The Archdiocese for the Military Services in the U.S. is welcoming a
steady increase of priestly vocations after declining numbers in recent
years.
The upcoming fall academic year will greet 31 new seminarians compared with 23 last year, 12 in 2009 and only three in 2008.
Father
Kerry Abbott, OFM Conv. and director of vocations, noted that the rise
in numbers is due to recruiting efforts as well as Catholic bishops
around the U.S. agreeing to co-sponsor seminarians.
Fr. Abbott
said that the archdiocese “is most grateful” for the bishops' support
and explained that co-sponsorship involves a diocesan bishop accepting a
young man as a seminarian who will then participate in the Chaplain
Candidacy Program of one of the branches of the U.S. armed forces.
The
process then requires a bishop agreeing to release the seminarian for
service as a military chaplain after three years of pastoral experience
as a priest in his diocese.
When the priest leaves military service, he
will return to the diocese.
“This is one of the ‘untold stories’
of the blessings of the Holy Spirit upon the Church and those faithful
fervently seeking to respond to the voice of God,” Fr. Abbott said in a
statement Aug. 15.
The vocations director said he expects
anywhere from five to 10 more men to enter seminaries next year, and
that the archdiocese is currently processing hundreds of inquiries from
prospective military chaplains.
He also said that the timing
couldn't be better in light of the U.S. armed forces experiencing a
steady decline in Catholic military chaplains over the past 10 years as
priests reach the military retirement age of 62.
The number of military
priests is down from more than 400 active in 2001, to 274 this year.
Statistics
from the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown
University, show that nearly 10 percent of men ordained as U.S. Catholic
priests over the past two years had previously served in the military
with another 10 percent coming from military families.
“When you
think about it, this makes complete sense,” Fr. Abbott said. “Both the
military and the priesthood rely on a largely common set of foundational
values, including a commitment to service, self-discipline and a higher
calling.”
“So it should come as no surprise that so many of our
seminarians come from a military background and a growing number are
looking to go back to the life they know after ordination.”
Fr.
Abbott said the influx of seminarians poses a “delightful dilemma” on
how to pay for the 50 percent share of the students' five-year
education.
In just three years, the archdiocese’s annual seminary bill
has climbed from less than $40,000 to more than $350,000.
The
Knights of Columbus recently announced a new “Venerable Father McGivney
Military Chaplain Scholarship” that will provide $200,000 a year over
the next five years for the seminarians.
The archdiocese is now in
search of additional funding sources to make up the difference.