Celibacy of the clergy had been promoted as an ideal since the second century as it was believed by many that clerical sexual abstinence was an apostolic practice that must be followed by ministers of the church. However it was not enforced legally until 1075 when Pope Gregory VII as part of his Dictatus Papae (The Pope¹s Memorandum) enjoined the people to take action against married priests and deprive these clerics of their revenues. There was much opposition to this. For instance in Normandy, the Archbishop of Rouen was stoned by an angry mob after ordering that priests whether single or married must give up sex.
No comments:
Post a Comment