-called gay culture” from seminary.
Why Now?
From abomination to open door. What changed?
Some see the move as part of a broad youth-friendly rebranding of the Catholic Church. It also comes at a time when the number of priesthood candidates is at an all-time low.
Plus, the current pope is a different man than his predecessors. Pope Francis is widely viewed as LGBTQ+ friendly… at least by Catholic standards. He frequently meets with LGBTQ+ leaders and advocates, and often makes inclusive overtures, like allowing priests to bless same-sex couples. Is this another progressive pivot from the pontiff?
Possibly, although Francis clearly isn't that gay-friendly – last year, he sparked a controversy when it was revealed he used an anti-gay slur several times in private conversations. Specifically, he said there was "too much frociaggine in seminaries," which is an offensive Italian term for gay men. The pope later apologized for the comments.
Catholic Reactions
Unsurprisingly, some people of faith were not thrilled about the news.
However, others questioned the decision on slightly different grounds. In a video getting shared widely on X, one person asks: if the Church can just change the rules when it sees fit, what's the point of organized religion in the first place?
Future of the Church
Meanwhile, the Catholic Church is trying to consciously rebrand in a more youth-friendly direction. Late last year, it debuted a new anime-inspired mascot called Luce, which they say will help them embrace a younger generation who have a more skeptical view of organized religion.
Some have posited: because Generation Z is the most gay-friendly generation in history, could embracing gay priests be a marketing move to win the youth back?
Finally, the Catholic Church is having historic difficulties recruiting and keeping qualified candidates for priesthood. Within the United States, the number of active priests has declined year over year for decades. Globally, it has remained largely stagnant since the 1970s, even as the Catholic population itself has doubled during that time period.
What are your thoughts? Should gay men be allowed in the priesthood? And why is the Catholic Church making this change now?
9 comments
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Axcella Maria Zed
Wait a priest takes a vow of celibacy which eliminates sex from one’s life so the person is no longer sexually interested therefore whether straight or gay no sex is or should not be an issue. Therefore the question about orientation is irrelevant. A man who is considering the priesthood should be aware that they feel a call and know that sex isn’t apart of their lives.
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James Riggle-Johnson
This is funny. There have been Gay priests since the beginning of the Catholic Church. They have just never admitted it to anyone. All priests are supposed to be celibate so what does it matter if they are straight or gay? None of them are supposed to be giving in to their desires.
If they want to make public statements and new policies, tell us what they’re doing to prevent future child molestation from these celibate priests. Tell us how they are reimbursing those victims for all the years of therapy they had to go through.
This is why I am no longer a practicing Catholic. They think way too much of themselves. Just like many of the organized religions in the world, they spend too much time patting themselves on the back and saying, “Look how good we are.”, while telling other people how evil they are.
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Ralph Miller
Well that's really nothing new , just hide your sons
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Christopher Jones
Diddy priest
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Robert Gagnon
Funny I was taught that a sin in the mind is a sin the flesh. Guess the rules of guilt have changed. It is a an oxy moron, like a a celibate stud or a virgin slut?
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Daniel Todd Kamm
You may want to hide your daughters too... child sexual abuse is not correlated with an individual's sexuality, gender or gender identity; it is however, correlated with past trauma (neglect, abandonment, abuse: emotional, psychological, physical, sexual, certain very severe MH issues; or all of the above) and in my practice, we see it run in families, which is why families who have generational contact with child welfare agencies, are often monitored long term even if there are no interventions... back in the day they were designated "red flag" families because the problems persisted generation after generation despite interventions. Not always predictive, and not always fair... but there often that one who is triggered.
Re: the issue at hand, If a person, man, women, trans xyzpdq+/- whatever, can serve, and meet the fundamental requirements of the job as laid out by their particular organization, the person's service is not precluded and whatever education and personal gifts they bring should be welcomed and acknowledged... in this case for a "trial period."
Which is stupid to start with... just "dipping the toe" in the waters of public sentiment before committing to a real agenda for change.
Like there have never been priests other than straight white and uptight.
On another note, an interesting book from way back in the 80's... Ms . Ginny Appuzzo's "Lesbian Nuns breaking Silence" is a good read. Same issue, but on the flip.
You might want to hide your sons from them too. Please.
Last and only comment on the issue.
Peace Out...
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Reverend Paula Copp
I was raised Roman Catholic. The whole priesthood/sisterhood idea was to be celibate. That was what the church wanted, and those were the rules. It seems to me that requiring celibacy on an already celibate order is sort of redundant.
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Dominique D Sweat
i also had some people in my family that was cathlic but later turned baptist. i'm all for Pope Frances but I also thinnk that he is doing somethings that no other Pope has ever done before like this and making Pope John the 2nd a Saint. but i also think he need to aloow preists to get married of thats the case and i believe that will stop the money problems as well
Is it more difficult for gay men to remain celibate, than straight men? Is grooming children more likely for one sexual preference than the other? Is one less human than the other? Less capable of serving than the other? I suggest the answer to all these questions is no.