Thawing at the Frozen Vatican

Hooray for Pope Francis!  Traditions frozen for a thousand years or more are being taken out of storage and reexamined.

Last month it was the Pope speaking candidly on same-sex issues within the Vatican.

This week Archbishop Pietro Paolin, second in command to the Pope, is announcing that the requirement of celibacy for priests should be open for discussion.

http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/09/11/20441159-debate-on-celibacy-for-catholic-priests-is-old-but-welcome-experts-say?lite

Since 1074 CE, priests in the Roman Catholic Church have not been allowed to marry.  Orthodox priests and Protestant priests and pastors do marry.  

Pope Gregory VII felt it was important that priests "escape from the clutches of their wives."  Just a touch of misogyny there.

http://www.futurechurch.org/fpm/history.htm

Catholics are still not allowed to discuss whether women can be priests, whether use of birth control is okay, whether same sex relationships can be blessed by the church, etc.

But a flexibility on marriage of priests in 2013 heralds flexibility on other issues in the years to come--and by around 2050, we will see women ordained as priests with the blessing of Rome.