Why so few seminarians? While Vatican II is a popular target, we perhaps should hesitate before assigning blame, a practice that rarely leads to truth. Historically, vocations have ebbed and flowed within a given century, and to look at the period of increase from 1945-1960 is misleading, without a view of the broader historical context. WWII may have fostered entrance into religious vocations, and the cultural revolutions and disenchantments of the 1960s may have facilitated their subsequent departure.
Theologically, it could be that the Holy Spirit has been inspiring a flourishing of lay vocations, often to do what priests in the past had to do, in part to leave priests free to do what they alone can: be the leader of prayer, the icon of Christ, the servant-leader.
Writing for the Homiletics and Pastoral Review, Fr. Joseph Upton suggests that perhaps the troublingly low number of religious vocations may parallel the troublingly high divorce rate in a fundamental way: a simple lack of commitment.
“Many seminarians express confusion, discomfort and spiritual malaise at experiencing ‘a sense of being called’…spending their time in chapel asking God for some sign, some clear indication of which vocational path he wants them to take. When these signs are not readily perceived, discernment may become stunted. He finds himself frustrated with God’s seeming lack of attention to his misguided, albeit sincere, desire for certainty.”
Fr. Upton goes on, drawing on the Angelic Doctor:
“St. Thomas implies that the mere experience of feeling called is an indicator that one is indeed called, not merely that one should consider whether they are being called. This may seem revolutionary, but in today’s cultural and ecclesial milieu, a young man who experiences what he perceives to be a possible call to priesthood might be tempted to think that this indicates nothing more than a responsibility merely to consider priesthood…We live in a culture that demands less and less commitment. We see all around us the signs of broken promises, wounded relationships, wasted potential, lack of direction. It is clear that many of these problems both foster and are the result of a real failure to commit. Seminaries should be full of men who are willing not just to ‘discern’ but to commit to priesthood, not because they have pieced together some vocational puzzle, but because they want to be, borrowing the words of Pope Benedict XVI, ‘genuine disciples and missionaries of Jesus Christ.’
No doubt Fr. Upton would agree that we could substitute ‘seminaries’ with ‘homes’ and ‘priesthood’ with ‘marriage.’ With half of all marriages ending in divorce, we can be glad that 50 percent of priests aren’t leaving the Church.
August 23rd, 2011 | 8:39 pm
While commitment is part if it, many see the priesthood as a homosexual profession and aren’t attracted to it for that reason. I believe that priests should be able marry as in the orthodox church.
August 23rd, 2011 | 10:49 pm
Neither the priesthood or religious life has been a desirable career for the last thirty years. There are a lot of reasons but I, for one, can’t see any circumstance that changes this in the foreseeable future. Maybe I’m wrong but I think not.
August 23rd, 2011 | 11:50 pm
Fr Barron begs to differ. It’s a wonderful time to be a priest. http://www.courageouspriest.com/father-barron-great-time-priest
August 24th, 2011 | 3:20 am
Austinne
Priest are not allowed to marry in the Orthodox Church. Married men can be ordained to the priesthood, a not insignificant difference.
Anyone who knows Greece can see the results: bishops are reluctant to ordain unmarried men who are not monks; married men are ordained to serve a particular parish and expect and are expected to remain there for the rest of their lives; administrative positions are invariably held by Hieromonk so-and-so or Archimandrite so-and-so and the monastery of Patmos is, more or less, the West Point of the Hierarchy. The only canonical requirement is that bishops be celibate; in practice, monks, who make up about 2% of the clergy, make up 100% of the episcopate.
August 24th, 2011 | 6:31 am
While commitment is part if it, many see the priesthood as a homosexual profession and aren’t attracted to it for that reason. I believe that priests should be able marry as in the orthodox church.
The man who does not become a priest because he fears it has a reputation as a “homosexual profession” is exactly the sort of thing a term like “lack of commitment” describes.
August 24th, 2011 | 8:53 am
@Michael PS: Just to clarify, are you suggesting that having a monastic episcopate is a bad thing?
August 24th, 2011 | 9:19 am
Seminaries should be full of men who are willing not just to ‘discern’ but to commit to priesthood, not because they have pieced together some vocational puzzle, but because they want to be, borrowing the words of Pope Benedict XVI, ‘genuine disciples and missionaries of Jesus Christ.’
