LOUISVILLE, Ky., Aug. 27 (UPI) -- A former Episcopal priest is on track to become the first married priest in the Roman Catholic archdiocese of Louisville.
The Cincinnati Enquirer reports that Jeffrey Hopper is preparing for ordination under a 25-year-old program begun by Pope John Paul II.
Episcopal congregations are also allowed to join the Catholic church while retaining their traditional liturgy and married clergy.
Hopper was ordained as a deacon last week in St. James Church in Elizabethtown, Ky., and expects to be ordained to the priesthood in May.
"I've had some look at me and say, 'Did I hear that right? You're married and you're going to be a priest?'" he said. But he said that most Catholics understand his situation once he explains the rules.
About 70 former Episcopal priests are now serving as Catholic priests in the United States.
Once he is a priest, Hopper can administer sacraments and perform other functions. But, as a married man, he is barred from serving as a church's senior pastor.
The Roman Catholic church adopted clerical celibacy in the Middle Ages. Eastern Rite congregations, with a liturgy and traditions closer to the Orthodox churches, are also exempt from clerical celibacy.
