Belgian bishop plans to ordain married men by 2028

Bishop Johan Bonny said in a ​pastoral letter released on March 20 that he would make “every effort” to ordain married ⁠men within two years and would identify men to train as priests.

In his letter, Bishop Bonny said ‌ordaining ⁠married men would be a response to the decline in the number of men willing to live celibacy as priests, saying the current replacement rate in his diocese is “just above zero”.

“The question is no longer whether the Church can ordain married men as priests, but when it will do so, and who will do it,” he said. “Any ​delay comes across as an ​excuse.”

The letter proposed this reform alongside the naming of woman pastors, a new understanding of parishes, welcoming new Catholics and updating the Church’s message, The Tablet reported.

Bishop Bonny wrote that “the initiative is now in the hands of local bishops”.

“It is an illusion to think that a serious synodal-missionary process in the West still has a chance without also ordaining married men as priests,” he added, according to a report in The Pillar.

Bishop Bonny also proposed an interim step of opening the ministry of pastor (parish priest in Flemish) to lay people. Recognising this change would meet demands for a new ministry role for both sexes and “honour the vocation that women recognise in themselves”, he said.

A Vatican spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Bishop Bonny’s remarks.

Pope Leo has not spoken at length about the possibility of married priests but has spoken positively about celibacy on several ​occasions.

In a 2019 press conference, and in an interview that same year, Pope Francis said that “optional celibacy is not the solution” to the vocational crisis in the West.

FULL STORY

Belgian bishop challenges Pope Leo to allow married priests by 2028 (By Inti Landauro and Joshua McElwee/Reuters)

Belgian bishop plans to ordain married men to fulfil Synod vision (The Tablet)

Belgian bishop announces plan to ordain married men as priests (The Pillar)