In 1965, there were an estimated 60,000 Catholic priests living in the United States. By 2022, that number had dropped to around 35,000, even as the country’s population had grown by 100 million.

In a new documentary, Discerning the Call: Change in the American Priesthood, two Fordham students seek to explain why.

“Today, there are not as many men joining [the priesthood], and they join later,” said rising junior Jay Doherty, the film’s co-director.

“There are all sorts of different changes that have impacted the church and vocational discernment, and we wanted to tell the story of those changes through the lens of American history,” Doherty said.

Doherty, who majors in digital technologies and emerging media and philosophy, directed the film along with Patrick Cullihan, FCRH ’24, a fellow Duffy Fellow at Fordham’s Center on Religion and Culture. They conducted 30 hours of interviews with 27 priests, many of them residents of Fordham’s Jesuit communities. The film debuted in April at a Fordham Center on Religion and Culture event at the Howard Gilman Theater in Manhattan and is now available online. 

High-profile Catholic leaders such as Cardinal Timothy Dolan and James Martin, S.J., editor at large at America magazine, make appearances, as does Fordham faculty member Bryan Massingale, S.T.D.

A Culture Long Gone

Cardinal Dolan spoke about how, in the years leading up to and during World War II, a strong “Catholic culture” made the vocation much more common than it is now. Catholics were born in their own hospitals, lived in predominantly Catholic neighborhoods, attended their own schools, and married other Catholics.

“With the collapse of the Catholic culture, that kind of external prop and encouragement to priestly vocations would have gone,” he said.

Dolan, who himself entered the seminary right out of high school, said that means fewer men are taking that path as teenagers. 

“Now, the decision to become a priest would not be something imposed from the outside. It would not be something that would just be expected. It’s something that is a radical choice,” he said.

The priesthood has also been attracting more men who identify as theologically orthodox; the filmmakers note that a recent survey found the percentage of priests who identify as such increased from 20% in 1970 to 85% in 2020.

Stricter Requirements

Father Martin noted that one of the changes that affected recruitment into the Society of Jesus was stricter entrance requirements implemented in the 1960s. That resulted in fewer men joining, which some church leaders have welcomed, as it means those who do are more committed. 

For the church to grow, though, Martin said leadership might have to also come from those in the pews.

“I think that the Holy Spirit might be calling lay people to a more active participation in the church,” he said in the film.

A Complex Issue

Father Massingale noted that many incorrectly assume the decline can be pinned on the church’s requirement that priests remain celibate.

“That’s certainly the case for a given segment, but it’s never been a complete explanation for all groups in the church,” he said, noting that racism also played a role.

“For many Black young men, another reason why they never entered the priesthood was because they were never asked.”

Doherty said the filmmakers wanted to include men spanning a wide range of ages, from 20-somethings to retired priests. 

Each one had an intensely personal reason for joining, he said, noting that he hopes to create a second film from unused footage focusing on these stories. He’s also interested in stories from women religious. 

In the meantime, the young directors are receiving recognition for their first film. It has been featured on SiriusXM’s Catholic Channel and WFUV, and in June, it was named the 2024 recipient of Fordham’s William F. DiPietra Award in Film.

Rediscovering Faith

For Doherty, the project has enabled him to explore his own faith.

“When I came to Fordham, I think I really rediscovered the faith and what it means to be Catholic,” he said. 

“I had many interactions with Jesuits, and they were all so brilliant and interesting,” he said. 

“I found myself wondering, ‘How did they come to this life?’”

More than 350 at-risk teens from two Bronx middle schools and four high schools take part annually in the program operated at Fordham through the Graduate School of Social Service (GSS) and managed under the leadership of Program Director Diane Ode, GSS ’11. Over 30 Fordham undergraduate and graduate volunteers work alongside the teens both at the Rose Hill campus and in their respective schools. In addition to their volunteers, the program recruits MSW candidates to provide individual and group counseling to the teens during the school day.