I think this is entirely right; I was baffled for a long time by a lot of features of what people considering the priesthood call ‘the discernment process’ until one day I realized that ‘discernment’ has just become Catholic jargon for ‘dithering until something makes the decision for you’. The original idea behind the term ‘discernment’ was looking at your reasons in order to come to a clear and definite decision (and if your reasons aren’t adequate for a decision, working with clear resolve to find what you need to make one); but much that people put into ‘the discernment process’ merely provides an excuse for postponing actual decisions without any plan for learning what one needs to learn in order to get into a good position for making them.
August 24th, 2011 | 12:54 pm
@ Carson Chittom
No, I was simply describing what tends to happen when a church combines a married parochial clergy with an ancient monastic tradition: the monastic clergy become an officer corps.
It could be argued, I suppose, that it is desirable to have a leavening of bishops with pastoral or academic experience in the national hierarchy. Again, it could be suggested that the number of monks engaged in external duties weakens monastic community, but I have insufficient knowledge to judge either way.
What I think is obvious is that a change to the Eastern discipline would have more far-reaching changes in the character of the Latin church that a comparison with Protestant churches, where a monastic tradition is lacking, would suggest.
August 24th, 2011 | 1:11 pm
“While commitment is part if it, many see the priesthood as a homosexual profession and aren’t attracted to it for that reason.”
Only true of ignorant people who know next to nothing.
August 24th, 2011 | 6:04 pm
Worth reading – the reflections of men who did commit to the priesthood:
http://thecatholicspirit.com/special-sections/ordinations/2011-priest-ordinations/
August 25th, 2011 | 12:24 am
Fr. Upton’s interpretation of St. Thomas Aquinas’ words is incorrect, his version leads to Totalitarianism. Fr. Uptons’ stating if someone is single and they think of the priesthood, religious life or marriage they have to become a priest, religious or married is an distoration. The idea that they are required to either become a priest, religious or married because the church needs good holy marriages, priest or religious ignores God’s will for each of us. Which leads to disastrous marriages, scandals in the priesthood and religious life. Fr. Upton is suggesting that the Church use the intimidation style of our politicians who believe in: Force it on them, Drag them to it, Mafia style tactics, which does not belong in the church. There are three vocations, God calls us to our vocation, not man.
Our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI says God calls Vocations. “…What is asked of those who are called, for their part, is careful listening and prudent discernment, a generous and willing adherence to the divine plan, and a serious study of the reality that is proper to the priestly and religious vocations, so as to be able to respond responsibly and with conviction…. “…The Catechism of the Catholic Church rightly reminds us that God’s free initiative requires a free response on the part of men and women; a positive response which always presupposes acceptance of and identification with the plan that God has for everyone; a response which welcomes the Lord’s loving initiative and becomes, for the one who is called, a binding moral imperative, an offering of thanksgiving to God and a total cooperation with the plan which God carries out in history (cf. n. 2062)…”
MESSAGE OF THE HOLY FATHER FOR THE 46th WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/vocations/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20090120_xlvi-vocations_en.html
Commitment Troubles http://www.firstthings.com/blogs/firstthoughts/2011/08/23/commitment-troubles/ “…Fr. Joseph Upton suggests that perhaps the troublingly low number of religious vocations may parallel the troublingly high divorce rate in a fundamental way: a simple lack of commitment.
“Many seminarians express confusion, discomfort and spiritual malaise at experiencing ‘a sense of being called’…spending their time in chapel asking God for some sign, some clear indication of which vocational path he wants them to take. When these signs are not readily perceived, discernment may become stunted. He finds himself frustrated with God’s seeming lack of attention to his misguided, albeit sincere, desire for certainty.”
Fr. Upton goes on, drawing on the Angelic Doctor: “ St. Thomas implies that the mere experience of feeling called is an indicator that one is indeed called, not merely that one should consider whether they are being called. This may seem revolutionary, but in today’s cultural and ecclesial milieu, a young man who experiences what he perceives to be a possible call to priesthood might be tempted to think that this indicates nothing more than a responsibility merely to consider priesthood…We live in a culture that demands less and less commitment. We see all around us the signs of broken promises, wounded relationships, wasted potential, lack of direction. It is clear that many of these problems both foster and are the result of a real failure to commit. Seminaries should be full of men who are willing not just to ‘discern’ but to commit to priesthood, not because they have pieced together some vocational puzzle, but because they want to be, borrowing the words of Pope Benedict XVI, ‘genuine disciples and missionaries of Jesus Christ.’
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