A call for a married priesthood

Priests make radical proposals on vocations crisis to bishops

Survey finds 64 per cent of Catholic clergy ‘dissatisfied’ with new missal

A group representing Irish priests has called for radical measures to be taken by the Catholic bishops to address the current vocations crisis in the Church. Photograph: Matt Kavanagh/The Irish Times

Patsy McGarry

A group representing Irish priests has called for radical measures to be taken by the Catholic bishops to address the current vocations crisis in the Church.

At a meeting in Maynooth with three bishops, representing the Irish Episcopal Conference, the priests called for the ordination of “suitable married men (viri probati)”, for men who left the priesthood to marry, to be invited back and for the ordination of women to the permanent diaconate.

The bishops were asked and agreed to bring the proposals to the Irish Bishops’ Conference with a view to forwarding them to Rome.

The meeting at Maynooth yesterday was attended by Bishop of Raphoe Philip Boyce, Bishop of Galway Martin Drennan and Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown. 
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/social-affairs/religion-and-beliefs/priests-make-radical-proposals-on-vocations-crisis-to-bishops-1.1822121