“For many of these students it’s their first time on a college campus,” said Ode. “We collaborate with different Fordham departments such as The Center for Community Engaged Learning, Career Services, and various student-led organizations. It’s amazing work when you start to see the students begin to understand the opportunities that they can have.”

Ode said that the program is one of the many areas where education and social services overlap. She said the reason she and other social workers are drawn to the program is that it tackles the challenges facing at-risk youth through “holistic service that  promotes student’s academic success, as well as their social and emotional well being.” In promoting academic success volunteers help students with homework, prepare for standardized exams, and fill out college applications. To promote social well-being the teens go on campus tours together, take enrichment trips to Broadway shows, and attend STEM conferences. For emotional well-being, the program also provides a series of interventions that include individual and group counseling.

“This program really shows how the Graduate School of Social Service can bring together all our Fordham communities to affect the change,” said faculty adviser Janna Heyman, Ph.D., professor of social work and the Henry C. Ravazzin Chair.

Ode started as a MSW intern in the program in 2010 and continued on as a summer program coordinator when she graduated in 2011. She steadily rose through the ranks to become an assistant director in 2012 and then program director in 2015. Bronx-born and raised in New Jersey, Ode still has family near campus. As a young 8-year-old girl, Fordham was the first college campus she ever saw during her frequent visits with her family to the Fordham Road shopping district. She said that she feels a strong kinship with the students and their families because of her own upbringing in the Tremont section of the Bronx.

“Resources at many New York City schools are overwhelmed; a guidance counselor can serve up to 100 students,” she said. “That’s where we come in with the extra support.”

The teens in the program face a variety of risk factors that often stem from problems at home, which can cause high absenteeism and deter motivation. She noted that many of the program’s volunteers are not from the Bronx and that their initial exposure to these young people, as well as the public schools themselves, can in itself be a learning experience.

“I think it opens up their eyes and they learn about the social and economic disadvantages that Bronx students are facing every day,” she said. “Many of the volunteers are shocked when they have to go through a metal detector or see that there are six schools in one building. It’s a huge culture shock.”

To prepare them, she said, the program provides an orientation and ongoing volunteer meetings to support volunteers’ work with at-risk youth, and the culture of service at the University advocates listening to the community.

“We do our best to have discussions to help them understand that, ‘Yes, you’re giving back to the community by teaching students how to better improve their grades and be motivated to pursue their education, but this is a mutual transaction and you’ll also get something back,’” she said.

Feeling Like a Part of the Bronx

Katrina Cullen is a junior at Rose Hill majoring in history. She started volunteering with the Liberty program more than a year ago. Though she said she was very involved with other student groups, she said she didn’t feel like she was part of the Bronx, even though the campus sits in the heart of the borough.

“It is completely transformative to have a purpose and have kids depend on you to help you with their school work or to know they have a test coming up and they’re counting on you,” she said.

Cullen, who grew up in Putnam County, New York said she was initially nervous about whether the kids would accept her into their community, but soon realized they had more in common than not. She said once she started building relationships, a few of the Latino students found out she was studying Spanish. From that point forward, they would speak to her in Spanish to help her prepare for her classes.

“When I started there were definitely a lot of cultural differences, but they’re so patient with me,” she said. “They’re just normal kids who are extremely accepting and a great time to be around. It makes you feel really good that you build relationships bigger than yourself.”

When the president of the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities (AJCU) visited Fordham a few years ago, he disclosed a pressing concern.

The leaders of the 28 Jesuit colleges and universities across the country, he reported, were worried that changing cultural values were eclipsing the crux of Jesuit education.

“He said to me, ‘Ten years from now, will people even know we are Catholic and Jesuit institutions?’” recalled Msgr. Joseph G. Quinn, vice president for University Mission and Ministry. “Will they even know what those words mean?”

Secular and university culture alike are indeed changing, Msgr. Quinn said, which means that institutions like Fordham need to revise their efforts to make their missions known and understood.

To those ends, the Office of Mission and Ministry has launched a University-wide effort known as Living the Mission. The campaign will spotlight the University mission statement in order to illuminate the values that are the cornerstone of Fordham.

