Record Numbers of Adults Convert to Catholicism

From the CNA today: "Tens of thousands of new Catholics are expected to join the Catholic Church in the U.S. in 2009, with many doing so at the Easter Vigil liturgies on April 11. Converts to Catholicism are known as catechumens if they have never been baptized and as candidates if they have received baptism in another Christian community and now seek full communion with the Catholic Church.

The Archdiocese of Atlanta, where Catholics have traditionally been a minority, estimates that 513 catechumens and 2,195 candidates will enter the Catholic Church in 2009, about 1,800 doing so at Easter. The figures do not include infant baptisms.

Father Theodore Book, director of the Office of Divine Worship for the Atlanta Archdiocese, said the archdiocese has been “blessed with an authentic dynamism” during recent years. He cited the archdiocese’s annual Eucharistic Congress, saying it draws nearly 30,000 participants.

“One of the many blessings that we have received from the Lord is the large number of individuals entering the Church,” he said.

The Archdiocese of Seattle will reportedly welcome 736 catechumens and 506 candidates, while the Diocese of San Diego will baptize 305 and receive into communion 920 other baptized Christians.

The mostly rural Diocese of Birmingham, Alabama reportedly will have 445 new converts. The diocese’s Cathedral of St. Paul could not hold them and their families for the Rite of Election, which had to be held in three separate ceremonies. "

Here in Nashville we also have large numbers of new Catholics and RCIA programs are increasing in candidates. The numbers of adults entering the Church in 2009 is expected to increase from 87,363 adults in 2008.

We have 5 adults at our small, rural parish in Smyrna, TN. The Catholic Church in the Southeast is bursting at the seams. Birmingham and Nashville have record numbers of converts and full classes of seminarians. Both dioceses are struggling to build new churches and in addition to standing room only at most masses, there are now waiting lists for Catholic schools.

Amen to that!

Update:

As many as 150,000 new or returning Catholics are expected to join the Catholic Church in 2009 in the United States with many making the move at forthcoming Easter liturgies across the country.

In some cases the numbers show the growth and vitality of the Catholic Church in places where it has traditionally been a small minority, the USCCB says.