Apr 14, 2006 5:42 pm US/Central
Church Leaders Struggle For New Priests
by Deborah Takahara
(CBS 11 News)
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Monsignor Michael Duka, Holy Trinity Seminary
CBS 11 News
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Raymond Schutz, Potential Priest
CBS 11 News
The Catholic Church is growing in this country. But the number of priests is dwindling. The church has lost more than 2,200 priests over the last 5 years.
"In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit," the priest prays.
Thousands of Catholics listen to the word of God every week. But the messengers are in short supply.
Monsignor Michael Duka with Holy Trinity Seminary said there's a critical need. "I think those of us who are doing the planning of pastors for future parishes are getting quite panicked. What are we going to do?"
According to Catholic Church statistics, 3,200 of the nearly 19,000 Catholic parishes in the United States don't have a permanent priest.
For example St. John's in Ennis went several months with fill-ins. Church Member Matt Hutyra said, "We had one coming in from Louisiana… Father… I can't remember his name, but he was a really good priest."
It's not easy to become a priest. Coming out of high school, it can be a 9 year process. Priests make many sacrifices, and church leaders admit the image of being a priest has taken a hit. Monsignor Duka said, "The difficulties of the church and priest scandals have some effect, no doubt about that. Definitely the image has been tainted."
Monsignor Don Fisher from St. Joseph's Church in Richardson says all professions go thru some sort of scrutiny.. He believes the priest abuse scandal could prove to be a valuable lesson, "I think it deepens people's understanding the great responsibility a priest has on his shoulders. I think it makes all of us as priests feel much more responsible."
In its efforts to recruit good priests, the church has turned to extraordinary measures to recruit young men. They've taken out ads in papers, spread the word online, and are holding special masses to pray for priests."
Raymond Schutz is studying to be a priest. He said, "Programs may be superficial, but they do have a place in inspiring people to think about this problem and this invitation. God certainly didn't throw a brick at my head and say 'do this.'"
The 18 year old says the idea came from his involvement in the church and from community service. "I've talked to my parents. My parents are in full support. My friends are like 'wow, I totally didn't see that one coming'."
Church leaders say their prayers are answered with more young men answering the call, "we comfort ourselves knowing that the church has made it through much more difficult (times). A faith in God is always with us."
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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