The archdiocese of Chicago has 2.2 million Catholics. The diocese of Peoria has 133,000 Catholics. Three priests ordained this year and four ordained last year for Peoria.
Burn of the Day
- Donald R. McClarey
Donald R. McClarey
Cradle Catholic. Active in the pro-life movement since 1973. Father of three, one in Heaven, and happily married for 43 years. Small town lawyer and amateur historian. Former president of the board of directors of the local crisis pregnancy center for a decade.
Strange how the Bishop from Chicago hasn’t been replaced, stranger still why he has so much influence..
Same kind of thing in Michigan. Five ordained in the archdiocese of Detroit soon to be diminished since the archbishop has banned traditional masses. Seven in the diocese of Lansing, which is immediately adjacent and has a much smaller population.
IIRC, in Cdl. George’s time, you had about 15 ordinations per year.
Sadly for the Church, the skill set needed to be the sort of bishop who leads a healthy, growing diocese is absolutely not the same ‘skill set’ needed to attract the attention and favor of bishop-makers in Rome.
Collapsing demographics and empty seminaries are acceptable, and merely managing decline is considered competence.
What will kill a bishop’s career? Obviously, getting caught up in a scandal that embarrasses Rome will do it, but there are many instances of bishops who manage their vices quietly doing rather well for themselves.
On the other hand, being seen as friendly to tradition-loving Catholics can blight a career, as can being deemed inflexible regarding certain ‘pelvic’ issues. Unfortunately, I don’t see signs of this dysfunction changing under this new pontificate…
Our little parish has 4 seminarians in the process to be ordained, but none that will be ordained this year. Tiny rural parish with HUGE prospects to the religious life thanks be to Perpetual Eucharistic Adoration and TLM, one of three parishes in Michigan granted an extension from Rome. Oh, and thanks be to God, a outstanding Priest who has modeled himself after St. John, the beloved apostle at the foot of the cross with Mary.
We are blessed.
To underscore just how miserably Cardinal Cupich is performing at his job of attracting seminarians, his archdiocese has a Catholic population slightly over 16 1/2 times the size of Peoria’s. If +Cupich was drawing in vocations at Peoria’s rate, instead of having just two ordinations this year Chicago should be seeing 16.5 x 3, or *fifty* new priests instead of his paltry *two*.
I would imagine that this scripture applies to each of us, be it princes of the Church or lowly laity;
Matthew 7:15-20
New American Standard Bible 1995
A Tree and Its Fruit
15 “Beware of the false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will [a]know them by their fruits. [b]Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 So then, you will [c]know them by their fruits.
I’m using this scripture passage in relationship to the vocations failure, not a personal attack on the Cardinal.
The fruits from Chicago may very well be the most gifted and inspired young men to be ordained. The direction of vocations seems like firewood to me. Where is their leadership?
Bueller….. Bueller………..
Just looking at the numbers one could assume that Chicago does have priority derangement syndrome brewing. By all means CUT OUT THAT troublesome TLM, huh Cardinal ?
His last statement strikes a bell…..
….The Church awaits.
Yes. Yes we do. Pope Leo the XIV. The Church awaits.
btw……
Islam in America is not waiting. They will gladly aquire the abandoned Catholic churches that reside in Chicagoland. Enjoy that 5 AM ***call to prayer*** coming to a cathedral near you.
Who would want to have as his ordinary Card. Cupich?
The Devil would be a more predictable master.
That’s just proves that quality trumps quantity. You reap what you sow and all that. The odds are not better just because you have the numbers. Besides God works how God works. There must be good formation occurring in the diocese of Peoria.