Pope Avoids Married Priests Question

On Wednesday, Feb. 12, Pope Francis refused to approve the ordination of married men or women as deacons. 

This was done to address a shortage of priests in the Amazon. Pope Francis’ refusal sidesteps an issue that divides the Catholic Church.

This decision comes as encouragement to Francis’s conservative critics while disappointing liberals and Catholic women’s groups. 

They hoped that the question would at least be studied further. Conservatives saw this as a victory.  

The question comes from recommendations by Amazonian bishops to consider allowing married priests or women deacons. 

In response, the pope urged bishops to pray for more priestly vocations and to send missionaries to faithful Catholics in remote areas. 

The Amazon has long been a concern where Protestant and Pentecostal churches are growing in the absence of thriving Catholic communities where Mass is a regular celebration. 

In accordance with Catholic doctrine, only a priest can consecrate the Eucharist’s hosts distributed at Mass. 

The shortage of priests has meant that some remote areas can only attend Mass once every few months or years. 

In combination with the spread of evangelical churches, the Catholic nature of many of these communities is at risk. 

Many bishops are calling for establishing criteria so that respected married men in their communities who serve as permanent deacons can be ordained as priests. 

Additionally, they hoped that the Vatican would reopen a study commission on ordaining women as deacons to allow for preaching, celebrating weddings and baptisms. 

Such a commission was created in 2016 for nuns who wanted larger roles in church governance and ministry. 

However, the group was not able to reach a consensus before the study ended.

Associated Press contributed reporting. Contact Emma Pollans at epollans@scu.edu or call (408) 554-4852.