The National Catholic Register, citing a CARA survey, reports that over 400 men will be ordained to the priesthood in the U.S. in 2026, with an average age of 33, most being lifelong Catholics. The article presents a veneer of vitality, detailing demographics, educational backgrounds, and prayer practices of these ordinands. However, this statistical optimism is a smokescreen, obscuring the fundamental theological and spiritual bankruptcy of the conciliar sect’s ordination process, which produces not true shepherds after the Heart of Christ, but functionaries of a modernist, ecumenical, and anthropocentric revolution.
The Illusion of “Vocations” in a Doctrinally Bankrupt System
The article proudly proclaims that “more than 400 men will be ordained to the priesthood in the U.S. this year,” presenting this as a sign of health. Yet, this numerical increase, if true, is not a sign of spiritual vitality but rather a testament to the conciliar sect’s success in recruiting individuals into a system that has systematically dismantled the true priesthood. The “priesthood” being conferred is not the Catholic priesthood, ordained to offer the Most Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the propitiation of sins and the salvation of souls. Instead, it is a “priesthood” redefined by Vatican II, centered on “service,” “community building,” and “social justice,” effectively reducing the priest to a social worker or a facilitator of communal gatherings. As Pope Pius XI unequivocally stated in *Quas Primas*, Christ’s kingdom “is opposed only to the kingdom of Satan and the powers of darkness – and requires its followers not only to renounce earthly riches and possessions, to be distinguished by modesty of conduct, and to hunger and thirst for justice, but also to deny themselves and carry their cross.” The conciliar “priesthood” offers none of this; it offers a career path within a humanistic organization.
The “Formation” of Modernist Functionaries
The CARA survey details the educational background of these ordinands: “29% attended high school or less, 19% reported some college or trade school, 39% received a college undergraduate degree, and 13% earned a graduate degree.” While education is not inherently evil, the content of that education within conciliar seminaries is the critical issue. These institutions, since the Council, have been notorious for their modernist theological formation, often characterized by a rejection of scholastic theology, a historical-critical approach to Scripture that undermines its inerrancy, and an embrace of ecumenism and religious liberty. The article mentions that “22% studied theology or philosophy” before seminary, but it remains silent on whether this was authentic Catholic theology or the diluted, modernist version prevalent in most Catholic universities since the 1960s. The very concept of “formation” within these structures is designed to produce men who are compliant with the conciliar agenda, not defenders of the Faith. As St. Pius X warned in *Lamentabili Sane Exitu*, “The Church is an enemy of the progress of natural and theological sciences” (Proposition 57) and “Contemporary Catholicism cannot be reconciled with true knowledge without transforming it into a certain dogmaless Christianity, that is, into a broad and liberal Protestantism” (Proposition 65). The conciliar seminaries are precisely the factories for this “dogmaless Christianity.”
The “Prayer Practices” of Neo-Catholics
The article highlights the “prayer practices” of the ordinands, noting that “81% reported participation in Eucharistic adoration,” “79% prayed the rosary on a regular basis,” and “52% participated in prayer and Bible groups.” While these practices are traditionally Catholic, their presence within the conciliar context is deeply problematic. The “Eucharistic adoration” is often directed towards a “Eucharist” consecrated by a “priest” using the invalid New Mass, which, as numerous theological analyses have demonstrated, does not effect transubstantiation due to the altered words of consecution and the removal of essential prayers. To adore a mere symbol or, worse, an unconsecrated host, is not adoration but idolatry. Similarly, the “rosary” prayed within the conciliar framework often omits or downplays the Fatima prayer, or is reinterpreted through a modernist lens, losing its propitiatory and intercessory power. The “prayer and Bible groups” are frequently ecumenical in nature, fostering a false sense of unity with heretics and schismatics, directly contradicting the Church’s perennial teaching on the necessity of the Catholic Faith for salvation. As Pope Pius IX declared in *The Syllabus of Errors*, “Protestantism is nothing more than another form of the same true Christian religion, in which form it is given to please God equally as in the Catholic Church” (Proposition 18) is condemned. These “prayer practices” are thus often merely external rituals, stripped of their true Catholic meaning and efficacy, performed by men who have been formed in a system that has abandoned the supernatural for the natural.
The “Encouragement” of a Apostate System
The survey reveals that “92% of ordinands were encouraged by at least one person to join the priesthood,” with “70% citing a parish priest.” This is perhaps the most damning indictment. The “parish priests” encouraging these men are themselves products of the same modernist formation, often openly heretical, promoting religious liberty, ecumenism, and the “spirit of Vatican II.” They are not encouraging men to defend the Faith, to preach the necessity of conversion, or to offer the true Sacrifice. They are encouraging them to join a system that has, as its primary goal, the dismantling of Catholic doctrine and the establishment of a “new church” aligned with the world. The “encouragement” is not towards the narrow gate and the straight path, but towards the broad road that leads to destruction. As Our Lord warned, “Enter ye in at the narrow gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way that leadeth to destruction, and many there are who go in thereat” (Matthew 7:13). The conciliar sect, through its “priests,” actively guides souls down this broad path.
