German Bishop Wants Married Priests and Female Deacons

Liberal Bishop Franz-Josef Bode of Osnabrück, Germany, wants married priests, “One must ask if priesthood and celibacy need always to be connected”, he told his diocesan paper “Kirchenbote”. Further he suggested a "female diaconate” and lay persons who run parishes.

Bode has the money to pay his personnel. Last year his diocese had a budget of 161,5 Million Euro, mostly coming from compulsory church tax. This year the diocese had for the first time in more than 100 years no priestly ordination.

Picture: Franz-Josef Bode, © bph, press picture, #newsJbdwhmnmva