When the Church was just starting out. I’m talking 12 guys in sandals starting out, the chances of success were minimal. Now, how about if I told you 11 of those 12 will be tortured and executed in pretty short order.

You’d say:

Yet, the Church flourished and spread.

I would argue that in this moment when the Church seems to be in decline because not enough men want to be priests, the logical solution is to make it easier to become a priest. Let them marry. Let women become priests. Something like that. I’d argue that we should make it harder to become a priest. Promise them a life of struggle, adventure, and the odds stacked against them. Tell them that only the called will make it. Call them to purity, chastity, and faithfulness.

Call them to be a warrior for light in a dark world.

My friend Fr. Robert McTeigue recently had the crazy thought that if the Church wants more priests it should stop hating men. Whoa, right?