Shortage of priests = shortage of bishops?

[hedgehog]

My mother mentioned to me the other day that the Diocese of Youngstown has gone without a bishop for several years. It seems to me that Buffalo went without a bishop for several years in the recent past, also. Has anyone else seen this happening? I'm looking around the Syracuse diocese and thinking that if it is at all representative, in about ten or twenty years there's going to be a shortage of bishops, let alone priests.

[AngryOldDem]

1. Sorta makes sense....

If numbers are down at the parish level, it only stands to reason that eventually the shortage will go up the chain. I wonder how old the youngest bishop is? (And I admit that right at the moment I'm too lazy to find out, so consider that a rhetorical question.)

Look for them to solve the bishop problem as they are doing with the priest problem...circuit riders.

[hedgehog]

2. We're already talking mega-parishes

Mega dioceses?

Right now I'd guess we only have 10 priests under the age of 40, if that many.

[Matilda]

3. We were told last Sunday

that in Australia, there are currently no Jesuits in training for the priesthood (we are a Jesuit
parish).

One was ordained last year, and I remember another two in about the past six years. Our youngest
priest is the parish priest, who is 65. The others are all now in their eighties, and a couple of
them have recently suffered from heart attack and stroke.

Clearly the Church is going to have to do some re-evaluation of its structure. Already the laity
are carrying out many duties that once were performed solely by priests - I'm wondering how long
before we have roving priests just to say Mass and hear confessions.

I have even heard of one country church where the laity actually conduct the mass, leaving out
the Consecration obviously. Somebody described it as being like a football game without an umpire.

[hedgehog]

4. That's rather shocking news

My thinking has always been that there is a place for a celibate priesthood in the orders such as the Jesuits. No person is meant to live alone. An order such as the Jesuits or Franciscans provides the community that people need. Expecting anyone to live the solitary existence that the parish priest faces is inhumane in my opinion and can lead to some damaging coping behaviors sometimes. How many of our parish priests are overweight because they eat too much comfort food? How many of them form parish priest to Pope are alone in their old age?