The first synod of Pope Benedict's reign ended today, acknowledging Catholicism faced great difficulties from a severe shortage of priests but decided married priests were not the answer.
The working sessions closed with 50 propositions and a message to the world from the more than 250 bishops. Overall, the synod's decisions have dashed the hopes of some liberal Catholics for movement on issues such as married priests, celibacy and the divorced faithful.
The message acknowledged that "the life of our Church is also marked by shadows and problems which we have not ignored".
It said "the lack of priests to celebrate the Sunday Eucharist worries us a great deal and invites us to pray and more actively promote vocations".
The synod theme was the Eucharist, the communion that Catholics believe is the body and blood of Christ. The Pope may use the recommendations for a possible future document.
The shortage of priests to serve the 1.1 billion-member Church was perhaps the key issue in the synod, which closes ceremonially with a papal mass tomorrow in St Peter's Square.
One bishop from Honduras drove the point home by saying he had only one priest for every 16,000 Catholics in his diocese. Some Catholics suggested their Church ordain "viri probati", the Latin term for older, married men with families who are known to lead exemplary personal lives in their communities and have a solid background in Church doctrine.
Liberal groups have suggested that the long-term solution to the shortage was making celibacy optional for new priests by allowing them to marry.
But the proposition dedicated to the shortage of priests called celibacy a "priceless gift" and the possibility of "viri probati" was dismissed.