Beyond Priests - by Paul Collins (Hardcover)

About the Book

Former Catholic priest rejects celibacy and the all-male priesthood, offering the unexplored history of the clerical priestly vocation and presenting a model for radially reforming its structure--one that is inclusive of women and married male priests.

Book Synopsis

Beyond Priests contends that the requirements of the clerical priesthood of the Catholic Church--that all priests must be male, and that all priests must be celibate--is a gross distortion of scripture and the church's early history that must be changed. While the roots of the modern priesthood go back to the fourth century and even more remotely to the presbyters or elders who advised local bishops in the early church, the contemporary priestly model is very much the product of seventeenth-century French reformers acting to apply a 1563 decree on the priesthood of the Council of Trent. The present-day priestly model has increasingly become harmful, even toxic, not only to priests themselves, but to the ministry and the Catholic community. Based on the historical analysis, Beyond Priests outlines a whole new way of approaching ministry and leadership that is in tune with contemporary needs, is inclusive of women and men, and is more authentically derived from the New Testament and the early church.

Review Quotes

Paul Collins has made a compelling case to open the Catholic priesthood to women and married men. Not a new call, but now an urgent one. As the Church grapples for relevancy, Collins calls for a priestly ministry that not only reflects the lives of those it serves but also looks like those lives because it is those lives. The resonance with the challenge of Pope Francis for priests to have the scent of their flock is strong. The potency of Collins comes from his scholarship and authentic pastoral sensitivities. The insight of Collins is that change trumps decay.--Francis Sullivan, AO, chair of Concerned Catholics

There is nothing else comparable to this one short volume on the need to rethink and restructure the role of the presider in the Church in light of all the other ministries carried on by the baptized.--Charles E. Curran, PhD, author of Loyal Dissent: Memoir of a Catholic Theologian

Using his considerable knowledge as a historian, Paul Collins has produced a challenging study of priesthood in the Catholic Church and the need for renewal within its ranks. He calls the church to an understanding of leadership grounded in Scripture and authentic tradition. Ministry, he argues, is the work of the whole people of God and not that of a privileged and divinized group of celibate males: the church should, therefore, end enforced celibacy and open its doors to encourage womenrsquo;s full participation in ministry.--Rev. Dr. Dorothy Lee, Canon of Saint Paul's Cathedral, author of The Ministry of Women in the New Testament: Reclaiming the Biblical Vision for Church Leadership

About the Author

Paul Collins is a former parish priest, broadcaster, historian, and writer. He is the author of including Absolute Power: How the Pope Became the Most Influential Man in the World (2018), The Birth of the West: Rome, Germany, France, and the Creation of Europe in the Tenth Century (2013), and Judgment Day: The Struggle for life on Earth (2010) and many other books. His articles and essays have appeared in the London Tablet, National Catholic Reporter, and magazines across Australia, Germany, Austria, and Italy. Collins resides in Canberra, Australia.