The Jeffersonian. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1907-1917, 1914-02-05


V0lyed / shall group them and
study them in this discourse rather
than base the study on some one
text.
The History OF the Rise Of Celibacy.
The Roman Catholic church has in
its service tens of thousands of
priests, and nuns. These are under
the law of "Celibacy," that is, these
servants Of that church are not per-
mitted by the church to marry.
Celibacy is not a dogma" of the
church, but it is the claw" of that
church as to it's priests and nuns,
and is absolutely binding on them
Early in the history of the Chris
tian churches there were q few men
who held personally that the unmaT-
ried state was to be preferred to that
Of being married. In the fourth cen
fury the Roman Catholic church be-
gan to pass laws tending toward the
prohibition of the marriage Of it's
ministers-or priests. In the latter
part of the Fourth century that
church preferred unmarried men as
its priests, but as yet marriage was
not absolutely forbidden them. In
l. y L.
still. stronger ground against the
marriage of the clergy, and on this
point there was a schism between
the Eastern and Western churches.
The whole Western church soon
Joined with Rome. At first the pro-
hibition applied only to bishops,
priests and deaccns, but from the
Fifth century it was also applied to
sub-deacons, who were not allowed
to marry after they had been or
dained. BY the Seventh century
married men could not be elected
bishops. 1.-THE marriage Of the cler-
gy Of the higher orders was declared
null and void, and the children
sprung from such marriages were
declared as out of wedlock." And
this was also enacted into Civil law
so that the State could enforce the
wishes of the church. This was met
with great resistance by the clergy
Of the church of Roman Catholicism
until the Eleventh century when Hill
debrand, afterward Pope Gregory
VII. took f1rmer stand for celibacy.
At a synod of 1914 it was decreed
that a married priest who admins
tered the Lords Supper, or a lay
man who received the sacrament of
the supper from a married priest,
should be communicated. In 1889
Urban II. decreed that any ecclesias-
tic Of the higher orders who mar
ried should lose his Office and bene-
flee. To this the Council OF Rheims
1119, and that Of the Lateran 1923,
added that such marriage should
Immediately be dissolved, and the
parties shut up in place of peni-
tence. Thus after seven hundred
years, from the Fourth to the
Twelfth century, this fight was won
by those who opposed the marriage
of the clergy. After. that it became
absolute law. The question was
raised in the Sixteenth century by
Charles V. who tried to abrogate it,
but the Council of Trent confirmed
the existing law. The law of cell
bacy in that church is so binding on
the clergy of Rome that any mar
riage contract entered into by any
of them is made null and void by the
church.
From the same idea grew up the
order Of nuns, which after centuries
became a great and essential order
in the Roman Catholic church, orga-
nized under the law Of that church,
with it's various sub-orders, to do the
bidding Of the church, under the
vows of perpetual celibacy.
Today we find these two institu-
tions, that Of the priests, and that