| I think the official doctrine enforces the belief that Priests are the servants of God, and they should relinquish their earthly desires for the opposite sex so their duties would not be hindered (so his love is directed fully toward God, instead of another human being).
Also in the Catholic hierarchy, women cannot become priests. John Paul II is a relatively progressive Pope on religious tolerance (toward Islam and other faiths), yet he takes on a hardline stance on priesthood's gender barrier and reinforced the gender segregation (according to the NPR - National Public Radio, the radio branch of PBS.org).
The reason why I support the gay Bishop is partly because his rise to Bishop symbolized a progressive victory towards the ultra conservative nature of organized religious institution (read: hierarchical institutions. However I am very supportive toward grass-root level religious organizations with no upper level adminstrative units to answer to. More over, the grass-root level religious organizations do not spawn up in chain-store fashion across multiple regions). |