Montreal cardinal says HIV testing required for priesthood candidates

Published: 2004-01-14

MONTREAL (CNS) -- The head of the Montreal Archdiocese has made HIV testing mandatory for priesthood candidates. Montreal Cardinal Jean-Claude Turcotte told reporters Jan. 12 that he made the HIV test a requirement because of the "grave consequences on the lifelong commitment of a candidate to the priesthood," said an archdiocesan statement. "It is also well known that the priesthood requires a permanent commitment to celibacy. One should not be surprised, therefore, that the Catholic Church wants its future priests to be psycho-sexually well-integrated so that they may live happy and fulfilled celibate lives and ministries," the statement said. It said the medical history of candidates was essential in determining whether to accept a man into the priesthood. "Transparency by the future priest with regard to both his present and past life" was essential in determining the applicant's candidacy, it said. The archdioceses of Edmonton, in Alberta, and Vancouver, in British Columbia, are the only other Canadian dioceses that require HIV testing for priesthood candidates. Eric Durocher, Montreal archdiocesan spokesman, said HIV testing will be required for all priesthood candidates in the fall and is not retroactive. A candidate would not be rejected because of an HIV-positive test result, Durocher told Catholic News Service.

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