State of Priestly Vocations Report

State of Priestly Vocations 

Vocation Ministry, founded in 2015, spent countless hours producing this study in hopes of achieving a better understanding of the current state of vocations to the priesthood in the Catholic Church. The number of priests, ordinations, and seminarians is shrinking nationwide; so, we set out to explore the answer to the question everyone asks, “Why aren’t there more priests?”

This report is an attempt to address the vocational health of the Church in America. By exploring what trends rise to the surface as pivotal factors in vocation promotion, we made note of places where the Church is seeing success and identified areas that need to re-evaluation. Our hope is that this information will guide bishops, priests, and laity in finding a path forward in creating fertile soil for vocations.

State of Priestly Vocations Data

Please fill out the information to view the data behind the State of Vocations report, new data from 2022, and 5-year averages of ordinations for each diocese.

Please Support Our Mission

We believe it is vitally important for priests, bishops, and laity to understand the state of priestly vocations in the United States. With this knowledge, steps can be taken to increase prayer and promotion of vocations that will bear fruit for generations to come.

To that end Vocation Ministry expended over 700 man-hours and in excess of $20,000 in compiling and analyzing the data in this report and in writing, presenting and delivering it to you for FREE.  If you have found our efforts informative, please consider donating to Vocation Ministry so we can continue and expand our mission to foster vocations.”