[Now, that right there, sir, is a fantastic observation. Everyone's got a hook. Being a successful scam artist means figuring out what hook is going to snare the greatest number.]

Now, most priests move in society without their collars unless they are on official business. Altough, the priest who presides over the weekly men’s bible study that I attend usually wears a sportshirt to our meetings. Maybe he assumes that we know who he is, or the 6:30 am start time means that he stumbled from bed to the meeting. Point is, he looks no more priestly than I do.

Also, even most of the Catholics that I know view priests with a little bit of confused suspicion. Could be that’s the result of the ongoing scandals. I think it’s because we can no longer imagine, as a society, somone voluntarily giving up sex. We’re not conditioned to consider sex as part of life anymore. It IS life. That old school community support of priests has gone away.

The celibate life has to be more difficult than ever, if for no other reason than the way women dress at Mass. I’ve seen some things, yes I have. We are a sensual people, and those who choose a different way are considered to be more “different” now than in the past.

Like most Catholic young men, at a point in my life I considered the priesthood, but I knew that there was no way I could live the life. Now, very rarely, when I’ve been praying hard, I get a glimpse of a life lived attuned to God’s glory, and then I can imagine having done it. But that state is impossible to sustain, and when I’m back in my normal blundering, lurching ways, I know that it was a grace to have been pointed to the life of a husband and father. (Ask my wife though – she’d be the expert on the matter.) Maybe successfully celibate priests can live in that awesome moment of spiritual clarity, but they’re not supported in it by the world.

:: spit take ::

Celibacy is not some major burden, which is nearly impossible to carry. I know our sex-obsessed society likes to portray that image, but millions of ordinary people live through celibate lives because of the slings and arrows of life. I would expect those who make a religious promise or vow to be able to also live that life.

I thought he was forbidden to be a priest for a time for that. Also I think I read Augustine had an illegitimate kid.

As for the other thing I don’t expect priests to be virgins, but I do think they should obey their vows wants they’ve made them. Forgiveness is important, but I’d have a big problem discovering a priest had some mistress. (Or mister I suppose) Now if I found he landed on some sexy movie while flipping through TV channels, and lingered too long, I would likely find that easier to forgive. I’m not sure that’s theologically appropriate, but policing where your mind goes can be difficult.

All that said, your point that the struggle should be honored, even when they (and we – for we’re all called to chastity) fail in it, is well taken.

[Sipe's also no great fan of mandatory celibacy, which tends to bias his conclusions, if not his findings. But yeah, that was my main point: priests are worthy of admiration not because they're perfect, but because they make a good-faith effort. At least I'm compelled to think that most of them do. Those, like Maciel, who were nothing but cynical from the get-go, have got to represent a minority.]

This is fair enough. But …

If EWTN and other Catholics are found to have circulated misperceptions, misunderstandings, and even lies about the GSUSA, then one would hope in the interest of pastoral concern, that the investigation would widen. Can we count on that?