Feb 18, 2008 / 12:33 pm
The prefect for the Congregation for the Clergy, Cardinal Claudio Hummes, said pedophilia is one of the gravest problems of sexual misconduct, but he asserted that the media exaggerated the number of priests involved in such cases, which in reality involved less than 1% of the clergy.
Speaking to some 450 participants at the 12th National Priests Meeting, the cardinal noted that worldwide the clergy numbers 406,000 priests, with 18,000 in Brazil.
Later on during his remarks, he called on priests to provide ministry to the divorced and then remarried, noting that their situation prevents them from receiving the Eucharist.
Asked about priestly celibacy, Cardinal Hummes said it is a gift from God that should not be seen as an imposition, but rather as something “we embrace in response as a gesture of love.” He recalled that the Church does not allow priests to marry and has no intention of “reinstating those who have married to the ministry,” even though some have expressed their desire to resume pastoral duties.