Why is there a priest shortage

outhwaar · Apr 20, 2007

In order to avoid having that women's ordination thread getting hijacked, here's a brand new one.

So... why the priest shortage? What do you think?

There are those who say that if the Church would just liberalize, and throw out a few unpopular doctrines - you know, become more "relevant" - there would be plenty of people wanting to be priests. I don't buy it.

There are those who say that if the Church would get back to her roots, and be more orthodox and traditional, there would be plenty of priests. I'm more sympathetic to this argument, but I'm not totally convinced.

I think the problem is more to do with the culture at large. The idea, these days, of giving up your whole life in service to others, requires a level of unselfishness that is just not too common today. A hundred years ago, there was much less to give up. The average Catholic family just didn't have that many meterial comforts. The rectory was probably one of the nicest houses in town. Nowadays, there is a lot more "stuff" to attract a person to a more secular lifestyle. Besides, as people get more stuff, they have a tendency to get more selfish, or so I suspect. Thoughts?

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

Several years ago, under JPII, a commission made up of religious and lay people in England did a study of this subject for countries in the Western World.

One of the things they discovered that gets ignored a lot is a change in the order in which young people acheive life changing events. It used to be that people choose careers before choosing (or being able to) marry. This meant that people who chose careers in the religious areas would not be married by the time they diserned a career.

Now people are getting married before seriously diserning a career. This is true even of college grads. This makes people who might or are disposed to diserning a relgious career unable to chose being a priest because many of them are married.

The commission didn't not have a recommendation as to solution to the problem but the head of the commission in an interview said that we either have to figure out how to get them younger or figure out how to take them married. She thought the social trends were not going to chnage.

Skripper · Apr 20, 2007

Someone hack your account, Charlie? I'm not used to seeing perfect grammar and punctuation in your posts.

AMDG · Apr 20, 2007

Just my opinion--religious life is not being encouraged AND smaller families (probably due to contraception). Too many parents don't want to forgo that snuggly grandchild especially if there isn't a very big chance that there will even be one to encourage a real look at religious life (and the kids sure aren't encouraged to persue it by their public school guidance counselors.)

tadoflamb · Apr 20, 2007

Umm, there is no priest shortage.

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

Skripper said:
Someone hack your account, Charlie? I'm not used to seeing perfect grammar and punctuation in your posts.

I actaully proof read it.

Wow, what a concept.

(My typing skills haven't been the same since I put a knife through my hand cutting a bagel and numbed out three of my fingers. )

Skripper · Apr 20, 2007

Charlie said:
(My typing skills haven't been the same since I put a knife through my hand cutting a bagel and numbed out three of my fingers.)

Seriously?

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

AMDG said:
Just my opinion--religious life is not being encouraged AND smaller families (probably due to contraception). Too many parents don't want to forgo that snuggly grandchild especially if there isn't a very big chance that there will even be one to encourage a real look at religious life (and the kids sure aren't encouraged to persue it by their public school guidance counselors.)

This is an interesting observation. Although I think the aside about contraception is pejorative.

Poor people have more children. I don't know why but its something that happens across time, around the world. As people become more prosperous they have fewer children. Catholics in American have become much more prosperous in the last 2 generations.

This is actaully causing a lot of problems in the church. Fewer children, fewer priests and the relative lifestyle of the parish priest has seriously slipped along the way. Priests who study these things say about 25% percent of all preists become priests for the comfortable lifestyle. Well, if the lifesyle slips, few people consider the priesthood.

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

Skripper said:
Seriously?

I never said I was graceful. I was using a dull knife, alway a mistake.

Skripper · Apr 20, 2007

2Cosmic2Charlie said:
I never said I was graceful. I was using a dull knife, alway a mistake.

Ouch. Sorry to hear that.

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

Skripper said:
Ouch. Sorry to hear that.

Hey, whatever doen't kill you......

......makes you type funny

Number 81 · Apr 20, 2007

Young people see the priesthood and see a life of too many responsibilities. It's just the fact that being a priest is a huge commitment. If you were to get married, you would (or should) be married for life, but at least you wouldn't be at the same job for the rest of your life.
P.S. This is coming from a kid who has the priesthood as my number 1 choice for where I think God is leading me.

AMDG · Apr 20, 2007

2Cosmic2Charlie said:
I was using a dull knife, alway a mistake.

Must have been really dull. And here I am terribly afraid of my grandfather's and mother's (may they both rest in peace) sharper than sharp knives. Their knives were always kept so sharp that if one sliced into you, even a tiny bit, you wouldn't even feel it! Razor blade sharp.

Say, I think they have devices out now (I know "close the barn door after the horse has been stolen) that enable a person to slice bagels safely.

I know, "off-topic". Sorry for that and for your "owie".

