In reading todays NYT, I came across an article describing a huge labor shortage. So what's the catch? Mandatory celibacy for $1,350 per month not including tips. What's the job? Roman Catholic (RC) priesthood.
I have followed articles on the RC church since I grew up in one. Even when I was young, there was an acute shortage of priests. For a couple of days in college, I contemplated the Episcopal priesthood. But when Peter Lee, the local Episcopalian rector, said that there were too many Episcopalian priests and suggested that I consider the RC variety, I quickly discontinued the search. Celibacy ranked right behind hunger strikes in terms of personal appeal.
In order to take care of RC Americans, the U.S. has been wooing priests away from impoverished countries, such as Nigeria, Uganda and India. Even more desirable are Spanish-speaking priests to deal with the large immigrant Spanish-speaking population, but those priests are in even greater shortage in their homelands. While there is a shortage in the U.S. with one priest per 1,500 lay people, there is an acute shortage in Mexico with one priest per 7,000 Mexican lay people.
The article recounts some funny moments in this new cultural mix. My favorite told of a priest who came from one of these hot equatorial countries and thought the frost on his car one cold Kentucky morning was the work of vandals.
