It was double the gratification for a priest to be a church leader and have a family. The Catholic Church was successfully growing in numbers of young men entering priesthood. The young men often lived lavish lifestyles funded by the Roman Government. Daniel Hamilton says that the church has set up rules for those of the Eastern Catholic Church. The priests can not marry again if their wife dies. They can not be married and be a bishop of a dioceses. Deacons can become priests even if they are married (1 2). The first charge against priests came when Pope Damascus told priests that they could marry but could not have sexual relations with their wife (Shuster 2). Priests refused to follow the teachings of Pope Damascus. They did not accept what he told them to do. In 385 BC, Pope Sirius left his wife and his kids. He declared that priests could not be married. (Shuster 3) He became the laughing stock of the Catholic Church and his teachings were not accepted. But during the medieval times, Kings made married priests pay special taxes on the land on which they lived. This taxation weakened the family units of the priesthood. The priests did not always have enough money to pay the high taxes (Shuste 4). This act by the kings slowly pressured priests into celibacy. However, some priests continued marrying until Pope Innocent II officially banned all types of marriages, which included ordained priests (Shuster 5). Priests have been married over the centuries and many are still marrying in the Eastern Catholic Churches today.
It is true that if priests were allowed to marry, they would be distracted away from church activities. Families have many responsibilities with their children's many activities. Not only is the parent obligated to take care of the children, they would also be consumed by their children's activities. The activities of the children could be very distractive for a priest.