PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence says no men from within the diocese have applied for its seminary program in the fall, although men from elsewhere have.
The Rev. Chris Murphy told WPRI-TV that between two and six men from the Providence diocese have entered Our Lady of Providence Seminary each fall over the past five years.
Diocese spokesman Carolyn Cronin says four men are currently going through the application process, but all of them are from other dioceses.
Murphy said Tuesday the church is not in crisis mode, and that they are looking at new ways to reach men who may be thinking about priesthood.
Four priests in the Providence diocese are scheduled to retire this year. One man will be ordained into the priesthood in June.
Meanwhile, Pope Francis said this week that there is a "hemorrhaging" of priests, and has wondered aloud how many seminaries, monasteries, convents and churches will close because fewer people are being called to lives of religious service.
The pope told Italy's bishops on Monday he was concerned about the "crisis of vocations" in a region of the world that once was one of the biggest sources of Catholic missionaries. He said Italy and Europe are entering a period of "vocational sterility" to which he wasn't sure a solution exists.
The number of Catholic priests worldwide declined by only 136 to 415,656 in 2015, the last year for which data are available. But according to Vatican statistics, the decrease was greatest in Europe, where there were 2,502 fewer priests compared to 2014.
Religion on 05/26/2018