Pope: Day on the Horizon When Married Men Can Serve as Priests

In the estimation of Pope Francis, the day when married men will serve as priests is drawing nearer.

The pope bemoaned the current shortage of priests in comments made to German newspaper Die Zeit and reported by CNN, and said that he would be amenable to changing the existing rules of priesthood eligibility so that select married men might be admitted.

���We need to consider if ���viri probati��� could be a possibility,��� the pope said. ���If so, we would need to determine what duties they could undertake, for example, in remote communities.���

Viri probati is Latin for ���tested men.��� In the context of the Roman Catholic Church, it typically refers to married men who���ve proven themselves to be virtuous and of great faith.

The pope said flatly, ���Voluntary celibacy is not a solution.���

It should be noted that the pope is not considering allowing single priests to marry, but, rather, men who are already married to become priests.

What may be a surprise to many is that the Catholic Church already permits the ordination of married men as priests in a specific instance: married priests of the Protestant faith who convert to Catholicism may serve as Roman Catholic clergy, as long as they have the blessing of their wives.

By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large