ROME — Pope Francis urged religious orders on Monday to work and pray harder for new priests and nuns to join, as he acknowledged the congregations’ futures are at risk with the numbers of men and women entering Catholic religious life plummeting in parts of the world.
The Jesuit pope asked representatives of a half-dozen religious orders celebrating assemblies this summer in Rome how many people they each had training to be priests or nuns. Audience members responded saying eight, 12 and 17, with new members coming from Asia, Africa and Latin America.
“The future is there, it’s true,” Francis told them. “We have to double these numbers!”
For over a decade, the overall number of Catholic priests and nuns from Europe and parts of the Americas has been in a free fall as new members fail to make up for deaths and desertions.
The new priests in the Global South have limited the overall global decline, with a total of 407,872 priests recorded in 2021 compared to 413,418 in 2011, according to Vatican statistics.
But the drop has been much more precipitous in female religious orders, which on a global scale have been shedding around 10,000 members per year to death and desertions for over a decade.
While there are exceptions with vibrant, growing communities, the number of religious sisters worldwide stood at 608,958 in 2021 compared to 713,206 a decade prior, according to the most recently available statistics. As with the men, Europe and the Americas have seen the greatest declines.
The downward trends have prompted some orders to collapse and others to to scale down and sell off properties so that aging members can be cared for in their final years. Some orders have stopped accepting new members since their futures aren’t assured.
Francis, who has urged religious superiors to not lower the bar to admission to mitigate lower numbers, encouraged the priests, brothers and nuns to be careful in training new recruits.
“You have to have successors who will continue your charism,” he said, referring to the underlying spirit that inspires a religious order. “Pray, pray.”
Pope Francis has issued a call to religious orders around the world to pray for an increase in new priests and nuns as the number of individuals entering religious life continues to decline.
In a recent address to members of the Union of Superiors General, Pope Francis expressed his concern over the dwindling numbers of individuals choosing to dedicate their lives to the priesthood and religious life. He emphasized the importance of prayer in seeking out new vocations and urged religious orders to come together in prayer for this intention.
The decline in vocations to the priesthood and religious life is a trend that has been observed in many parts of the world in recent years. Factors such as changing social norms, increased secularization, and a lack of understanding or interest in religious life have all contributed to this decline.
Pope Francis acknowledged the challenges facing religious orders in attracting new vocations but stressed the importance of remaining steadfast in prayer and trust in God’s plan. He emphasized that prayer is a powerful tool in discerning one’s vocation and encouraged religious orders to create a culture of prayer within their communities.
The Pope’s call for increased prayer for vocations comes at a time when the need for priests and nuns is greater than ever. With the Catholic Church facing challenges such as declining attendance, aging clergy, and a shortage of priests in many regions, the need for new vocations is critical.
In response to Pope Francis’s call, religious orders around the world are coming together to pray for an increase in vocations to the priesthood and religious life. Through their collective prayers and efforts, they hope to inspire more individuals to consider a life dedicated to serving God and the Church.
As Pope Francis continues to advocate for an increase in vocations, he reminds us all of the importance of prayer in discerning one’s calling and trusting in God’s plan. By coming together in prayer, religious orders can help to ensure that the Church has a strong and vibrant future with a new generation of priests and nuns ready to serve.
