Allowing married priests in Amazon under consideration at meeting of Catholic bishops

Catholic bishops meeting this month to discuss issues in the Amazon region of South America will consider the possibility of married priests.

The Pan-Amazonian region, which covers much of northern South America, is suffering a severe shortage of priests. To address this challenge, Brazilian Cardinal Claudio Hummes, chairman of this month’s meeting, or synod, of bishops said Monday that the bishops would debate the topic of married priests in the Pan-Amazonian region.