When someone is married the two become one flesh.

And a priest is married to the Church/congregation/whatever

Which is why priest's wives are honored like nobody else in Orthodoxy.

*priests' wives

I have this wonderful text by St. Jerome, around 4th century

Bishops are taken straight from the monastic community, people who strive for holy virginity.

No where in the bible does it say that priests *should* be celibate. Paul preferred that *everyone* be celibate, but that lustful sinners should marry. Paul had just got done talking about the qualifications for bishops, overseers, deacons and elders. Whatever noun you prefer.

And the

"St Jerome: . Shameful to relate, there are bishops who are said to be associated with him in his wickedness— if at least they are to be called bishops— who ordain no deacons but such as have been previously married; who credit no celibate with chastity— nay, rather, who show clearly what measure of holiness of life they can claim by indulging in evil suspicions of all men, and, unless the candidates for ordination appear before them with pregnant wives, and infants wailing in the arms of their mothers, will not administer to them Christ's ordinance. What are the Churches of the East to do? What is to become of the Egyptian Churches and those belonging to the Apostolic Seat, which accept for the ministry only men who are virgins, or those who practice continency, or, if married, abandon their conjugal rights? Such is the teaching of Dormitantius, who throws the reins upon the neck of lust, and by his encouragement doubles the natural heat of the flesh, which in youth is mostly at boiling point, or rather slakes it by intercourse with women; so that there is nothing to separate us from swine, nothing wherein we differ from the brute creation, or from horses, respecting which it is written: Jeremiah 5:8 They were toward women like raging horses; everyone neighed after his neighbour's wife. This is that which the Holy Spirit says by the mouth of David: Be not like horse and mule which have no understanding. And again respecting Dormitantius and his friends: Bind the jaws of them who draw not near unto you with bit and bridle."

**Jeremiah 5:8 - Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition (DRA)**

```Dust


<8> They are become as amorous horses and stallions, every one neighed after his neighbour's wife. ```

1 Timothy 4:1-4

**1 Timothy 4:1-4 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)**

```Dust
False Asceticism

<1> Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will renounce the faith by paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, <2> through the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. <3> They forbid marriage and demand abstinence from foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. <4> For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, provided it is received with thanksgiving; ```

Sure, they should marry and, preferably, not be priests

1 Timothy 3:1-7

**1 Timothy 3:1-7 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)**

```Dust
Qualifications of Bishops

<1> The saying is sure: whoever aspires to the office of bishop desires a noble task. <2> Now a bishop must be above reproach, married only once, temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher, <3> not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and not a lover of money. <4> He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way— <5> for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of God's church? <6> He must not be a recent convert, or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. <7> Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil. ```

We do not ask this as a matter of a dogmatic thing, and there have been some conflicts related to it

There you can see that the emphasis is in "only", as in not practicing polygamy

Lol "some conflicts"

1 Timothy 3:1-7

1 Timothy 4:1-4

**1 Timothy 3:1-7 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)**

```Dust
Qualifications of Bishops

<1> The saying is sure: whoever aspires to the office of bishop desires a noble task. <2> Now a bishop must be above reproach, married only once, temperate, sensible, respectable, hospitable, an apt teacher, <3> not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, and not a lover of money. <4> He must manage his own household well, keeping his children submissive and respectful in every way— <5> for if someone does not know how to manage his own household, how can he take care of God's church? <6> He must not be a recent convert, or he may be puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. <7> Moreover, he must be well thought of by outsiders, so that he may not fall into disgrace and the snare of the devil. ```

**1 Timothy 4:1-4 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)**

```Dust
False Asceticism

<1> Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will renounce the faith by paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, <2> through the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. <3> They forbid marriage and demand abstinence from foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. <4> For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, provided it is received with thanksgiving; ```

There you can see that the emphasis is in "only", as in not practicing polygamy

Married only once. To the Church.

Only Christ married the Church. How can a woman have multiple husbands?

And as I have said, this is form a time where the Church was much more sparse, Christianity was new, and bishops were taken from the general population. But even then it is normal that, those that had a previous marriage, were expected to abandon their conjugal rights

Those who didnt were held in low steem

1 Timothy 4:1-4

**1 Timothy 4:1-4 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)**

```Dust
False Asceticism

<1> Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will renounce the faith by paying attention to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, <2> through the hypocrisy of liars whose consciences are seared with a hot iron. <3> They forbid marriage and demand abstinence from foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth. <4> For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected, provided it is received with thanksgiving; ```

BUT DEMONS WILL DECEIVE

Married people can become priests, priests can not marry. An essential part of marriage is the marital act of which priests voluntarily abstain. The marital act is necessary to consecrate a marriage, thus why priests do not marry. Due to the difficulty of abstaining with a spouse, and that we are instructed to not withhold ourselves from our spouse except out of necessity, the Church preferentially ordained unmarried men.

Lmao, everyone is free to marry

Also marriage isn't a food

We just forbid them to be priests then

Right, so abstaining from pork is a sin.

Unless you're allergic to it. But abstaining for spiritual reasons and not fasting is a sin.

Priests act in persona christi capitas

@Iakovos priests were married up until the middle ages

Good let's go back to that please

As I've explained to you before, we cannot afford them

Lmao as I have said, that was the case when someone had a former marriage

It doesn't matter