An Historical Sketch of Sacerdotal Celibacy in the Christian Church,

Sir Vol PREFACE. The following work was written several years since, simply as an historical study, and with little expectation of its publication. Becent movements in several portions of the great Christian Church seem to indicate, however, that a record of ascetic celibacy, as developed in the past, may not be without interest to those who are watching the tendencies of the present. So far as I am aware, no work of the kind exists in English literature, and those which have appeared in the Continental languages are exclusively of a controversial character. It has been my aim to avoid polemics, and I have therefore sought merely to state facts as I found them, without regard to their bearing on either side of the questions involved. As those questions have long been the subject of ardent disputation, it has seemed proper to substantiate every statement with a reference to its authority, and frequently to give extracts by which the accuracy of the text may be verified. Much illustrative matter has also heen placed in the foot-notes, in order not to interrupt the continuity of the narrative. The scope of the work is designedly confined to the enforced celibacy of the sacerdotal class. The vast history of monachism has therefore only been touched upon incidentally when it served to throw light upon the rise and progress of religious asceticism.
(Typographical errors above are due to OCR software and don't occur in the book.)

About the Publisher

Forgotten Books is a publisher of historical writings, such as: Philosophy, Classics, Science, Religion, History, Folklore and Mythology.

Forgotten Books' Classic Reprint Series utilizes the latest technology to regenerate facsimiles of historically important writings. Careful attention has been made to accurately preserve the original format of each page whilst digitally enhancing the aged text.