1) The number of priests working in parishes is declining seriously. Several dioceses have been forced to amalgamate parishes, or remove a resident priest from a community. The availability of mass and the sacraments is being adversely affected, and this trend is set to become even worse. (See statistics for ordinations, note 1, in explanatory notes)

2) Whereas Protestantism envisages the local community assembling to hear the reading of the Bible, Catholicism expresses its community chiefly in the eucharistic assembly. This has been our constant tradition, and was emphasised by Pope Pius X’s encouragement of frequent communion. Any restriction of access to mass and the sacraments will damage the Catholic Church seriously.

3) The reluctance of young men to come forward for ordination is a complex problem , in which mandatory celibacy is not the only factor. However it is a major barrier to recruitment,  particularly in the Western world, but  its remedy is relatively simple, namely an administrative decision.

4) The present legislation (canon 1037) in the Code of Canon Law (1983), is dependent ultimately on the canons of the Lateran Councils of 1123 and 1139, which put an end to the previous practice of married clergy during the first millennium. Although the deliberations of those  Councils have not survived, the motivation of the legislators can be judged by statements made at that time by theologians and high ranking ecclesiastics. The rules were enacted in a context of pessimism about the moral goodness of sex, even within the sacrament of matrimony. (See note 2)

 5) The Second Vatican Council changed the whole theological basis of the question. In the Decree “Presbyterorum Ordinis” the Council stated that there is no intrinsic connection between celibacy and Holy Order. In the Pastoral Constitution  “Gaudium et Spes” the Council declared that sexual intercourse between husband and wife is morally good, thereby marking a break with the negative Augustinian tradition. (See note 3) .

6) The new theological perspectives sanctioned by Vatican II require a new basis to justify priestly celibacy. It is our conviction that universal mandatory celibacy can no longer be justified theologically, but a strong case can be made for its being encouraged on a voluntary basis as one means of generous dedication to pastoral work. The Directory on the Life and Ministry of Priests, issued by the Congregation for the Clergy in 1994, attempted to justify compulsory celibacy (for all priests of the Latin rite) on the basis of cultic purity. This approach is unsatisfactory and unconvincing. (See note 4 ).

7) The perspectives of Vatican II have been realised in the permission to ordain convert ex-Anglican married clergy. These priests have generally been well received in the English Catholic community, and an extension of that permission would not constitute an unsettling innovation.
 
8) In view of the urgency of providing ready access to Mass and the sacraments in the Church, the only feasible course for the future would seem to be the ordination of married men, while at the same time upholding the special charism of the celibate priesthood . From the nature of the episcopal office as emphasised in Vatican II, it is within the competence of bishops’ responsibilities for their own dioceses , that they are entitled to initiate dialogue on this matter with the Vatican, without having to await the Pope’s invitation to do so. (See note 5).

9) We are aware that these concerns are shared by bishops, priests, and lay people in other countries.