Priests increase by 50 per cent for Jubilee Year

By Cltra Sldhu THE NUNIEI R of vocations to the priesthood rose this year by 54 per cent, dampening fears of a vocations crisis in England and Wales.
According to bishops' conference statistics, 71 men entered seminaries across England and Wales last autumn, 25 more than in 1998.
The Church has also seen a "significant increase" in the number of men entering religious orders, with 34 this year compared to 25 in 1098, while the numbers entering the peimanent deaconate have risen from 40 in 1998 to 60 this yea].
But while accepting that this year's intake was to be welcomed, vocations promoters have cautioned against "triumphalism".
Fr John Armitage, vocations director for Brentwood diocese, said: "From a secular priest point of view, there has been a significant percentage increase, but I wouldn't go jumping around because there is no noticeable trend. This is not being pessimistic, but we know statistics and damn lies are pretty close." However, he said that there had been a positive shift in vocational thinking and that the Church in Britain had rediscovered its "vocational inspiration".
Fr John Dansen, administrator of the bishops' committee for ministerial formation said that although the figure was still low in comparison to need, he believed the recent climb in numbers was due to "the responsible way people are taking praying for vocations".
Since 1985, the number of men ordained to the priesthoud in England and Wales has increased, albeit erratically. The numbers peaked in 1996 at 104 and since then have remained over the 70 mark.
With one priest to every 750 Catholics, England and Wales is still seen to have a "fairly decent" balance compared with other Western countries. For every priest, Italy has 1,008 Catholics, Germany has 1,394 Catholics, leaving France trailing with one priest for every 1,743 Catholics.
Mgr Kieran Conry, director of the Catholic Media Office, said: "Since the 70s the number of priestly ordi
nations has maintained a fairly healthy pattern.
"However, although there is no significant decline in real terms, the number of priests in service is still declining. The problem is we just don't know why.
"There is no way of finding out why people are not coming forward, only why they are.
"Also the statistics are so irregular. One year you get 104 and another 50. It could be risky to crow about one year and I really don't think advertising numbers is going to move people's hearts. "Even though you have these numbers going into seminary there is no guarantee they will all go on to be ordained.
"There is a problem with commitment in society today and it doesn't only touch the priesthood, it's affecting marriage and work."
One newly ordained deacon in the Westminster diocese commented: "My gut feeling is that there is an upward trend, but while nationally it seems a lot, on a diocesan level we still have a problem."