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Why do I have to be celibate to be a priest?
In the Latin tradition (the Roman Catholic tradition), priesthood and celibacy are currently inseparable. The Latin Church has kept to this rule for over a thousand years because it regards celibate priesthood as particularly fruitful for the Church and the faithful.
There are already a limited number of married priests within the Catholic Church, however, including married Anglican ministers who were received into the Roman Catholic Church, some Coptic Catholics, and members of some Eastern rite Catholic churches.
Pope Francis has said that while he remains in favour of celibacy for priests, the principle is part of the discipline of the Church, rather than dogma, meaning that it is open to discussion. On this basis, in 2017 he invited Brazilian Bishops to consider the question of ordaining viri probati, meaning married men who have proven their commitment to the faith over time, to serve remote regions of the Amazon where there is a chronic shortage of priests. In exceptional cases, therefore, the celibacy rule may at some stage in the future, be relaxed. As things stand, however, the norm remains that priests must remain celibate.
