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Hi Mary,
Not only is it possible (I myself knew a seminarian
in this situation),
but it is possible for a married man, whose wife has
not died, to be ordained
to the Catholic priesthood. This may happen with a special permission, (called
the Pastoral Provision):
- for Episcopalian or Lutheran ministers who convert
to Catholicism
- Or, it may happen in the Eastern Rites of the Catholic
Church, which, in general
(with exceptions, notably in the U.S.) do not
practice clerical celibacy.
I happen to know several Eastern Rite Catholic
priests who are married with children. In fact, one of them is the father
of a girl whose miraculous cure was the final, necessary miracle for the
canonization of St. Edith Stein (the girl's name is Teresa Benedicta McCarthy).
So tell that to your friends and freak them out!
Let me add something to my answer. I wasn't sure of this, but did some
additional research.
Even a divorced man, provided he has an annulment,
can be ordained. So if you are free to marry, you are basically free to
be ordained under the normal rules, and, in some cases, even if
you are already married, you can be ordained.
Eric
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