Catholicism grew faster than global population in past 25 years

November 11, 2024 - 10:09 AM
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A July 17, 2023 file photos shows the overview of St. Peter’s Square in the Vatican, with Rome in background. (Photo courtesy of Fr. Louie Guades, CMF via CBCP News)

The number of Catholics has grown at a faster rate than the global population over the past 25 years, according to statistics released by a Vatican news agency ahead of the Jubilee Year in 2025.

As of 2022, the Catholic population reached 1.39 billion, a 36.47% increase from 1.02 billion in 1998. This growth outpaced the 33.87% rise in the global population over the same period, soaring to 7.84 billion in 2022 from 5.86 billion in 1998.

Despite the rise in the Catholic population, the number of baptisms has steadily declined.

Baptisms fell to 13.33 million in 2022 from 17.93 million in 1998. The highest number of baptisms was recorded in 2000, an Ordinary Jubilee Year when the figure peaked at 18.41 million.

Meanwhile, the total number of priests worldwide rose to 407,730 in 2022 from 404,628 in 1998. Diocesan priests increased to 279,171 in 2022, while the number of priests in religious orders declined to 128,559.

The number of women religious saw a steep drop, falling to 559,228 from 814,779 over the 25-year period. Men religious also decreased, with their total falling to 49,414 by the end of 2022.

These figures were published on Oct. 17 by Agenzia Fides, a news service of the Pontifical Mission Societies. The 25-year summary was published alongside an annual dossier that provides a snapshot of Catholic demographics.

Unlike the annual report, the summary did not break down data by continent. It was published “to help understand the trend of variations in the numerical data related to the presence and mission of the Catholic Church in the world.”

2022 statistics

In its annual dossier, released just before World Mission Sunday, Agenzia Fides reported that the Catholic population grew by 13.72 million to reach 1.39 billion in 2022.

While most continents saw growth, Europe was an outlier, recording a decline of 474,000 Catholics. Africa and the Americas contributed the most to global growth, adding 7.27 million and 5.91 million Catholics, respectively.

Asia gained 889,000 more Catholics, and Oceania added 123,000, contributing to a modest 0.03% growth in the global percentage of Catholics to reach 17.7%.

Despite the long-term upward trend in the number of priests, the 2022 report noted a global decline of 142 priests compared to the previous year. Europe experienced the sharpest drop, with 2,745 fewer priests, followed by the Americas with 164 fewer priests.

As a result, the ratio of Catholics to priests rose to 3,408 from 3,373 in 2021.

The number of major seminarians, both diocesan and religious, slid to 108,481 in 2022 from 109,895 in 2021. Minor seminarians also decreased to 95,161.

The report included statistics of Catholic educational institutions: 74,322 kindergartens with 7.62 million students; 102,189 primary schools with 35.73 million students; and 50,851 secondary schools with 20.57 million students.

Additionally, 2.46 million students were enrolled in Catholic high schools, and 3.93 million attended Church-run universities.

The Church operated 102,409 healthcare and charitable facilities worldwide: 5,420 hospitals; 14,205 dispensaries; 525 leper hospitals; 15,476 homes for the aged, chronically ill, and handicapped; 10,589 nursery schools; 10,500 marriage counseling centers; 3,141 social rehabilitation centers; and 33,677 other institutions. (Logan Zapanta/CBCP News)