Washington D.C., Feb 3, 2019 / 03:57 am
Last year at least 240 Catholic men and women professed perpetual religious vows in the U.S., and a new survey provides a statistical snapshot of who they are and where they came from.
Those who made final vows tend to be cradle Catholics with multiple siblings and attended Catholic schools.
The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate at Georgetown University sought information from superiors of religious institutes on religious professions in 2018. The center analyzed the results in a report for the U.S. bishops' Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations.
Researchers received responses from 530 of 730 major superiors, a response rate of 71 percent, who reported 240 members who professed perpetual vows in 2018. Of these, researchers secured responses from 162: 92 sisters and nuns and 70 brothers and priests.