Called to Serve: A Spirituality for Deacons Book

I hope to write up a more substantial review, but this little book should be read by every Catholic -- Latin and Eastern -- and every Orthodox believer. Marshaling evidence contained in more substantial studies, Cardinal Stickler, puts to lie the notion, repeated by both well-meaning, but ill-informed Catholics, and those with agendas (e.g. Fr. Richard McBrien) that the Roman Catholic Church simply imposed clerical celibacy in the 12th Century.

To the contrary, Stickler shows that celibacy has apostolic and scriptural roots. He shows that the common practice and discipline of the West and East for at least the first 4 or 5 centuries was to require clerical continence. Yes, married men were ordained, in both the East and West, but they were asked to remain continent, often involving the practice of husband and wife agreeing (the wife had to give consent) to live separately. There were frequent lapses and the practice was lived with varying degrees of success, but the clear point here is that clerical celibacy has ancient roots.

This doesn't answer the question whether the practice can be done away -- in some sense the practical reality that the Catholic Church allows married priests to continue living a married life in the Eastern rites and, in certain cases of converts, in the Latin rite, answers that question. But the book is a challenge to all -- to those who think celibacy is some innovation, to those who think the Eastern practice ought to be adopted, to those who think that the Eastern practice is grounded in apostolic origins. I highly recommend this very readable and short book.

There were a few times where Cardinal Stickler had confusing paragraphs, but that might be attributed to translation errors. Also, one question that I would have liked Stickler to delve into more deeply is the "why" of continence. To what extent was continence of married clergy asked for because of negative views of sexuality?

But in the end I highly recommend this very compelling little book.