Median Age Of New Priests 32; Two-Thirds Caucasian, Third Born Outside The U.S.

WASHINGTON—The median age of menordained to the priesthood in 2013 is 32, two-thirds are Caucasian, and 26percent carry educational debt.

These figures stand out inThe Class of 2013: Survey of Ordinands to the Priesthood, the annualnational survey of men being ordained priests for U.S. dioceses and religiouscommunities. The study was conducted by the Center for Applied Research in theApostolate (CARA), a Georgetown University-based research center. The entirereport can be found at usccb.org/beliefs-and-teachings/vocations/ordination-class/.

The reportis the 17th annual survey of ordinands commissioned by the Secretariat forClergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations of the U.S. Conference of CatholicBishops (USCCB). About 74 percent of an estimated 500 men to be ordained priestsin the United States in 2013 responded to the survey.

Onaverage, most of the ordination class were baptized as infants, but ninepercent became Catholic later in life. Eight in ten report that both parentsare Catholic, and more than a third have a relative who is a priest orreligious.

On average,respondents report that they were nearly 17 years old when they firstconsidered a vocation to the priesthood. Two in three (67 percent) say theywere encouraged to consider a vocation to the priesthood by a parish priest.Others who encouraged them include friends (46 percent), parishioners (38percent) and mothers (34 percent).

Two-thirdsof the respondents (67 percent) report their primary race or ethnicity asCaucasian/European American/white. Compared to the U.S. adult Catholicpopulation, men to be ordained are more apt to be of Asian or Pacific Islanderbackground (10 percent), but less likely to be Hispanic/Latino (15 percent).Compared to diocesan ordinands, new priests for religious orders are lesslikely to report race or ethnicity as Caucasian/European American/white.

Three in 10 respondents(31 percent) were born outside the United States, with the largest numberscoming from Mexico, Vietnam, Colombia, Poland, the Philippines and Nigeria. Onaverage, respondents who were born in another country have lived in the UnitedStates for 14 years. Between 20 and 30 percent of respondents for the diocesanpriesthood for each of the last ten years were born outside the United States.

In other findings:

″More than halfof the Class of 2013 (52 percent) report having more than two siblings, while onein five (20 percent) report having five or more siblings. Ordinands are mostlikely to be the oldest in their family (40 percent).

″Before enteringthe seminary, six in ten ordinands completed college (63 percent). Almost onequarter (23 percent) entered the seminary with a graduate degree. One in three(29 percent) entered the seminary while in college.

″Ordinands ofthe Class of 2013 have been active in parish ministries.Two-thirds indicatedthey served as an altar server and about half (47 percent) participated in aparish youth group. One-fifth (20 percent) participated in a World Youth Daybefore entering the seminary.

″More than fourin 10 of respondents (42 percent) attended a Catholic elementary school, whichis a rate equal to that for all Catholic adults in the United States. Inaddition, ordinands are somewhat more likely than other U.S. Catholic adults tohave attended a Catholic high school and they are much more likely to haveattended a Catholic college (44 percent, compared to seven percent among U.S.Catholic adults).

″Many ordinandsspecified some type of full-time work experience prior to entering theseminary, most often in education, accounting, finance or insurance. Fourpercent of ordinands indicated that they had served in the U.S. Armed Forces atsome point.

″The survey alsofound that new priests in dioceses and religious orders have educational debt.Just over a quarter (26 percent) carried debt at the time they enteredseminary, averaging just a little over $20,000 in educational debt when theyentered seminary.

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Keywords:priests, ordination, USCCB, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, CARA, Centerfor Applied Research in the Apostolate, educational debt

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