Daijiworld Media Network - Rome (MS)

Rome, Jun 18: In a landmark step, the Roman Catholic Church gave permission to married, elderly men to be ordained as priest. This is mainly done with a view of fulfilling the pastoral needs of Catholics in remotes areas of Amazon.

This move will address the scarcity of priests in remote areas. These men would be 'Viri Probati' or 'Men of Proven Character' as they are known in Latin. However, the conservationists in the church are worried that this may open the door for married men to enter the clergyhood in other parts of the world as well.

Vatican agrees that 'Celibacy is a gift for the Church'. However, it also says that there have been requests to permit, for remote areas of Amazon, the possibility of ordaining priests on elderly men, preferably indigenous, who already are married and have stable family.

Pope Francis had given indications of the church agreeing on the possibility of 'Viri Probati' in remote areas where the people are not able to get the sacraments because of the absence of a priest. However, the Pope had made it very clear that commitment of the church for celibacy of priests remains unchanged on a broader scale.

This proposal, that was drawn after having discussions with Catholics in the Amazon region, if accepted, will not be the first of its kind in the history of the church as Pope Francis's predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI had allowed some married Anglican priests, who converted to Catholicism to continue serving as Catholic priests. In addition, some Eastern Catholic churches that are in contact with Rome, such as Melkites and Maronites have been allowing married men to be priests since a long time.

The need of fulfilling priests for the remote areas of Amazon would be really welcome as the region is facing acute shortage of priests which is also there in many parts of the world.

This move of the Vatican will be the focal point for the church, especially in the Southern Hemisphere, where it sees its future.