Zwingli. (1)

Marriage forbidden to priests is not found everywhere, as one pretends, but imposed by man contrary to a divine and just law. This is evident, first of all, in St. Paul, 1 Cor. vii. 2: “Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband.” Since he says “every” undoubtedly he does not wish the priests to be excluded. For he confirms and refers to the marriage of priests, especially in writing to 1 Timothy iii. 2 [4]: “A bishop (i. e., priest) then must be blameess, the husband of one wife, vigilant, sober, of good behavior, given to hospitality, apt to teach, etc. One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in subjection in all gravity.” In the same fashion he speaks, iii. 8, concerning the deacon, whom we call evangelist. And Paul also writes to Titus i. 5, 6: “For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders (whom we call priests or deacons) in every city, as I had appointed thee: If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children,” etc. Undoubtedly the holy Paul, inspired by the Holy Ghost, recognized our inability and incapacity to remain chaste by our own will except through the grace of God. Hence he says in the afore-mentioned place, 1 Cor. vii. 7: “For I would that all men were even as I myself,” and i. 1.: “It would be good for man to be thus,” but Paul adds, vii. 7, and says: “But every man hath his proper gift of God, one after this manner and another after that.” Therefore Paul places no restriction upon the marriage of priests, and indeed writes expressly: “A bishop (i. e., priest) and a deacon shall have a sober wife and well-bred children;” and furthermore he permits marriage to all people, and says, 1 Cor. vii. 28, 7: “But and if thou marry thou hast not sinned. But every man hath his proper gift of God,” etc. It is evident from this that marriage is not forbidden to priests by divine law, and that chastity is to be maintained, not by means of our resolutions, but with the help of the grace of God. This real truth and wisdom of God Christ also proves to us, Matt. xix. 10, 12: “His disciples say unto him, if the case of the man be so with his wife it is not good to marry. But he said unto them, all men cannot receive this saying save they to whom it is given. And there be eunuchs which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven’s sake (that is, due to the evangelical doctrine). He that is able to receive it let him receive it!” Do you hear that Christ says here that it is not possible for all people to keep chastity except such as have received it from God? Hence He does not forbid the twelve apostles to marry. Nor did God in vain give Adam a woman as helpmate; He could have given him a man as helpmate if He had wished to keep him chaste. But He said: “Crescite et multiplicamini!” And although this is known to every one, still the pope is able, by means of his ordinance, to demand from each priest or other ecclesiastic chastity and that he be unmarried contrary to divine law, and he can weigh down the poor consciences corrupted by sin and shame; and he permits public offense and sin contrary to the sunny and pure ordinance of God. I say that I know of no greater scandal in Christendom than that marriage is forbidden to priests (I am speaking about the pastors: the others let them lie, whatever they do), yet they are allowed to commit fornication publicly as long as they give money. They pretend that if the priests had wives the property of the churches would be divided and disappear. My God, what sort of a reason is this? Do we then never spend the property of the churches uselessly? We will our real and movable property to the illegitimate wives and children, if we have any, contrary to God’s will. What would that harm the benefice if a priest had a dear wife and well-bred children brought up for the service of God out of the benefice? The benefice could retain its property and income, which it has, although the priests may at times have mismanaged. Priests have not always been forbidden to marry. This is proved by Pelagius, in which is found a decree of the pope (Diss. XXXI., cap. ante trienn.) that the subdeacons of Sicily shall forsake their wives, which they had taken in accordance with the divine ordinance, and shall not have intercourse with them; which statute Gregory I. later on rescinded. Consequently if it was ordered in former times by Pelagius that priests shall have no wives, and this was rescinded by Gregory, then it could not always have been as at present, but the law must have been made by man, which God never required to be kept.