Statistics from the Catholic Church

Foto: Don Bosco Aleppo

On the occasion of the 95th World Mission Day, celebrated Sunday 24 October 2021, the Fides News Agency presented a few statistics regarding the Catholic Church. The tables are taken from the latest published "Statistical Yearbook of the Church" (updated as of December 31, 2019).

  • As of December 31, 2019, the number of Catholics were 1,344,403,000 people with an overall increase of 15,410,000 people compared to the previous year.
  • The mission stations with a resident priest are a total of 3,217 (+301). Those without a resident priest decreased overall by 5,836.
  • The total number of Bishops in the world has decreased by 13, reaching 5,364.
  • The number of lay missionaries in the world is equal to 410,440, with a global increase of 34,252 units, while the Catechists in the world have decreased overall by 2,590, reaching 3,074,034.
  • Major seminarians, diocesan and religious, this year decreased, overall, by 1822, and thus reached the number of 114,058.
  • In the field of education and formation, the Church manages 72,667 nursery schools throughout the world attended by 7,532,992 pupils; 98,925 primary schools for 35,188,771 pupils; 49,552 secondary schools for 19,370,763 pupils. It also cares for 2,395,540 high school pupils and 3,833,012 university students.

The complete dossier is available on the Fides website and, in video format, on the YouTube channel.

InfoANS

ANS - “Agenzia iNfo Salesiana” is a on-line almost daily publication, the communication agency of the Salesian Congregation enrolled in the Press Register of the Tibunal of Rome as n 153/2007.

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