Is Pope Francis Preparing to Abolish the Vow of Celibacy for Priests?

Is Pope Francis preparing to abolish the vow of celibacy for priests? Can a norm that took hold in the Church after the twelfth century really be done away with?

On Sunday Francis I declared that he was prepared to permit the ordination of married men. He explains his decision by the shortage of clergy in the Amazon basin, where some 85% of villages are at present deprived of a weekly Mass.

Well, it is easy enough to grasp how weighty a goal missionary work in Amazonia is for the Catholic Church. After all, fewer and fewer territories on earth remain unclaimed by the world religions. It is therefore quite likely that, for the sake of converting the native inhabitants of the Amazon region and strengthening those already converted in their faith, the Church will be ready to sacrifice one of its inviolable tenets. First, then, they will admit to the altar married but “proven men”, respected members of the community, and from there it will be no great distance to abolishing the vow of celibacy altogether. Though only in January Francis stated that he regards celibacy as a gift to the Church, and does not agree that optional celibacy should be permitted.