Celibacy: a Godsend or a Life-Undermining Practice

by Danail Hristov

The article digs to the root of the problem of Celibacy that has caused thousands of sexual abuse in the church.

The author has lived for almost half a century in an atheistic totalitarian state, where censorship allowed no other opinion and gave no freedom of expression.
Danail Hristov has known the Bible and Christianity for almost 80 years and has been a devoted Christian for many years. His research began with the hope that he could be able to discover the causes of the decline of the doctrine. Like other researchers, after making a series of disturbing and shocking revelations concerning the integrity of biblical texts, beliefs, and religion, he left the church.

He continues to write in the hope that in a society that claims to be democratic, the voice of independent thinkers must be heard.
This article makes fair sharing of some of the results of independent research on a hot topic, such as the recommendation for celibacy. It was written on the occasion of the frequent revelations of clerical sex abuse in the church.

“ For many, it is no secret that the practice of celibacy lies at the root of clerical sexual crimes. However, few have come to realise that neither the early Fathers nor the later Church hierarchy invented this idea.
The starting point of the Christian concept of refraining from marriage actually precedes them.

What is the New Testament teaching on celibacy?
How does it harmonise, or not, with the principles of life and Old Testament tradition?
Have celibacy’s pretensions been proven by the centuries-old experience of its implementation?
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The human function to populate the Earth is recognised by both believers and unbelievers, although they may question its divine origin.
The phenomena of attraction and reproduction are so strongly embedded in the structure of the universe, all matter, nature, and the human being, that, in practice, they make the wide application of the celibacy model impossible.
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Its impacts on society include:

• Suffering or destruction of innumerable nameless individuals, including born and unborn infants.
• Violation of the dignity and lives of children even today, in the century of information and human rights.
• A serious breach of our core values of trust resulting in moral and spiritual damage to believers and non-believers.
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Continue reading the published article on the NovenaNews website:

https://novenanews.com/danail-hristov...

The interesting reader comments are after the article.
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Unknown Binding

First published August 10, 2019

About the author

The author was born in a family of devout evangelical Christians and lived in an atheistic country for almost half a century. The interaction between these two antagonistic ideals marked the beginning of his study and sharpened his critical pen.

As an independent researcher and essayist, Danail Hristov has been investigating the Bible and Christianity for nearly forty years. He began to look for the reasons for the conflicting results, disturbing practices and experiences, and lack of unity among Jesus’s followers. He acknowledged that, in addition to the deviations of believers, failures in the doctrine itself are also vital factors responsible for the lack of success in its implementation.
The researcher encountered hard-to-swallow discoveries, and several years later, he left the church. But he has retained his respect for these biblical values that proved universal, humanistic, and good for the individual and society.

The book “The End of the Jesus Era” contains a collection of essays examining various aspects of biblical notions of God. It also develops several questions raised by Josh McDowall, including about Jesus as a teacher and God and whether he shows signs of insanity.

The author is currently developing a critical monograph on the New Testament Jesus,
and looking for representation for his research papers.

Reviews

[Danail Hristov · Rating 5 out of 5]

The article deal with the problem of Celibacy that has caused thousands of sexual abuse in the church. It has also directly or indirectly attacked the dignity and life of innumerable people from the past to the present.
This issue is grave enough to not allow us to remain silent. To leave the cover up culture and to tell the truth is also our duty as human beings.

Here is some feedback that the essay gained:

👉 Novena News, the Publisher • Twitter Comments
Highly recommended!
It's engaging to people who don't know much about Theology and/or the history of Christianity.
Because of that, it's the perfect introductory text to this issue.
The 4 minutes that takes you to read the article is all you need to understand and to inform your opinion.
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👉 Raymond Alexander Kukkee •
A great article. Insightful, balanced, and well written. Congratulations on having it published. Well done, Danail!
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👉 P.A. Rudders •
A well-written and informative piece, one that clearly articulates what for many readers, would seem like plain common sense, i.e. the dangers and inherent problems denying our natural feelings and biology, namely the unsavoury and predatory ways those 'feelings' might otherwise manifest themselves, and more obviously, mankind's need to reproduce for its ongoing survival etc. It also highlights that much of what many religious laymen might think of Biblical/scripture dogma or teaching is, in fact, the 'invention' of the church, just as most of the laws and governance in wider society are also the product of man rather than some religious doctrine. I got the impression you were writing to encourage debate and focus on the issue rather than blandly trying to offer simple solutions, so again, anything that brings the issue more into the open is to be encouraged.
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👉 Dom • Reader comment at the article page http://disq.us/p/23pj2zq
Quite interesting article, the writer makes very good points
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👉 J.David • Reader comment at the article page https://urlzs.com/QuDnr
This article is more than an insight into the problem of clerical sexual abuse as it spreads further to encompass fundamentally related concepts. The issue becomes a source of wider reasoning sending signals to basic principled rocks of the teaching that echo back clues to answers left open to find. The reader is guided through this delicate matter by witty analogies and contradictions towards rediscovering vital values. While reading this piece as if clouds in the sky are breaking apart giving way to light to pass through. It inspires a quest for deeper truth on a global and personal level.
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👉 James • Reader comment at the article page http://disq.us/p/23xasqf
Worth a read, interesting factual material that makes you think.
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👉 Joseph • Reader comment at the article page http://disq.us/p/240ef6c
So glad I came across this article! Finally a text that really pursues objectivity.
It is difficult to imagine that a historical retrospective on the issue together with one of the New Testament as well as the Old Testament can be assembled in such a small volume and flow so smoothly.
The piece is intriguing as a factology and at the same time shows value as a literary work. An impressive combination of clear and well-founded criticism and a grounded alternative that even sounds poetic at times.
Hopefully, the church will be updated at last.
Thank you so much for posting!
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👉 Peggy Wheeler • Facebook Comment
Danail Hristov, nicely written informative and thought provoking piece. Good job.
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👉 P.A. Ruddock •
It was balanced and well researched rather than trying to sensationalise or show any bias, which in itself gave it credibility. My own one ‘religious’ based publication was somewhat satirical and more derogatory lol
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👉 Agnes Varona Oquendo •
Thank you, a very interesting and insightful piece.
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👉 H.M. Holten •
An impressive and pertinent article, Danail! Congratulations
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👉 Cezar Marcilio •
Great work, keep it up... Always :)
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👉 Robert Eggleton •
Congrats! Very interesting article. I’ll have to read it twice, but you raised an interesting issue. Do you think Celibacy is related to the nigh numbers of sexual abuse victims? One statement early in the article seemed to imply affirmatively on the matter. Good luck!
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👉 Muz Murray •
Thank you, Danail. Your article is excellent and salutary reading for all Christians. In fact, you will find I have a whole chapter on this subject in my book, in which you will find similar pointers and echoes of you article. I believe you will appreciate it very much.
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👉 Joseph Shonebarger • Facebook Comment
Thanks for the article, I just read it. It’s been a topic I’ve been struggling with. So found it very useful.
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👉 Jan Notzon •
I’ve been saying that for years. Thank you for posting this.
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👉 Andrew Kaggwa • Twitter Comment
I kind of just perused through. Will give it more time but I sincerely loved your ideas! They're great and can greatly influence one into thinking! Big up!
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👉 Kitt O'Malley • Twitter Comment
Both provocative and interesting read. Thank you for sharing.
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👉 Paul • Twitter Comment
I have read your article. It's nice, well-written, impassive, and leaves room for the reader to think. Your style is characteristically impressive.
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👉 Marta C. Weeks •
Just read your article, not only are you a great writer but very meticulous in your research, thank you for sharing it...!
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