Among the most startling aspects of the post-Vatican II era of the Catholic Church has been the dramatic decline of vocations to the religious life in the Western world.
According to the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA), the number of religious priests in the US declined from 22,707 to 11,326 between 1965 and 2018, and the number of religious brothers dropped from 11,326 to 3,897, all at a time when the overall Catholic population increased.
Those communities that defy the trend and are blessed with quality younger vocations typically have three common characteristics: living and praying together in community, wearing an identifiable religious habit, and fidelity to the teaching authority of the Church. While acceptance requirements for these communities vary, they are typically looking for a younger man (under 30), a practising Catholic who is habitually in the state of grace, and a man willing and able to embrace the challenges of religious life.
