Reinhard Marx, a German Cardinal whose archdiocese was the subject of a recent damning study into child sex assaults, indicated on Wednesday that he supports the removal of the priestly celibacy requirement.
The influential archbishop of Munich and Freising told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung newspaper that "for many priests, it would be better if they were married."
Between 1945 and 2019, 497 victims of sexually abusive behaviour by 235 people — including 173 priests — were uncovered in the Munich and Freising archdiocese, according to a devastating independent investigation released last month.
Former Munich and Freising archbishop, ex-pope Benedict XVI, neglected to take action to stop four priests suspected of child sex abuse in Munich in the 1980s before he became pontiff, according to a report by legal firm Westpfahl Spilker Wastl.
It also accused current Archbishop Marx of failing to intervene in two alleged child abuse situations.
Marx claimed he was "shocked and ashamed" by the findings once the study was released.
Marx pondered aloud on Wednesday if celibacy "should be a baseline necessity for every priest."
"I believe that things cannot continue as they are," he added.
"I often tell young priests that living alone is difficult.
"And if someone says, 'Without the requirement of chastity, they'll all marry!' So what, is my response. It would at least be a hint that things aren't functioning right now if they all married."
The unusually outspoken remarks on the matter came on the eve of the German synod's new assembly, which is scheduled to drive the institution toward modernization by 2023.
It is likely to examine into a number of topics that conservatives and the Vatican are wary of, such as permitting priests to marry and giving women more power.
Marx offered Pope Francis his resignation last year in response to the church's "institutional and systemic failure" in managing child sex abuse allegations.
Pope Francis, on the other hand, turned down the cardinal's offer, pushing him to stay and assist shape change in the church.
Since 1946, at least 3,677 children have been sexually molested in the Catholic Church in Germany, according to a report released four years ago.
However, the writers, who did not have access to the church's papers, believe the genuine figure is much higher.