Jesuit Global Demographics in 2018

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The geographical trends continue. Increase in South Asia and Africa, massive shrinking in Europe and North America, moderate shrinking Latin America and East Asia.

The Observations section puts a positive view on it, saying and repeating stabilization, but the data don’t show that. Since India and some countries in Africa will surpass Europe and the US in numbers, will that make a difference in the Jesuits overall?

I wonder if there is a difference between Eastern Europe and Western.
 
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Interesting post…I looked through the data. I really appreciate the spirituality of the Jesuits. It has helped me. I also admire their dedication to education.

However, I’ve wondered about the Jesuits. I’ve especially wondered about their future as an “educational” order. Most of the best universities in the world are in the US and Europe, yet they are seeing a massive decline there. While they are seeing a major increase in Africa, the number of priests per lay person in Africa is still ~1 to 5000. There has been criticism by many about bringing too many priests from Africa to the US or Europe because they are needed in Africa and most of Africa remains unevangelized. So if they are not bringing priests from other countries to fill their academic positions, I don’t know how the Jesuits remain an “academic” order.
 
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The Jesuits were originally a Conversion order that later became famous for education, with conversion; later for education, without conversion.

In my US city the Jesuit high school and college are mostly similar to very good public schools, with some Catholic content added on. An individual at the college can find further spiritual guidance if they are already converted. But the college doesn’t facilitate conversion, nor offer any resistance to the secular culture.

I’ve never met a layperson who mentioned anything about the Spiritual Exercises, or coming to some kind of personal conversion through the Jesuit schools. The Jesuit schools attract some of the best and brightest…but that’s not the same as molding the best and brightest, let alone molding saints.
 
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Europe and US “win” the prize in the final chart as in greatest loss. Sad.
 
My two eldest teens go to a Jesuit High School. When my eldest was a Junior she went on a retreat run by her school that she loved so much she did everything in her power to be chosen as a leader in her Senior year. The retreat was facilitated by the young Jesuit priest who is always at the school and is dearly loved by the kids. Don’t be so quick to reject the Jesuits.
 
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I’ve never met a layperson who mentioned anything about the Spiritual Exercises, or coming to some kind of personal conversion through the Jesuit schools.
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Perhaps a sincere suggestion is to talk to a wider range of Catholics. I recently started a thread about the spiritual exercises and how often people had heard of them. Many people on the thread had heard about the them and some had participated.

However, I also think the Jesuits could do a better job promoting their spirituality. They have a lot to offer.
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How often do you hear about the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius in Mass or the Bulletin? Liturgy and Sacraments
I’m trying to get of sense of people’s experiences. How often do people hear about the Spiritual Exercises of Saint Ignatius in Mass or the Bulletin? Several people saying “never” would be an interesting response too. The Spiritual Exercises are the major work by Saint Ignatius who was one founders of the Jesuits and their first superior general (There are actually several founders of the Jesuits). The Spiritual Exercises play a major role in the formation of Jesuits, but lay people have found…
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Based on my reading of the charts, it looks like numbers are starting to stabilize around the globe. It’s good that they’re seeing gains in Asia and Africa. I’ve heard that there are some solid young guys joining the Jesuits, at least here in North America. It would be great if they could help revive the order.
 
I didn’t minimize Jesuit spirituality. People still find it valuable. But they seem to find it less often.

A huge number of boys have attended Jesuit institutions in recent decades in Europe, North America, and Latin America, with a much smaller percent joining the Jesuits than previously.

I blame the overall secularization of Jesuit colleges, and to some extent high schools. Yes, there are individual priest exceptions, they do great work. But the institutional Jesuit witness seems to be over 50 percent driven by the secular media.

That wasn’t the case in earlier years, when vocations were booming.
 
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