Married Priests Available for Holy Week

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 severeshortage of priests. Recent and continuing sexual abuse revelations haveresulted 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 almostevery 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 orout of the church building, when no priest is available, providing the request comes from the people of God, the organization says. 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, it adds.

More than 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 tofounder/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 becauseof 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'sunlikely that any hierarchical figure will stop parishes from inviting married priests without permission. Several home Masses are already scheduled to celebrate during Holy Week.

Bookmark http://universeeverything.blogspot.com/ and drop back in sometime.