Questions / The Church and the Pope

Why can't priests marry?

Church teaching

Answered on video by Jimmy Akin

Video: Why Can Some Catholic Priests Marry? Discipline vs. Doctrine, Jimmy Akin, published Oct 4, 2026. Checked 10 October 2026. Loads from YouTube (privacy-enhanced mode) only when you press play. Watch on YouTube

In short: In the Latin Church, priests are usually celibate men who choose it for the Kingdom. The Eastern Churches have long ordained married men. CCC 1579 CCC 1580

The answer, in writing

Church teaching

In the Latin Church, ordained ministers (except permanent deacons) are normally chosen from men who live and intend to remain celibate “for the sake of the kingdom of heaven.” CCC 1579

In the Eastern Churches, married men have long been ordained deacons and priests, and this practice is considered legitimate. CCC 1580

Our words

Celibacy in the Latin Church is a discipline, not a doctrine. It’s a priest saying, with his whole life, “God is enough.”

Watch another on this

Play video: Fr. Mike Schmitz Answers the Internet's Top Questions About Priests, Fr. Mike Schmitz, from Ascension Presents, 9 min. Loads from YouTube when pressed.

What should priests be like?

Play video: Why Won't Catholicism Allow Women Priests? (#AskBishopBarron), Bishop Robert Barron, from Bishop Robert Barron, 2 min. Loads from YouTube when pressed.

Why can't women be priests?

Play video: Should Catholics Call Priests Father?, Ascension Presents, from Ascension Presents, 7 min. Loads from YouTube when pressed.

Why do Catholics call priests Father?

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Sources on this page

How we know · 2 Catechism paragraphs

1. Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraphs 1579, 1580 (official text on vatican.va).

Stone & Incense restates Church teaching in plain words and cites every teaching claim. Our own wording is not an official Church text. Found a mistake? Report an errorCorrections.