Follow St. Peter's Example and the Apostolic, Early Christian Rule, and Allow Married Priests
Dear Catholic Church, as an Orthodox Christian, of the ancient and respected patriarchate of Alexandria, whose contributions to Christianity under the leadership of famed bishops whom you adore such as Athanasius and Cyril the Great you hold dear, I have watched as the richness of your apostolic heritage has been marred by clerical child abuse, and I've seen your need for more priests. Fortunately, as an Orthodox Christian, I have had the benefit of seeing a model that works, which is apostolic, so that neither of the issues the Catholic Church is facing is anywhere near the same magnitude (personally, I've never heard of a single incident of child abuse in the Alexandrian patriarchate's jurisdiction, and we do not feel much of a shortage of priests despite our growing population and need).
With the far-reaching recent report coming out of Australia, documenting the "catastrophic failures of leadership of Catholic authorities over many decades" and the thousands of abuse cases it reviewed, the one clear recommendation that sticks out which should be one of several actions taken is clear: while clerical celibacy is not the direct cause of abuse, it increases the risk of abuse when celibate male clergy had privileged access to children.
I understand and do not disagree with the official response by Archbishop Denis Hart of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference in his remark that "this happens in families [religious institutions] that are certainly not observing celibacy." But take a look at your closest brethren, the Orthodox Christians. I am a member of the Coptic Orthodox Church and, as I've stated before, I have never heard of a single incident of child abuse. Even if it exists, and I do not deny that it may, it is not nearly as prevalent of a problem. And the fact that it happens in other religious institutions that do not require celibate clergy is not a sufficient argument to maintain the practice in the Catholic Church, because requiring celibacy rather than making it voluntary increases the risk of abuse, as the Australian government commission reported.
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Your Catholic Church already permits those clergymen who have converted to Catholicism and were married to remain married. Even the apostle whom the Catholic Church deems to have founded the church of Rome, St. Peter, was married. Clement of Alexandria affirms the same, as well as one of your early popes, Clement I ("For Peter and Philip begat children").
There is a place for celibacy, and I fully agree with the position of St. Paul who wrote that there is a benefit in serving when one is not married, because "he who is unmarried cares for the things of the Lord ... but he who is married cares about the things of the world—how he may please his wife" (1 Corinthians 7:32–33). However, celibacy is not required, for the same apostle Paul advises St. Timothy that bishops and deacons should be married to one wife (1 Timothy 3). Additionally, the Apostle clarifies that celibacy is a gift, for "each has a particular gift from God," and to those who want to exercise the gift of celibacy, with all its benefit, so be it. But not all receive this gift.
So, dear Catholic brethren, I suggest you adopt a voluntary model. In the Coptic Orthodox Church to which I belong, those who choose celibacy do so voluntarily, and from among those who do so and join monasticism (or far less common but also possible, priesthood), bishops are chosen. Bishops needing to be focused on the flock rather than on their marriage to a wife, after voluntarily choosing celibacy, makes sense. It is preferable that priests are married because of the extent to which they deal with family matters, and so they may bring in their firsthand experience with marriage into their understanding as they care for their flock. Additionally, St. Paul himself affirms what the Australian report noted, which is there is a decreased risk of abuse: "If they cannot exercise self-control, let them marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion" (1 Corinthians 7:9).
There is therefore no excuse. It is neither contrary to the apostles, nor to reason, for priests to be chosen from among the married. If anything helps, it must be done, for the edification and salvation of all.
