AmericanPapist Comments
I hope people don't poo-poo this news item. Might they be an expression of too-temporary enthusiam? Sure. But at the same time, saints have a tendency to leave vocations in their wake.
This is nice to hear. Hopefully it will happen in the surrounding dioceses as well.
Reminds me of my mom's view of miracles:
stuff that happens and *could* be explained away...but the timing is amazing, and the chance wasn't that good.
That is terrific. Now it is up to us to continue to pray for these vocations.
thanks be to God!
Prayers that workers will come to the fields and pastures of the Lord.
I've always been baffled as to how dioceses with over a million Catholics can have vocations problems. You have to ask yourself why they struggle to attract seminarians while places like Lincoln and Wichita are at the top or near it in seminarians per Catholic capita. As I've mentioned before, Wichita is beginning to export priests to a neighboring diocese. Denver is approaching 100 seminarians for its 400,000 member diocese, which is very respectable. Is it because of the bishops in charge? The Catholic school system within the diocese? Whatever it is, the big boys need to make the necessary changes. New York has half as many seminarians as Wichita but 21 times more Catholics. While I understand that the vocation shortage isn't limited to the bigger dioceses, I think they deserve to get called out because they have a larger pool of Catholics with which to recruit. And let's knock on wood so that those dioceses that are blessed with plentiful vocations continue to do so. By the way, is there anywhere online that provides seminarian statistics for each diocese?
Is there still time for these men to gain admission for this upcoming year? I don't know what kind of deadlines seminaries have as opposed to colleges/universities.
I hope they all see it through, even if they must be delayed a year.
Thank God for our Holy Father.
Praise God for this news! I am sure this is just the tip of how the Holy Spirit moved souls during Benedict's visit. Thanks for making my day Thomas!!
Let's hope the "new springtime" has come! Thank you Pope Benedict! God bless! Padre Steve, SDB
I hope they're new discerners, not just candidates who would have otherwise applied for a different seminary.
May God bless America in this way for a long time!
Nathan writes: "Is it because of the bishops in charge?"
Yes. In my opinion, on the tenth anniversary of a bishop's elevation, if he can't demonstrate that he's improved the situation in the seminaries in his diocese, he should submit his resignation.
A barren seminary is tantamount to a failed episcopacy. "By their fruits shall ye know them..."
More people more vice! And where are there more people in America than NY?
Statistically there may be a lot of Catholics in ArchNY, but how many have adapted to values of the culture rather than vice versa? Is it any wonder that almost every elected official is pro-abortion? And many of these claim to be Catholics. Where are the Catholic voters???
Don't believe the numbers! Catholicism is practiced by a small number in ArchNY.
However, like cultural Jews there are tons of cultural Catholics whatever that might mean.
That's why there are so few vocations in my opinion and that's why the Catholic school system continues to hemorrhage.
That said, thank God for the Holy Father's visit. May vocations to the priesthood increase and increase!
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