"A small Indonesian island has almost as many seminarians as the whole of Spain," writes ElDebate.com (5 September).
The
island is called Flores, one of 17,000 islands in the Indonesian
archipelago, with a population of less than two million, 70% of whom are
Catholic. It is one of the poorest regions of the country.
The
diocesan seminary of Saint Pierre de Ritapiret, which has trained 13
bishops, more than 580 priests and 23 deacons in its almost 70-year
history, is located in the middle of the jungle.
In the last
academic year, 2023-2024, a total of 904 seminarians passed through its
classrooms, almost as many as all the candidates for the priesthood in
the whole of Spain.
The Flores seminary is considered the largest
in the world in terms of enrolment, followed by the seminary in
Guadalajara, Mexico, where 900 students are being trained for future
ordination.
But Rev. Guidelbertus Tanga, the rector of St
Peter's, told the Associated Press that Indonesia is also facing a
vocations crisis as population growth increasingly outstrips vocations.
Picture: Seminario San Pedro de Ritapiret © Facebook CC BY, #newsJielsadfsn