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Fr. Tadros Yacoub Malaty · Catechism · 838

Faith Q&A › Catechism › 21. The Sacrament of Priesthood

Why does God sometimes allow priests and bishops to be overcome by their own passions and weaknesses?

The answer

St. John Chrysostom often pointed out that God allows priests and bishops to be overcome by their weaknesses and passions so that they may learn from their weaknesses to be compassionate with sinners, and to forgive others. This happened to St. Peter in the New Testament and Elijah the prophet in the Old Testament.1708 This does not mean, however, that God provides excuses for the sins of the priests: “The sin to which the priest consents may be committed by many seculars, but his chastisement shall be far more severe.”1709

Fr. Tadros Yacoub Malaty

Notes

1708 St. John Chrysostom, 2 Tim., Homily 2.2–3; Jo. Homily 87.4.

1709 St. John Chrysostom, John, Matt., Homilies 26.6; 76.6. See also De Virginitate 24 in De virginitate and De non iterando coniugio, trans., Sally Ann Shore (Ph.D. Thesis, Catholic University of America, 1980).

Fr. Tadros Yacoub Malaty, Catechism of the Coptic Orthodox Church, Volume 1, Books 1–3. First English Edition, 2023. Published by St. George Coptic Orthodox Church, Sporting, Alexandria, and Queen St. Mary & Prince Tadros Coptic Orthodox Church, South Brunswick, NJ. Copyright © 2023. Translation and Editing: Youth of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the USA, Canada, Europe, Australia, Arabian Gulf, and Egypt.