Catholic bishops have voted to allow married men to be made priests in Amazon region thus excluding them from celibacy, BBC has reported.
The decision was reached at a three-week meeting known as Synod at Vatican attended by about 180 bishops on Saturday.
Archbishop of Benevento, Cardinal Michael Czerny, said at a press conference after the Synod that “Things have to change,” adding “We cannot keep repeating old responses to urgent problems and expect to get better results than we have been getting so far.”
The Amazon region comprises nine countries, namely Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Brazil and Venezuela.
There is shortage of priests in the region where “the majority of Catholic communities are led by women.”
The Synod recommended that married “men of proven virtue” could be appointed priests in the region.
Pope Francis is expected to speak soon on the recommendation, which received a vote of 128 to 41.
If he accepts the proposal, it will signal the end of a tradition that has spanned centuries in the about 2,000 years old Catholic institution.
The proposal may not only be replicated in other regions of the world but could also ease restriction on married priests.