Archdiocese for Military Services reports surge in vocations for Catholic chaplains

The Archdiocese for the Military Services, USA welcomes a steady increase in the number of young men entering Catholic seminaries who would like to become military chaplains and thanks the many Catholic bishops who have agreed to co-sponsor them.

When the 2011-2012 academic year rolls around later this month, the number of co-sponsored and military-affiliated seminarians will stand at 31, up sharply from just three in 2008-2009; 12 in 2009-2010; and 23 in 2010-2011.

Co-sponsorship means that a diocesan bishop agrees to accept the young man as a seminarian, and that the seminarian will participate in the Chaplain Candidacy Program of one of the branches of the U.S. armed forces. The bishop agrees to release him for service as a military chaplain after three years of pastoral experience as a priest in his diocese. When the priest leaves military service, he returns to the diocese.