CENTER FOR APPLIED RESEARCH IN THE APOSTOLATE
Placing Social Science Research at the Service of the Catholic Church Since 1964
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Portrait of the Permanent Diaconate
CARA has released its most current profile of the Permanent Diaconate in the United States. Thirty-seven percent of permanent deacons in the world serve in the United States. During the 2024 calendar year, 393 new permanent deacons were ordained in the responding U.S. arch/dioceses. At the same time, 545 deacons retired from active ministry and another 361 deacons died. As is the case with priests in the United States, there are not enough new permanent deacons being ordained to make up for the numbers who are retiring from active ministry and dying each year. Five archdioceses have the largest numbers of permanent deacons in the U.S.: Chicago, Atlanta, New York, San Antonio, and Galveston-Houston.
Latest News
Responding ordinands to diocesan priesthood in 2025 were, on average, 17 years old when they first considered a vocation to the priesthood.
Ordination Class of 2025
In December 2005, the Secretariat for Vocations and Priestly Formation (now the Secretariat of Clergy, Consecrated Life and Vocations) of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) commissioned the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) to conduct an annual survey of responding ordinands to the priesthood. CARA recently completed the survey for new ordinands in 2025. Read the findings from the full report below.
Latest News
Summary of 20 Years of Data Collected Annually for the CARA Survey of Allegations and Costs
CARA has published a comprehensive report compiling 20 years of data from U.S. Catholic dioceses, eparchies, and religious communities of men detailing the allegations of sexual abuse of minors by priests, deacons, and religious brothers, as well as the financial expenditures for costs related to those allegations and ongoing efforts to protect and safeguard youth.
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