Let's be real about the shortage of priests

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Mattapoisett64 said:
Could you say a little more about what “doctrine” began collapsing in the 1950’s? Such as, the Jews being solely responsible for Jesus’ crucifixion? That a single Friday hot dog would send you to Hell? That if you should be unfortunate enough to marry a Protestant, you’d have to marry in the rectory living room? That you best not socialize with any Protestant neighbors, or certainly not attend a wedding in a Protestant church, even if between two Protestants? That the Easter Vigil should begin in the daylight, in the afternoon, because that’s how it was always done until Pius XII changed it?
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Any suggestions on addressing the priest shortage in 2018?
 
the crisis in Holy Mother Church is at its most dire point in all of history. There are many reasons for this. Poor formation is one of them. i recommend you get connected to Church Militant to get connected and find out what is going on with our Church that Jesus himself established. https://www.churchmilitant.com/
 
I can’t imagine how hard it would be to be a married priest. Dealing with other peoples’ families, marriages, confessions, funerals, sick calls, etc. is already a lot of work without having to deal with your own family.
 
Like I suggested:
I do not know the answer, in 1st world countries, we are still rebounding from the too late changes and a new formula hasn’t been found yet. We will, it will just take time.
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Patience.
 
The Orthodox have no issue. Look celibacy wasn’t even a requirement until the 13th century. And it wasn’t enforced until after the Council of Trent. 53 of our Popes were married men. It’s a discipline not a doctrine. It can be changed and honestly when college polls have shown 4 times as many young men would consider being priests if not for the celibacy discipline, you’d have more than enough to do this.
The only reason it seems unfathomable now is because most parishes only have one priest many times yoked with another parish.
 
well, you know what they say… the one-eyed man is king among the blind.

😃 😃 Completely joking. Thank you!
 
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Vicious cycle, actually. Bad catechesis causes a shortage of priests and good marriages. A shortage of priests and good marriages causes more bad catechesis.
 
I know it’s a discipline. And just because men would consider the priesthood doesn’t mean they’d actually do it. We shouldn’t change the discipline just because of numbers.
 
Absolutely. But did V2 cause bad catechesis or did society? I would nean towards society.
 
The most helpful posts are practical suggestions for addressing the shortages of priests. Base your suggestions on priests you have known, or programs you have seen succeed in your area.

(True, everything is connected to everything, Vatican II, and also WWII, and philosophical changes going on since Nietsche, and don’t forget that sack of Constantinople around 1200, and …) all of which had an influence. But this is not about VII, the most helpful posts are about 2018.
 
Depends on what’s meant by “preference.” I know the first one mentioned involved a young man saying he was only interested in the EF. The concern could be whether such a man would be willing to obey the bishop, if the primary mass to be said at the parish was the OF.

It is an unfortunate reality that sometimes religious zeal can override proper submission.
 
To be fair how well catechized would the average person from hundreds of years ago have been when most couldn’t read, most went to church.
 
One thing is that we are also much more careful now than in many centuries past, that our priests are truly men called by God. Historic annals are replete with examples of men seeking the priesthood simply because it offered them opportunities they might not otherwise have obtained.
 
So basically you’re saying the Church was going to die before the council and thankfully it was given life and breath because of it. And if only the “reformers” had really given total freedom things would be just peachy right now? You’d have your women priests, and gay church weddings because all that Jesus said about being set apart from the world was what some sort of joke God was playing?
 
My small observation was:
… what state the Church would be in had VII not happened…
Do you really believe the situation would have been any better.
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DarkLight said:
Depends on what’s meant by “preference.” I know the first one mentioned involved a young man saying he was only interested in the EF. The concern could be whether such a man would be willing to obey the bishop, if the primary mass to be said at the parish was the OF.

It is an unfortunate reality that sometimes religious zeal can override proper submission.
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It might not even be “religious zeal”. Priestly defiance of authority can be a result of the anti-religious authority movement that has saturated the West in recent decades. I knew various men who left the priesthood - or took their priesthood out of the Church, to something else; usually a liberal, sometimes a conservative “cause”.

They usually say “I’m not leaving the Church, the Church has, for a season, left me. I’ll stay faithful to (sacred liberal or conservative cause) rather than submit to a bishop or pope.” Invariably the “temporary” cause takes on permanent structure of its own and recruits directly from the Cradle.
 
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Gorgias said:
What’s happened is that people, having been poorly catechized in what we really believe, have accepted what others say we believe… and as a result, have simply chosen to walk away.

So, our solution is… ???
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Careful with this. I, and numerous friends, were properly catechised in expensive k-12 parochial schools. We were raised in devout families by loving parents who wanted nothing less than to raise us to adulthood to be strong Catholics. We all have a full understanding of the Catholic Church. Most of us are no longer Catholic because we simply don’t believe in the religion. Your problem isn’t as simple as I hear a lot of Catholics trying to make it. “Not understanding” the religion is not the problem in many cases.
 
Nobody gets hired for a job when they basically admit to an attitude of inflexibility at the interview.
 
The sheep don’t want a Shepard or think the need one.There is so much noise by the other sheep that the Shepard’s voice can not be heard.Some of the Shepard’s lack courage .Most of the sheep are lost and confused by the silence of Shepard’s of their Shepard’s. The Devil has been busy scattering the flock and seems to have the advantage for now.
When we stop finding fault and failures with our families,clergy,and Church and become united in Christ with the resources we still have ; we will have the Holy Priests to build up the Body of Christ.
Let’s be Real ever person in the mirror with the two by four in his eye made the shortage.
Give the Carpenter your 2x4 Let the Master find labor .
Turn around the path is Always Up Hill.
Get Real the source is still the Lord

sorry for being a verbose nerd
 
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