2024 Author: Steven Freeman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 08:15
Pope Francis, a supporter of the reforms, joined the debate on celibacy in the Catholic Church on Thursday, with statements in which he said he was willing to consider married men to be priests.
In surprising statements to the German newspaper Die Zeit, he confessed that the lack of vocations to the priesthood as a "huge problem".
"We need to consider whether viri probati may be a possibility," he said. "Yes, yes, we need to determine what tasks they would have, for example, in remote communities."
Viri probati is a Latin term that refers to "proven men", married men of exceptional virtue and faith.
In any case, the pope pointed out that a potentially so revolutionary change would not be adopted immediately, since the "important thing is to recognize the right moment." Meanwhile "we will continue reflecting on the viri probati," he said.
To date, the Catholic Church allows married priests of other denominations who convert to Catholicism to continue serving as such, but does not give such authorization to married Catholics who want to take up the habits.
Under the option mentioned by the pontiff, married couples would be allowed to ordain themselves as priests, but celibacy would remain for unmarried priests.
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