POPE FRANCIS REQUEST THAT CATHOLIC PRIESTS BE GIVEN RIGHT TO GET MARRIED
Pope Francis has requested that Roman Catholic priests be given the right to get married.
The request applies to priests in Brazil, and is on the agenda for an upcoming synod (church council) in the Amazon region.
The controversial move would address the critical shortage of men joining the priesthood – but is likely to drive divisions through the church by enraging conservative factions.
A small number of married Roman Catholic priests already exist, including previously married Anglican vicars who have joined the church.
A request to lift the ban on marriage was made by Brazilian bishop Cardinal Claudio Hummes, who reportedly asked the Pope to consider ‘viri probati’, meaning married of great faith, as priests.
Derry Priest Father Paddy O’Kane suggest that Pope Francis may move to end celibacy earlier this month,saying there was support amongst the church for the idea.
Earlier this year the Pope has told Die Zeit Newspaper “we must consider if ‘viri probati’ is a possibility,then we must determine what task they can perform for example in remote communities”.
According to Yahoo News,Francis and his predecessor Pope Benedict XVI have both stated that celibacy is not a matter of inflexibile church dogma unlike,and could be debated.
