Before he was Pope Francis, the former Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio said in an interview last year that he favored the Catholic Church’s rule of celibacy for priests but suggested it "can change." In the interview, published in the book "On the Heavens and the Earth," he also confessed he had been "dazzled" by a woman as a young seminarian. Bergoglio said the married clergy of Eastern Orthodox churches are "very good priests" and added that if Catholicism were to review their rule on celibacy, it would be for “cultural reasons” and not "as a universal option." Francis said he believed "the discipline of celibacy stands firm" and planned to keep the rule, however. Still, in the National Catholic Reporter, Thomas Reese called the comments "remarkable" nonetheless. "The last few popes have been pretty clear they were not open to changing it or having a discussion about it," Reese told NBC News.
