Fall-back in priestly ordinations in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina
In 2025, there will be only 53 priestly ordinations in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. The previous year, 63 men were ordained priests. One religious order has a particularly high number of priestly vocations.
Croatia has 41 priestly ordinations this year, and Bosnia-Herzegovina 12. According to data from the Catholic weekly "Glas Koncila," this represents a decline compared to the previous year: In Bosnia-Herzegovina, the number fell from 13 to 12 new priests, and in Croatia from 50 to 41.
The Archdiocese of Zagreb recorded the largest number of new priests. There, Archbishop Draen Kutlea ordained a total of 24 candidates on June 21, including ten diocesan priests and 14 religious. Second place goes to the Diocese of Pore-Pula with three ordinations – one of the candidates is from Colombia, as reported by the Croatian Catholic Press Agency IKA.
Many calls to the Franciscan Order
Overall, religious brothers are most strongly represented among this year's new priests in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina. Of a total of 53 priest candidates in the two countries, 28 came from various orders and 25 from the dioceses. The Bosnian Franciscan Province recorded the largest number of candidates, with six candidates – two from Kosovo. Other Franciscan orders and provinces are also pleased with the number of priest candidates this year. The Salesian Brothers of Don Bosco, who are also very active in Croatia, have four new priests this year.
Among the newly ordained priests is also a priest of the Greek Catholic Church. Furthermore, a Croatian was ordained for the Dutch diocese of Haarlem-Amsterdam.
The decline in priestly vocations is also reflected in the fact that some dioceses were unable to record any diocesan ordinations for 2025. In 2024, Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina were still considered comparatively productive, with a total of 63 new priests – 18 more than in 2023 – as observers point out.
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