1970
|
1975
|
1980
|
1985
|
1990
|
1995
|
2000
|
2005
|
2010
|
2014
| |
| Total priests |
419,728
|
404,783
|
413,600
|
403,480
|
403,173
|
404,750
|
405,178
|
406,411
|
412,236
|
414,313
|
| Diocesan priests |
270,924
|
259,331
|
257,409
|
253,319
|
257,696
|
262,418
|
265,781
|
269,762
|
277,009
|
279,561
|
| Religious priests |
148,804
|
145,452
|
156,191
|
150,161
|
145,477
|
142,332
|
139,397
|
136,649
|
135,227
|
134,752
|
| Diocesan priestly ordinations |
4,622
|
4,140
|
3,860
|
4,822
|
5,938
|
6,444
|
6,814
|
6,614
|
6,863
|
6,577
|
| Graduate-level seminarians |
--
|
24,183
|
33,731
|
43,476
|
51,603
|
54,154
|
55,968
|
58,538
|
58,140
|
56,924
|
| Permanent deacons |
309
|
2,686
|
7,654
|
12,541
|
17,525
|
22,390
|
27,824
|
33,391
|
39,564
|
42,104
|
| Religious sisters |
1,004,304
|
968,526
|
960,991
|
917,432
|
882,111
|
837,961
|
801,185
|
760,529
|
721,935
|
705,529
|
| Religious brothers |
79,408
|
70,388
|
73,090
|
65,208
|
62,526
|
59,515
|
55,057
|
54,708
|
54,665
|
55,314
|
| Parishes |
191,398
|
200,116
|
206,503
|
212,021
|
215,805
|
220,077
|
218,196
|
217,616
|
221,055
|
221,740
|
| Parishes without a resident priest pastor |
39,431
|
46,074
|
50,469
|
55,343
|
57,664
|
60,705
|
55,729
|
52,509
|
49,172
|
49,153
|
| Canon 517.2 parishes where a bishop has entrusted the pastoral care of the parish to a deacon or some other person (e.g., a religious sister, religious brother, or other lay person) |
na
|
na
|
na
|
1,635
|
3,786
|
3,278
|
3,373
|
3,122
|
3,819
|
3,485
|
| Catholic population |
653.6m
|
709.6m
|
783.7m
|
852.0m
|
928.5m
|
989.4m
|
1.045b
|
1.115b
|
1.196b
|
1.229b
|
| Percent of world population |
18%
|
17%
|
18%
|
18%
|
18%
|
17%
|
17%
|
17%
|
18%
|
17%
|
| Catholic elementary schools |
89,112
|
79,424
|
75,454
|
78,160
|
78,548
|
85,043
|
89,457
|
91,480
|
92,847
|
95,246
|
| Students in Catholic elementary schools |
20.396m
|
19.584m
|
20.661m
|
22.390m
|
24.145m
|
25.246m
|
26.097m
|
28.084m
|
31.151m
|
32.300m
|
| Catholic secondary schools |
25,552
|
27,542
|
29,637
|
30,404
|
31,200
|
33,349
|
35,559
|
39,096
|
43,591
|
43,783
|
| Students in Catholic secondary schools |
7.667m
|
9.522m
|
11.015m
|
12.066m
|
12.441m
|
13.232m
|
14.027m
|
16.232m
|
17.794m
|
18.869m
|
| Baptisms of infants to age 7 |
14.795m
|
15.553m
|
16.410m
|
16.119m
|
16.252m
|
15.867m
|
15.690m
|
14.448m
|
14.283m
|
13.713m
|
| Baptisms of those ages 8 and older |
1.120m
|
990,727
|
1.131m
|
1.580m
|
1.879m
|
2.173m
|
2.718m
|
2.554m
|
2.667m
|
2.696m
|
| Marriages between two Catholics |
3.306m
|
3.725m
|
3.821m
|
3.707m
|
3.633m
|
3.322m
|
3.433m
|
2.791m
|
2.712m
|
2.486m
|
| Marriages between a Catholic and a non-Catholic |
360,466
|
353,702
|
335,802
|
328,457
|
347,206
|
311,287
|
297,915
|
262,230
|
247,228
|
243,540
|
| Confirmations |
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
8.033m
|
8.493m
|
9.257m
|
8.878m
|
8.793m
|
8.583m
|
| First Communions |
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
11.329m
|
11.600m
|
12.237m
|
11.611m
|
10.728m
|
10.551m
|
| Catholic hospitals |
--
|
--
|
6,700
|
6,056
|
5,675
|
5,482
|
5,853
|
5,246
|
5,305
|
5,167
|
| Catholic orphanages |
--
|
--
|
6,185
|
6,988
|
6,650
|
7,554
|
8,695
|
9,616
|
9,882
|
10,124
|
| Mass attendance (by selected country click here) |
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
| Note: The ASE, upon which the world data above is based, is released two years after the most current year measured. Thus, the ASE 2012, which was released in 2014, represents 2012 totals. All previous years in the world table above measure the actual year listed. For 2014, there are no more current world data sources available. | ||||||||||