QuantaCura · Apr 20, 2007

I think it's a whole slew of things. From the things Charlie and AMGD pointed out, to increased pressure to succeed financially coupled with increased debt, to a general culture of individualism and independence, a general cultural shift from valuing chastity to valuing promiscuity and from valuing one's patrimony to embracing more progressivist attitudes, poor catechesis, and finally a general loss of the sacred. These things have been piling up for centuries now and they're taking their toll.

And as I once heard Fr. Corapi say, not too long ago being a priest was at least a respectable, now it's not even that. People pull their kids close when you walk by.

AMDG · Apr 20, 2007

Number 81 said:
but at least you wouldn't be at the same job for the rest of your life.

But that's how it used to be. (Don't you remember the stories about how grandpa would get a gold watch as a retirement gift from his company for working there 50 years?)

Hmmm--maybe our "mobile society" also has something to do with the priest shortage.

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

Observation:
All of this makes sense. We could argue the minor points forever but why bother ?

Issue:
If we have fewer people, who chose marrige before career, who don't want the lifestyle, who aren't being recruted like before.

What do we do about it ? We can't change the society so we have to deal with it.

How ?

2Cosmic2Charlie · Apr 20, 2007

It happened a year ago or so , its ok.

Number 81 · Apr 20, 2007

The easiest way is to talk to your kids about the priesthood. I grew up thinking that married life was the normal path, and that priests just kind of came out of the box like that. I wasn't born with a Roman collar around my neck, ergo I must not be called to become a priest. I wasn't walking through the woods one day and SHAZAM God comes down points to me and says "I WANT YOU!" It was more like my parents just causally saying "When you have kids..." "When you get married..." "When we have grandchildren..."
No one ever spoke to me about becoming a priest. I think the only reason I ever started thinking about it was because I found out I prefer to talk about theology instead of football.
So parents, don't train your children for married life, leave it open. Talk to them about the priesthood or consecrated life, that is the only way we will even begin to think about it.

AMDG said:
Must have been really dull. And here I am terribly afraid of my grandfather's and mother's (may they both rest in peace) sharper than sharp knives. Their knives were always kept so sharp that if one sliced into you, even a tiny bit, you wouldn't even feel it! Razor blade sharp.

My grandparents do the same thing. I went to their house last summer and made onion soup for everyone, (and cutting the onions is something I dread) and I noticed that their knife was SO sharp, it made it almost freakishly easy to cut the food.
My dad just refuses to sharpen our knives, I hate it.

JacktheCatholic · Apr 20, 2007

outhwaar said:
In order to avoid having that women's ordination thread getting hijacked, here's a brand new one.

So... why the priest shortage? What do you think?

There are those who say that if the Church would just liberalize, and throw out a few unpopular doctrines - you know, become more "relevant" - there would be plenty of people wanting to be priests. I don't buy it.

There are those who say that if the Church would get back to her roots, and be more orthodox and traditional, there would be plenty of priests. I'm more sympathetic to this argument, but I'm not totally convinced.

I think the problem is more to do with the culture at large. The idea, these days, of giving up your whole life in service to others, requires a level of unselfishness that is just not too common today. A hundred years ago, there was much less to give up. The average Catholic family just didn't have that many meterial comforts. The rectory was probably one of the nicest houses in town. Nowadays, there is a lot more "stuff" to attract a person to a more secular lifestyle. Besides, as people get more stuff, they have a tendency to get more selfish, or so I suspect. Thoughts?

EDIT "To tone myself down"

I agree that in the USA, at least, the social factors have changed the way we see the world.

Kids today are hit with ads that have spent millions and billions of dollars over the years to manilupate young and developing minds. In a country that is run on greed and where corporations have more say in politcs than the people it is likely that there will be a ever increasing growth of Evil.

Now we have these so called 'liberal' Catholic churches that take the holiness out of the Catholic Church and try to adopt an attitude of quanity over quality. Meaning... they try harder to bring people to their church and not bring the church to the people. This results in education that is dumbed down and later beliefs that are not Catholic and more Protestant.

QuantaCura · Apr 20, 2007

Matt. 9:36 And seeing the multitudes, he had compassion on them: because they were distressed, and lying like sheep that have no shepherd. 37 Then he saith to his disciples, The harvest indeed is great, but the labourers are few. 38 Pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he send forth labourers into his harvest.

The best thing to do is pray for priests. My diocese has adoration every Wednesday dedicated to praying for vocations. We seem to be doing pretty well in that area. A couple weeks ago this special monstrance blessed by John Paul II to be used for vocations was used (he sent one to each continent and they are passed around) We also have a great Litany to the Diocesan Patrons (it incorporates the names of every parish in the diocese) that is also encouraged for use in praying for vocations.

Why is there a priest shortage

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