They were ordained Catholic, left the Church for an Anglican or Episcopalian ministry, and were then "recruited back" into the Roman order, and allowed to keep their wives and families.Actually, they weren't. They were ordained as Episcopalians or even Lutherans originally, left those denominations, and were welcomed into the Catholic priesthood. There are about 100 of them in the United States.
There are Catholic priests who left the priesthood in the 70's or 80's, married, fathered children (in some cases), and divorced, and are now being accepted back into the priesthood. They are NOT allowed to bring their families, as they are not married validly in the eyes of the Church.
Well, Sink, I have to demur on that, because I know one personally. I shan't mention his name or parish, since all the action is in the past by several decades, and he'd rather not become a focus of controversy again. Granted that it hasn't happened much; still, it has happened. What makes it particularly poignant is that this priest left the Church and became an Episcopalian minister specifically because he wanted to marry -- and the Church recruited him back anyway.
Freedom, Wealth, and Peace,
Francis W. Porretto
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