Pope Benedict XVI made a historic move on Oct. 20 permitting “groups of Anglicans to enter into full communion with the Holy See while allowing them to retain some of their traditions, and see married Church of England clergy ordained as Catholic priests,” Telegraph informs.

Within recent decades “thousands of conservative priests and parishioners in England, America and Australia have left the 80 million-strong Anglican Communion in protest at the ordination of women and openly homosexual clergy, which they say go against scripture and church tradition. In England, more than 400 clergy resigned when women priests were introduced in the 1990s,” Oct. 26 Telegraph reads.

“The Catholic catechism tells that ‘homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered’ and ‘are contrary to the natural law’, adding that ‘under no circumstances can they be approved’. An unintended consequence of the Pope's offer could be the recognition of a rich tradition that can accommodate all kinds of churchmanship. And, crucially, all kinds of people on equal terms, whatever their sexuality or gender,” the article concludes.