“Finally, Catholics in that region are facing a dire challenge to their sacramental life as the priest-to-Catholic-persons ratio, in some sub-regions, is as high as 1:16,000.”
There was a period of two centuries in the history of the Catholic church in Japan when there were essentially NO priests.
Somehow, they survived.
An isolated branch of the Church will survive better with NO priests than with heretical or apostate “priests”.
With all due respect, that is sophistry.
The very heart and soul of Catholicism are the Sacraments. They can NOT be delivered to the people without an ordained Priest.
There is no way the Church could survive 200 years with no Sacraments. Married Priests are inevitable, and that ratio number will dictate it.