Major issues such as priestly celibacy and birth control remain unresolved arguments among Catholics, especially members of the clergy. Hence, many sincere Catholics remain confused, lacking confidence in Church leadership.

What has added to the bewilderment is that growing numbers of church leaders are condoning sexual relations outside marriage, and even adultery.

For instance, a Protestant chaplain at Vassar College said that ‘a full life can best be achieved when a man​—and his wife, too—​are free to engage in extramarital affairs [adultery], not secretly, but with each other’s knowledge and consent.’​—Current Medical Reports, January 1970.

More and more clergymen are also condoning homosexuality. An article by San Francisco clergyman R. W. Cromey in The Living Church, a weekly Episcopal Church magazine, says: “There is no sex act which in itself is sinful. . . . I also believe that two people of the same sex can express love and deepen that love by sexual intercourse [homosexuality].”