As seminarians prepare for ordination to the priesthood, church leaders face the reality of continuing to function with fewer priests.
“We do have a priest shortage, for sure,” said Father Christopher Murphy, assistant vocations director for the Diocese of Providence, Rhode Island. “The number that we have coming into the seminary is not sufficient to keep up with the number of retiring of priests. That has to be considered in the larger perspective of the state of the Catholic Church in our country.
“We have a lot of work to do evangelizing our people,” Fr. Murphy added. “It’s only when our young people know Christ that they can respond on the call.”