Quote:To: RELIGION EDITORS
Contact: CITI Ministries, Inc., +1-800-774-3789, Fax: +1-207-729-7674, citi@rentapriest.com


BRUNSWICK, Maine, March 26 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Holy Week and Easter services, considered among the most holy in the Catholic Church, will not take place in many of the U.S. parishes this year due to a severe shortage of priests. Recent and continuing sexual abuse revelations have resulted in shortfalls and churches closing in most dioceses, leaving parishioners with no Lenten or other rituals. Nursing homes and other institutions are also without sacramental or pastoral assistance.


Rentapriest.com, a free referral service of CITI Ministries (Celibacy Is the Issue) offers contact information for married priests in almost every state. They are available for confession, Mass, blessings and other Holy Week services in parishes, public halls, private homes as well as nursing homes, prisons and other institutions.


Church law has provisions for the use of married priests either in or out of the church building, when no priest is available, providing the request comes from the people of God. Church law also says that "practice can become law" in the church (Canon Law #27). Many are reminded that female altar servers were not allowed in the 1980s. However, parishes just ignored the Vatican dictates and used them anyway. The same can happen with married priests.


Over 70,000 individuals have been spiritually served by married priests over the past 10 years. Baptisms, marriages, anointing of the sick, funerals, in-home Mass are just a few examples. According to founder/president Louise Haggett, "CITI is not a protest organization. We see our work as an adjunct to the church, which has been quietly applauded by several bishops. We exist only to provide ministry where needed because of the tremendous shortages. We also serve many people who have been turned away by the Catholic institution: divorced Catholics, interfaith situations and others. Jesus never turned anyone away. Neither will married priests."


More information and a list of priests are available at http://www.rentapriest.com or by calling 1-800-PRIEST 9 (774-3789). According to Haggett, "No one should be without Easter services, and it's unlikely that any hierarchical figure will stop parishes from inviting married priests without permission. Several home Masses are already scheduled to celebrate during Holy Week. These are listed on the website, http://www.rentapriest.com."


SOURCE CITI Ministries, Inc.

Quote:A priest is only a priest if they are ordained in the apostolic succesion of Peter. There are those who fake it out there.


However, there does exist a pastoral provision for married priests. For example, a former Anglican Priest who is married can eventually be ordained into the Catholic Church as a priest. There aren't that many though.


Priestly celibacy isn't the reason that there are few priests.

Quote:Celibacy of the Priesthood is neither biblical nor is it a dogma. The Church has exercised her authority to restrict Latin Rite priests from marrying (for extremely good reasons) under the Code of Canon Law, however, this teaching can & may be changed in the future (but it's highly unlikely).


There's no shortage of priests. Never will be, Insha a Allah!

Quote:<b>CATHOLIC PRIESTS WERE MONOGAMOUS AND POLYGAMOUS BUT MADE CELIBATE.
</b>
due to the widespread illiteracy of the scriptures, especially that of the Gentile believers who were totally ignorant of the Torah, whatever the Catholic priests said were considered as God’s Law and divine truths. One area of total distortion was that of marital relationship. Surprising to almost all of us, it was common for Catholic priests to have multiple wives and mistresses. In 726AD, it was acceptable for a man with a sick wife to take a second wife so long as he looked after the first one. With concerns for protecting Church property from inheritance however, offspring could not inherit church property and it was later declared that all sons of priests were illegitimate. In 1022, Pope Benedict VIII banned marriages for priests (monogamous or polygamous). Finally in 1139, Pope Innocent II voided all marriages of priests and all new priests had to divorce their wives. All these were done to possess and protect money and church property. Making polygamy a sin and marriage unacceptable for a priest was a slow and purposeful process.