88 Catholic priests ordained in 2023, down sharply
In 2023, 88 Catholic priests are to be ordained in France, a sharp drop compared to previous years, the Conference of Bishops of France (CEF) announced on Thursday.
These ordinations, during which priests must “receive their mission in the Church”, must take place on June 25. “88 priests will be ordained” this year, according to a statement from the CEF, mostly (52) priests who will work in a diocese, the lowest level for at least a decade.
In 2022, the Conference of Bishops of France had recorded 122 ordinations, 130 in 2021, 126 in 2019, 125 in 2018, 117 in 2017, a hundred in 2016, 120 in 2015 and around 140 in 2014.
In detail, in 2023, 19 new priests will also come from a "congregation, community or society of apostolic life", such as the communities of Saint-Martin (7) or Emmanuel (2) . Eighteen will be ordained as religious priests, that is to say linked to religious congregations and institutes.
Editorial staff with AFP
