Jacob Hornecker, a theology professor at the University of St. Thomas, spoke with the Minnesota Star Tribune about a major restructuring of Catholic parishes in central Minnesota. Hornecker explained that declining numbers of priests, along with broader cultural shifts in religious practice, are contributing to parish mergers and closures across the region.
From the article:
The St. Cloud Diocese, which stretches across 16 counties in central Minnesota, is planning the closures in response to steady declines in both the number of priests and parishioners, as well as trends of people becoming less religious, though there has been an uptick in devotion among young men in recent years. ...
Jacob Hornecker, who teaches theology at the University of St. Thomas, attributes the decline in priests to cultural changes around the importance of faith and the growing demands on priests as they take on more parishes.
Hornecker, who grew up in Minnesota, spent two years in Rome training to become a priest but left after seeing the increasing demands on priests, which include holding marriage classes, overseeing church finances and being on call for emergencies in the parish – in addition to the weekend Mass schedule. Hornecker, 29, thinks his personal experience is similar to many considering the priesthood.
“I love the mission. I wanted to stick with it,” he said. “And, it turns out, in education, I get to talk about God just as much, if not more, than a priest.”
