Why are priests not allowed to have sex?
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In the book 1 Corinthians, which is a letter from Paul to the Corinthians, he remarks about marriage that it’s better to be unmarried because then you can be more devoted to God. Often in the Bible the church is described as the bride of God. The argument from Paul goes that if you are married, you must (and should) devote time to your spouse and be worried about them and worried about pleasing them. If you are unmarried, you can instead worry solely about your relationship to God.
Keep in mind that Paul also argues against premarital sex. Thus, if you are not married you should also be celibate. Paul does say that there’s nothing *wrong* with being married if you don’t have the self-control to be celibate. It’s much better to be married and fulfill your desires inside of a marriage under God than to succumb to temptation and be led to sin. However, if you can control yourself, Paul argues, you should and devote yourself entirely to God.
Paul was the model for the first pope and, by extension, the priests of the church. Priests (and nuns) are meant to be devoted wholly to God and the argument goes that marriage would be a distraction from that. No spouse means all of your time and energy can go towards the church – or at least, more of it than if you were married. As the religious leaders of the church, tasked with guiding the rest of the congregation, they should be the highest, best example of holiness and godliness.
Since they can’t be married, and since they believe sex outside of marriage is sinful, they are supposed to remain celibate.
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