According to their newly appointed secretary of state, the Vatican is willing to discuss the celibacy requirement of priests in the Catholic Church, CBC reported.
In an interview with Venezuelan newspaper El Universal, Archbishop Pietro Parolin addressed the hot topic and noted celibacy is not an official rule.
"Celibacy is not an institution but look, it is also true that you can discuss [it] because as you say this is not a dogma, a dogma of the church," said Secretary of State Parolin, a close aide to Pope Francis.
However, Parolin said it has been a long-held tradition of the church, suggesting it is not a rule that will could be easily changed.
"The efforts that the church made to keep ecclesiastical celibacy, to impose ecclesiastical celibacy, have to be taken into consideration," he said. "One cannot say simply that this belongs in the past.
"It is possible to discuss and reflect on these topics that are not defined faith, and consider some modifications, but always in the service of unity and according to God's will," he said.
Before Parolin's recent comments, it has been largely assumed that any change to the rule would be forbidden. Canon 277 of the Vatican's legal code states, "Clerics are obliged to observe perfect and perpetual continence for the sake of the kingdom of heaven and therefore are bound to celibacy which is a special gift of God by which sacred ministers can adhere more easily to Christ with an undivided heart and are able to dedicate themselves more freely to the service of God and humanity."
Given just the possibility of discussion over the rule reflects the modern thinking of Pope Francis, who has been widely perceived as a breath of fresh air in a rigidly conservative religion. The archbishop emphasized that although the Vatican is not a democracy, it should "reflect the democratic spirit of the times and adopt a collegial way of governing."
Celibacy has been a requirement of Catholic priests for centuries and is often cited as a reason for the decline in young men entering priesthood.
Although Pope Francis said the rule could change in a 2012 interview, moral theologian Rev. Robert Gahl of Pontifical Holy Cross University says he is unlikely to allow priests to marry during his pontificate. Gahl also argued celibacy advocates claim "priesthood is too hard; why don't we make it easier? But what the pope is saying is, 'If you make this sacrifice, it would bring you pure joy.'"
