Fr. McBride said that the real reason for sex abuse and sexual misconduct by priests is not celibacy but “the failure to practice the virtue of chastity when faced with temptations to abandon their vow of celibacy.”
He noted that people often make the unfortunate mistake of defining celibacy in a negative way as if it’s simply the act of giving up marriage and and children.
However, “the positive view of celibacy,” he said, “is that it is a form of loving God and people with an undivided heart.”
“Celibacy did not block Blessed John Paul II from being admired as one of the most courageous priests on earth,” Fr. McBride underscored. “See how one celibate priest stood up against one of the most corrupt governments of his time.”
“Priests that abused children did not do so because of their celibacy, rather they failed because they broke their vow to be chaste,” he said.
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