On this day when we thank God for our earthly fathers and grandfathers, let us not forget to also thank Him for our priests! They are our spiritual fathers, participating in the supreme Fatherhood of God. Let's also pray for our priests, that God will give them the grace and strength to be faithful to their calling to be great shepherds for His people.

As I'm sure you know, some Protestants have great disdain for our priests. They think we shouldn't have a ministerial priesthood, we shouldn't call priests "father," and these priests certainly shouldn't be celibate! In honor of our priests on Father's Day, I offer the following resources in response to those claims.

"And I will give you shepherds after my own heart, who will feed you with knowledge and understanding" (Jer 3:15).

Praise be to God!

Pax Christi,
phatcatholicCelibacy

• Sacerdotalis Caelibatus (The Celibacy Of The Priest)
• Catholic Closet Crisis
• Celibacy and Catholic Teaching
• Celibacy and the Priesthood
• Celibacy Is a Gift
• Celibacy Isn't the Problem
• Celibacy: Anthropological Considerations
• Celibacy: Historical Perspective
• Church's Teaching on Priestly Celibacy
• Clerical Celibacy and the Principle of Asceticism in Catholicism
• Clerical Celibacy: The Biblical Rationale
• Dialogue on Clerical Celibacy
• Dialogue on Peter's Marriage and Why It Doesn't Disprove Catholicism
• God's Gift to His Bride: Priestly Celibacy
• How to Argue for Priestly Celibacy
• Keep Thyself Chaste
• Priestly and Religious Celibacy: Is it Dead or Should It Be?
• Priestly Celibacy and the Vocation to Love
• Purity: The Way of the Celibate
• Setting the Record Straight: Priestly Celibacy
• The Irrational Antipathy of Luther, Calvin, and Other Protestants to Clerical Celibacy
• What's the Deal with Legally Married Priests?
• When Clergy Marry: An Insider's View
• Why a Married Priesthood Won't Remedy the Priest Shortage
• Why Not Married Priests?: The Case for Clerical Celibacy

Ministerial Priesthood

• Challenging Calvinist Thinking: The Ordained Priesthood vs. The Priesthood of the Faithful
• Eucharist Is Joined to Ministerial Priesthood
• How William Bausch Destroys the Priesthood
• If Lay People Are Called to Minister, Why Do We Need an Ordained Priesthood?
• Instruction Regarding the Collaboration of the Non-Ordained Faithful in the Sacred Ministry of Priest
• Lay Preaching
• Ministerial Priesthood, Priestly Identity, and the Evangelical Counsels
• Teach Essential Distinction Between Ministerial Priesthood and Royal Priesthood of the Baptized
• The Ministerial Priesthood
• The Nature of the Priesthood
• The Priesthood Debate
• Why Can Only Priests Consecrate the Eucharist?

Priest As Spiritual Father

• Call No Man Father?
• Call No Man Father?: Understanding Mt 23:9
• Catholic Answers: Call No Man Father?
• Catholic Culture: Call No Man Father?
• Calling Men "Father"
• Don't Be Called a Teacher and Call No Man Your Father
• What Do I Tell Someone Who Insists on Calling a Priest "Mister" Instead of "Father"?
• Why Catholics Call Priests "Father"
• Why Do We Call Priests "Father"?

I also have several blog posts on holy orders and the priesthood:

• Defending Priestly Celibacy: Parts One -- Two -- Three -- Four -- Five -- Six -- Seven
• Must Bishops Be Married?
• Q&A Potpourri [two questions are about celibacy and women priests]
• Eight Key Points, Part 3: Ministerial Priesthood
• Wheat and Weeds in the Catholic Church (On the sexual abuse scandal)
• Does the Bible Say Anything about Having Priests in the Church?
• Where Are Deacons Found in Scripture?
• "Salutations in the Marketplaces" and Calling Priests "Father"
• Debate with "Russell" on Calling Priests "Father": Parts One -- Two -- Three -- Four
• Debate on the Office of New Testament Priest: Parts One -- Two -- 3a -- 3b -- Four
• Pentecost, the 70, and a Female Priesthood