A Choice for Whole Love: Single and Celibate in the United Methodist Church

Are single pastors celibate? Should they be? Givens takes on the controversial paragraph in the United Methodist Discipline requiring candidates for ministry to agree to be celibate in singleness. By asking vital questions, Givens highlights issues about the paragraph's origin as a response to homosexuality, examines the policies of John Wesley and Frances Asbury regarding clerical marraige and points to the inherent dualism present in the current policy. How should we move forward in a new cultural climate? Is clerical celibacy a viable expression of sexuality in our postmodern world?