“Lord, give priests!” – The Catholic Church has almost run out of men of God

When the bells call the faithful to mass this Sunday, churchgoers are now received in every fifth church by a pastor who is not from Austria. One can speak of a “mission of modern times”. For just as missionaries once went from Austria to the whole world to spread the Gospel, today hundreds of men from abroad come to us to say Masses, to administer sacraments, that is, to care for orphaned parishes.

help from abroad
For just as the number of people attending Mass has declined, so are fewer and fewer young men feeling called to the priesthood or the religious ministry. If these missing pastors were not replaced by clergy from abroad, many parishes would have to merge into unmanageable large parish conglomerates. And the local priest would – even more than now – be under enormous time pressure as a “raging pastor” to rush to masses, baptisms, weddings, funerals and various church events. Understandably, some pastoral care falls by the wayside.

Nigerian brings hope from the Weinviertel to Vienna
Dr Jacob Nwabor, 53, a Nigerian priest, is one of hundreds of foreign “rescue ministers”. He takes care of the All Saints’ Church in Vienna-Brigittenau with heart and soul. The son of an African family of eight had been stationed in Drasenhofen (Lower Austria) for several years. Thanks to his open approach to the people, the popular pastor was soon put in charge of the deanery of Poysdorf.

Well received by the community
“Have you ever been insulted and insulted with racist slogans? Especially since many drug dealers from Nigeria are said to have sold drugs in Austria in the 1990s?” was the direct question from “Krone”. “No never. So far I get on very well with the Austrians. And I hope you too with me. As extremely hard-working people, they can be proud of their great cultural treasures,” replies Mozart fan Nwabor with a smile, “and by the way, you don’t need drugs in the Weinviertel.”

Asked about the priestly shortfall, the black priest says, “It’s about a calling. We cannot control God’s ways. However, I see my work and that of my confreres as a reverse conversion of the Alpine Republic. You once brought us faith – now we bring it back!”

Resigned from the Priesthood for Love…
Celibacy, i.e., celibacy, is believed by many to be the cause of the growing shortage of priests: whether many more men would actually choose the priesthood if they could marry has been and is a controversial topic in many discussions within the Church, until the Pope.

From the point of view of the writer of these lines, the answer is obvious: in 1980, four of my classmates had decided to study priests. One was then working as a missionary in Papua New Guinea, two became canons of Augustine, and the fourth studied in the Viennese seminary – but three of these men of God, esteemed in their field, resigned from office. Because of love! They married, raised families and were lost to the Catholic Church as shepherds of souls. As married clergymen, couldn’t they have continued to do many positive things—as is possible in the Protestant church? Only God knows that…

Can’t women also run parishes successfully?
Incidentally, most Evangelical, Anglican, Old Catholic Churches and other Christian communities have introduced the admission of female candidates to the clergy over time. An issue the Vatican is considering. For now, however, we continue to pray: Lord, give us priests!