>>This is the experiential fallacy. You don't have to be a carpenter to know whether a table is well-made or not. As for advice, the professions are full of people who advise others about situations in which the professional has no personal experience. E.g. there are female and male obstetricians who never bore a child themselves, surgeons recommending procedures they haven't had, counselors advising on situations they've never experienced even vicariously... and the list goes on. Not sure why clergy would be uniquely targeted in this respect.
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>You are indeed correct on a lot of this - you worded it very well. My thing with clergy assisting people with sex and marriage is that this is 2013 and the teachings they want to provide often have little relevance to the world as it is today. For example expecting a young couple in 2013 not to have sex until they're married.

Who knows, some may do it that way just because nobody does.