Global Catholic Population Grows to 1.3 Billion as Priest Numbers Decline | EWTN News Nightly

About this sermon

People are reacting to the recently released statistics from the Vatican regarding the number of Catholics worldwide. The study found there are 1.3 billion Catholics or 17.7% of the world's population. That marks a one year increase of nearly 14 million, but in other areas there are some worrying numbers. The study found that for the 5th consecutive year, the total number of Catholic priests in the world declined. The Vatican says there are around 407,000 priests globally, a net decline of 142. The worst reduction of priests was in Europe which had a decline of 2,745, but in Africa there was an increase of 1,600 priests and in Asia a rise of more than 1,100. AC Wimmer, Editor in Chief of CNA Deutsch, joins to share his take on the overall numbers from the Vatican and what jumped out the most to him. Wimmer discusses why the number of clergy and overall Catholics dropped in Europe and whether other religions in Europe are also seeing a decline. Meanwhile in Africa, the Vatican finds there was a rise of 7 million Catholics in just one year. Wimmer explains these numbers. He tells us whether the decline in priests for the 5th consecutive year is a worrying trend. ------------ EWTN News Nightly provides the latest news and analysis from a Catholic perspective. Join host Tracy Sabol, our Capitol Hill, White House and Rome Correspondents, as well as many other diverse guests daily, to get the latest from the U.S. and the Vatican on topics regarding our Catholic faith and interests. ------------- EWTN News Nightly airs on EWTN weekdays at 6pm & 9pm ET. ------------ Don't miss an episode of EWTN New Nightly. Get updates here: https://www.ewtn.com/tv/shows/ewtn-news-nightly ------------- Sign up today to receive the EWTN News Nightly newsletter: https://www.ewtn.com/enn ------------- Follow EWTN News Nightly on Social Media: Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ewtnnewsnightly Twitter: https://twitter.com/EWTNNewsNightly Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ewtnnewsnightly/ ------------- Subscribe to EWTN YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/EWTN ------------- You can support the EWTN News mission: https://bit.ly/3qDR1qf