The “Family Life” of Future Apostates
The article notes that “93% were baptized Catholic as an infant” and “86% reported that both of their parents were Catholic.” This statistic, while seemingly positive, is irrelevant in the face of the conciliar apostasy. Being born into a Catholic family does not guarantee faith, especially when that family has been immersed in the conciliar sect for decades. The “Catholicism” of these families is often a cultural identity, devoid of doctrinal depth, and fully accepting of the modernist innovations. The “priests” produced by such families are thus formed in an environment where the true Faith is unknown or actively suppressed. They are “lifelong Catholics” only in the sense that they have been lifelong members of the conciliar sect, which is not the Catholic Church. As St. Robert Bellarmine taught, “a Pope who is a manifest heretic, by that very fact ceases to be Pope and head, just as he ceases to be a Christian and member of the body of the Church.” The entire conciliar hierarchy, from John XXIII to Leo XIV, has manifested heresy, thereby losing all jurisdiction and authority. To be “encouraged” by such a system is to be encouraged into spiritual blindness.
The “Ministry” of the New Mass and Ecumenism
The article states that “93% of ordinands participated in at least one parish ministry before entering the seminary,” including “altar servers (79%), lectors (49%), campus or youth ministers (34%), or as catechists (32%).” These “ministries” are precisely the innovations of the conciliar revolution, designed to replace the laity’s role as passive recipients of grace with an active, often liturgical, participation that blurs the distinction between the ordained priesthood and the common priesthood of the faithful. The “ministry” of lector, for instance, often involves reading Scripture in a manner that undermines its divine inspiration and inerrancy, as condemned by *Lamentabini Sane Exitu* (Propositions 9-19). The “campus or youth ministers” are frequently agents of the “new evangelization,” which is not the preaching of the Gospel but the promotion of a secularized, social-justice oriented “faith.” The “catechists” are formed in a “catechesis” that has abandoned the Baltimore Catechism for modernist, experiential, and often heretical, materials. These “ministries” are not preparations for the Catholic priesthood but for service within the conciliar sect’s humanistic agenda.
The “Diversity” of the Conciliar Sect
The article highlights the racial and ethnic diversity of the ordinands: “62% white,” “17% Hispanic or Latino,” “11% Asian or Pacific Islander,” and “5% Black or African American.” While diversity is not inherently evil, the conciliar sect’s emphasis on it often comes at the expense of doctrinal purity. The “inculturation” promoted by the Council frequently leads to syncretism, where pagan elements are incorporated into Catholic worship, as seen in the “inculturated” Masses of Africa and Asia. The “diversity” is a tool for the conciliar sect to present itself as a “universal” church, while in reality, it is a fragmented collection of national churches, each adapting to its local culture, rather than conforming to the universal law of Christ. As Pope Pius IX condemned in *The Syllabus of Errors*, “National churches, withdrawn from the authority of the Roman pontiff and altogether separated, can be established” (Proposition 37). The conciliar sect, in its pursuit of “diversity,” is actively fostering this very error.
The “Call” to a False Priesthood
The article concludes by stating that these men are “preparing for diocesan ministry” and “religious institutes.” This “preparation” is not for the Catholic priesthood, which is a participation in the priesthood of Christ, offering the true Sacrifice, and administering the true sacraments. It is a “preparation” for a “ministry” within a system that has rejected the true Sacrifice, invalidated its sacramards, and embraced the world. The “call” they feel is not a divine vocation but a psychological or social impulse, nurtured by a system that needs to perpetuate itself. As St. Pius X warned, “The pursuit of novelty in the investigation of the foundations of things leads in our times to deplorable consequences, abandoning all restraint. It causes the heritage of humanity to be rejected, and often leads to the most grievous errors, which become particularly pernicious when they concern sacred sciences, the exposition of Holy Scripture, and the principal mysteries of Faith” (*Lamentabili Sane Exitu*, Introduction). These men are being formed in the very heart of this “pursuit of novelty,” and their “ordination” will be a solemn act of consecration to a false god and a false church.
In essence, the CARA survey, as presented by the National Catholic Register, is a testament to the conciliar sect’s success in recruiting and forming men for its apostate agenda. It is a celebration of numbers, while ignoring the complete absence of true Catholic doctrine, true sacramental life, and true spiritual formation. These men are not future priests of the Catholic Church; they are future functionaries of the Church of the New Advent, the paramasonic structure that has occupied the Vatican and is leading countless souls to perdition. Their “ordination” is not a cause for joy but for profound sorrow and urgent prayer for the true Church, which endures in the faithful who profess the integral Catholic faith and are led by bishops with valid sacraments and validly ordained priests, outside the structures of the conciliar abomination.
Source:
Hundreds of Men to Be Ordained in US in 2026 (ncregister.com)
Date: 20.04.2026