“The intent is to point the attention of a community to its mission statement, to renew people’s awareness of what makes Fordham unique—what makes Fordham, Fordham,” Msgr. Quinn said. “What does it mean to be a Catholic Jesuit university in New York City?”

The effort kicked off with the release of 10,000 copies of a new prayer book, Fordham at Prayer. Featuring images of people and places around Fordham, the book offers a reflection on the purpose of prayer, and includes several chapters of prayers from a variety of religious traditions.

Along with the prayer books came posters that display the mission statement on photos of each of the three campuses.

“Now we’re beginning what we’re calling testimonials,” Msgr. Quinn said. “These are statements from students, faculty, and staff about what the mission means for them.” These full-length interviews will be broadcast across a variety of media, including WFUV and Fordham Nightly News, and excerpts from the testimonials will appear on posters on all three campuses.

Living the Mission will also be woven into University events. The campaign debuted at the well-attended conversation on faith and humor between Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan and comedian Stephen Colbert, moderated by James Martin, S.J. Other lectures, Masses, and gatherings throughout the year will also incorporate the theme.

“The whole project is an undercurrent effort,” Msgr. Quinn said. “We wanted to stir up many of the events that go on every year with more intentional reflection on what is our mission and what it has to do with them.

“Our hope is that if we apply that filter of Living the Mission across the board, whether it’s facilities or finance, admissions or alumni, that it will enlarge, enhance, and transform who we are,” he added.

With this far-reaching goal, reflection on how to live the mission is already extending beyond the Office of Mission and Ministry.

Associate Professor of Biology Jason Morris, Ph.D., said that Fordham’s mission allows its educators to not only get at the what driving their courses, but also the why.

“Here, the ethical and philosophical questions that come up in my [genetics]classes aren’t treated as irrelevant distractions,” Morris said. “They are some of the reasons that the subjects I teach are so important for students to know in the first place.”

The mission also fosters inclusiveness, he noted.

“Religious and spiritual questions are taken seriously here, and they are welcomed as part of the ongoing intellectual conversation,” Morris said. “As an engaged Jew, I feel that gives me the freedom to participate in the life of the University as a complete person, and not simply as a geneticist or even simply as a geneticist who cares about the ethical questions that genetics provokes.”

Most importantly, he added, the best way, as a faculty member, to live the mission is to exemplify it for students—a point with which Gregory Acevedo, Ph.D., agreed.

“I communicate our mission by living it,” said Acevedo, an associate professor at the Graduate School of Social Service (GSS). “Modeling and mentorship are important tools for wisdom and learning. Our mission should be clearly reflected in my behavior with the students and as they see me relate with my colleagues and members of the administration.

“As a faculty member, I think that means making a good-faith effort to treat everyone at Fordham as I would have them treat me.”

For Acevedo, this means encouraging learning and embracing diversity, especially for the sake of working to make a more just society.

“The core of the University’s mission is to educate men and women in service to others and prepare them for leadership around the world,” said Elaine Congress, D.S.W., professor and associate dean at GSS. “The Jesuit tradition speaks to the importance of love for the least-of-one’s neighbors and promoting justice for men and women.”

She said that the effort to live the mission manifests in Fordham’s myriad academic and extracurricular programs, fromprograms that train students in substance abuse counseling to international work with the United Nations.

“Fordham’s mission, the Jesuit mission, and GSS have provided a foundation for my life’s work as a social worker and in my daily role as a faculty member at Fordham,” she said.

According to Msgr. Quinn, the Living the Mission campaign will unfold over the coming months and years, leading up to the University’s 175th anniversary in 2016.

“Fordham’s whole purpose is to help transform the lives of those entrusted to its care, not only the students, but faculty, staff, alumni, and all who come in contact with what is Fordham,” Msgr. Quinn said.

“[With this campaign], we’re trying to underscore the best of Fordham in its history, its hopes, and its extraordinarily noble dreams,” he continued. “We want people to feel, ‘I belong to this. This is my place, this is who we are, and this is why we do what we do.’”