Pope opens meeting that could lead to married men becoming priests

ROME — Pope Francis opened a highly contentious three-week summit Sunday that could potentially clear the way for some married men to become Catholic priests, according to CNN.

The meeting -- which focuses on environmental and religious issues in the Amazon region -- will take up the question of whether some respected married elder men could be ordained to help overcome a shortage of priests in remote areas in the region.

If approved, it would be a first for the Catholic church and overturn centuries of tradition of a celibate priesthood.

That possibility has caused outrage among Conservative groups who have been protesting with prayer vigils after American Cardinal Raymond Burke and Bishop Athanasius Schneider of Kazakhstan called for "a crusade of prayer and fasting" for 40 days throughout the meeting, CNN reported.

Earlier this week, some 200 Catholics, calling themselves a "spiritual army" stood in formation, rosaries in hand, under the statue of St. Michael the Archangel near the Vatican, to pray for the meeting, also called a Synod.

TRENDING NOW:

Cox Media Group