How was Saint Peter a married man if popes are suppose to be celibate?

Answer 1

While Simon Peter was married when he met the Lord and even had children, his wife suffered martyrdom as documented by Clement of Alexandria. When his wife died, he maintained his celibacy. The pope is the "Vicar of St. Peter" and the "Vicar of Christ" and, thus, serves as head of the Church. The [Catholic] Church also holds that sacraments are to be held sacred and this includes marriage. Jesus nor the Church would require anyone to divorce one's spouse to consecrate oneself to public ministry as this would undermine the sanctity of marriage. Of course, God is not bound to His own rules. While the Church (in other Rites than the Latin Rite) allows married men to become priests, they may not get married once they are ordained. In the Latin Rite, this is more of a discipline and sacrificial offering than a theological dogma or doctrine. Along these same lines, it is already very difficult to live a good life as either a priest or a married person. However, to do both has shown extremely difficult for married couples and indeed families with children as the New York Reporter documented that the Lutheran denomination had one of the highest rates of divorce in the category of job fields. This demonstrates a lack of regard for the Sacrament of Marriage. As St. Paul writes in his first letter to the Corinthians, "Are you free of a wife? If so, do not go in search of one... I have no desire to place restrictions on you but I do want to promote what is good, what will help you to devote yourselves entirely to the Lord" (I Cor 7: 27, 35). The Church also wishes her leaders to set examples to minimize the risk of scandal and discouragement to the faithful. A priest having difficulties in his marriage and ending in divorce would serve to undermine the resolve of the faithful to hold the Sacrament of Marriage sacred and to strive diligently in remaining married when there is truly hope. Additionally, we have seen in the past decades if not centuries the difficulty of married ministers upon their children. They are held to a higher standard when they are mere children. And, in fact, having a priest with a wife and/or children places an additional hardship upon the parish to which he is assigned. The parish in question would need to pay him a significant increase in compensation for him to be able to care for his family. As a priest is elevated by the guidance of the Lord and by the election from the Church's hierarchy, this would become increasingly difficult on the wife and children. The consequences and sacrifices of one's call to celibacy should not be imposed upon others -particularly children who are not mature to deal with such consequences. They need a father who will make them one of their top priorities and a priest has a larger family to prioritize than their immediate and extended families put together.