https://www.nytimes.com/2024/07/10/us/catholic-priests-conservative-politics.html Newly ordained priests bow toward Archbishop Jerome Listecki near the end of their ordination service held at the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Milwaukee. America’s New Catholic Priests: Young, Confident and Conservative In an era of deep divisions in the church, newly ordained priests overwhelmingly lean right in their theology, practices and politics. Priests ordained since 2010 “are clearly the most conservative cohort of priests we’ve seen in a long time,” said Brad Vermurlen, an assistant professor of sociology at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, who has studied the rightward shift of the American priesthood. Surveys tracking the opinions of priests have found that, starting in the 1980s, each new wave of priests in the United States is noticeably more conservative than the one before it, Dr. Vermurlen said. More than 80 percent of priests ordained since 2020 describe themselves as theologically “conservative/orthodox” or “very conservative/orthodox,” according to a nationally representative survey of 3,500 priests published by the Catholic Project at the Catholic University of America. Foreign-born priests in the United States, a significant presence as ordination rates remain below replacement levels, are less conservative theologically than their American-born peers. But still, not a single surveyed priest who was ordained after 2020 described himself as “very progressive.”
Yes! We have been seeing this over the last several years. Every young priest I've ever encountered has been very orthodox and is obviously a man of prayer. They are not like most of our older priests. And they are changing our churches, bringing beauty and reverence back.
Romans 12:9 Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Yes I suppose it is because vocations come from Faithful young Catholics. Progressive /Liberal folks head elsewhere. I was at Mass this morning at our little Parish Church of St Therese and our Parish Priest was teaching a young girl how to serve on the altar. But it is from altar boys that one of the chief sources of Priestly vocations come. Where there are altar girls boys no longer wish to serve and so no more priestly vocations from that source. Traditional Catholic practices work. Progressive Liberal ones do not. The first have the Blessings of God and so thrive. Liberal progressive ones die out. But our Parish Priest, bless the poor man, had a good idea in reminding us that this is the Feast of the parents of St Therese, Saints Louis and Zelie Guerin. https://www.franciscanmedia.org/saint-of-the-day/saints-louis-martin-and-zelie-guerin/
I saw a wondetful short video. It shows a young priest getting out of a car and he says ( I paraphrase)" "yes I'm a young priest so of course I wear a cassock!" And then he says " yeah I am a young priest so of course I am packing some heat"and he pulls out a Rosary. Then it shows him in a close up " yeah I'm a young priest so I don't always wear a cassock" and the camera pulls away " but I always dress in black" and he is wearing his Roman collar and black shirt and pants. Strong British accent. Wonderful " commercial" He goes under frsamfrench or Google on you tube " I'm a young Catholic priest"
The only thing is I hear that it can be very hard in many places for a good young man to get ordained. They don't really want to know good young men.
Pope Benedict XVI as a young priest predicted there at the end of the 1960s that the glorious times of the Church had passed and that there would be a great abandonment of the faith. In the end, a small but faithful flock will remain. As the number of priests and believers decreases, the most faithful and persistent ones remain, that is, the Church is getting closer to unity with Christ. Something smaller is always more authentic than something big. A cake you make for a small number of people is better than those that sell for thousands in supermarkets... It's no different with faith. The greater the trials and attacks, the more faithful to God will remain. By the way, about 50 years ago, especially in the west, a lot of progressive "Young" priests were launched, some were thrown in by communists, freemasons, etc. Unfortunately, many made their way to the top, which we witness even today. However, these young priests will also come one day and are already ascending the hierarchy. Such people will re-consecrate the Church, but what kind of times are coming, one would not be surprised not only by faith, but also by martyrdom.
Yes, the NY Times said that these young priests are clashing with the culture, steering the Church in a more extreme direction away from the world, and I thought to myself, yes, this is what will lead us into persecution. As it ought to, for the world is supposed to hate us as it hated Christ. I see it like this: The chastisements have been coming, we've been warned, our sins must have consequences, but God in His mercy sent Mary to raise up a couple generations of young priests on fire with love for Christ, to run with us into the fire. We will be punished, but we won't be alone, and we will be purified and finally be true witnesses to the world of what it means to follow Christ.
Its true. The Fire that is about to cleanse us will burn those who refuse to convert , bring to the Feet of Christ those who do so and purify and bring to Sanctity those who walked in His Footsteps. It will create whole New Armies of Saints. As to the already Sanctified it will lead to a generation of Saints Greater than any the World has ever seen. A Second Pentecost.
There is a prophecy of the Orthodox St. Paisios where he says children will one day will beat their parents for not having taught them about Christ, the BVM, prayer and repentance.
I feel very sad now about an occurrence/ question of mine when I was young. Always a very vocal, inquisitive and debative personality I was persistent in my questions as to why girls could not be alter servers to the nuns and priests. I never received a good (and what I would call now canonically sound) answer. Several friends who recognized I was not getting (now knowing as receiving good Catholic understanding) took up my questions and pursued the institution of the practice. Within a year my parish began having female altar servers. While I never became an altar server I watched the change to where all ther servers were girls. In some way I am ashamed of my questionings and feel partly responsible for the practice within my parish. While I am very thankful of my mother’s knowledge and teaching of the faith (I know more things than most of those I talk with) I wish I had received better catechetical teaching from the nuns and the priests in my faith formation.
I was disappointed in the Nuns in my town. I had lunch with them in the 1990’s. All progressives sadly. They gave up wearing the habit. They thought I was like them and asked me Don’t you think women should be Priests? I was shocked. I said No. They said But we are losing our Priests, who will say Mass for us? I said Don’t you have any Faith? Have you not had a Priest to celebrate Mass for you ? They looked at me like, duh, faith what is that? Their community today is practically non existant.
This is the best take on the subject that I have ever heard. I sent it to my Parish Priest this morning..in the hopes..
We had a similar modernist community in our town. Two years ago, the last nun left, and now their beautiful property is a training academy for pilots. We live close to that hill and like to go up there for walks with our kids. The property still has the statues of the Sacred Heart, Our Lady of Lourdes, and St. Joseph. It also has many roses.
The priest in my former very busy parish told of his first week in the area. One day he was filling his car with petrol and a young garage assistant said to him, "so you're the new priest!" "Yes" he replied. The young lad then remarked, "I could never be a priest. "Why not?" asked Fr. "Oh' I'd prefer to work," was the reply!
I have noticed that many of the sisters where I live are all sick, even the young ones. Many of the laity too.
