Thus we concluded last year our reports on religious orders:

We reproduce the final considerations from last year, which still seem entirely valid today. We will only conclude them with the percentage decrease of orders and congregations as of January 1, 2024. Today, a year and a half later, these figures are evidently higher.

We conclude this work on religious orders with very negative impressions regarding the survival of religious life in the Church, which in many cases is in its death throes.

Warning that the percentages of decrease referenced to 1973 are in reality higher, since the exodus had already begun by that date. The situation is also different for institutes that still have numerous members compared to those that have very few left. Those that still number several thousand have more time left than those with only a few hundred.

Very serious is the constant rise in the average age. Since it is already very high and continues to grow year after year, deaths will multiply in the coming years.

Particularly grave is the situation of those institutes that have lost half or more of their members. Among them are some of enormous importance in the Church: Jesuits, Franciscans, Carthusians, Redemptorists…

Institutes made up of non-priests, whose percentages in general must still be higher than those listed, show another very near sign of death: while vocations to the priesthood are already very scarce in congregations, vocations to the brotherhood have ceased to exist.

In an extremely grave, already terminal situation, we have the Maryknoll religious, who have lost 84%, the Clerics of St. Viator with 81%, the Hieronymites 80%, the Brothers of La Salle and the Marianists with 79%, the Trappists and the Marist Fathers with 77%,

In a very poor situation: Discalced Mercedarians 72%, Sulpicians and Marists 69%, White Fathers 68%, Brothers of the Sacred Heart 65%, Brothers of St. John of God 62%, Jesuits 61%, and Menesians and Montfortians 60%. Evidently, the still high number of Jesuits conceals this extremely serious decline.

They have also lost more than half of their members: Passionists 58%, Servites 57%, Franciscans 56%, Carthusians and Oblates of Mary Immaculate 55%, Missionaries of the Sacred Heart 52%, Third Order Regular of St. Francis, Redemptorists and Lazarists 52%, Augustinians of the Assumption 51%, and Mercedarians and the Society of St. Paul 50%.

Between 40% and 49% are the Minims 49%, Spiritans 48%, Piarists, Augustinians, Benedictines and Dominicans 47%, Pavonians and Augustinian Recollects 41%, and Salesians and Sacramentines 40%.

In a better position to reverse the trend, although most show no intention of doing so: Legionaries of Christ 39%, Capuchins, Camaldolese of Monte Corona and Amigonians 38%, Reparators (Dehonians) 36%, Discalced Carmelites 34%, Sons of the Holy Family 32%, Trinitarians 29%, Claretians 27%, and Missionaries of the Sacred Hearts (Mallorca) 20%.

They have barely suffered losses, although in some cases it is hard to believe: Identes, Conventual Franciscans and Guanellians 19%, Camillians 16%, Parish Cooperators of Christ the King and Combonians 13%. Discalced Carmelites 7%, Cistercians 6%, Palotines 2%, and Oratorians of St. Philip Neri 1%.

Some ancient congregations have surpassed their numbers from the years of the Council: Somascans, Theatines, Divine Word and Rogationists, and they have excellent results, being new in Spain and in the world: the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest and the Heralds of the Gospel.

Regarding the Opus Dei, if they stop publishing their numbers, we will not be able to follow their progress.

The Hieronymites are practically dead. Only 7 monks remain, all elderly.
The Maryknollers have lost at least 85% of the congregation, the Clerics of St. Viator 81%, the Brothers of La Salle 80%, the Marianists 79%, the Trappists 78%, the Marist Fathers 77%, the Discalced Mercedarians 76%, the Sulpicians 71%, the Marist Brothers 70%, the White Fathers 68%, the Brothers of the Sacred Heart 63%, the Brothers of St. John of God 63%, the Jesuits 62%, the Menesians 61%, the Montfortians 60%, the Passionists 59%, the Servites 57%, the Franciscans 56%, the Carthusians and the Oblates of Mary Immaculate 55%, the Third Order Regular of St. Francis 53%, the Congregation of the Mission, the Augustinians of the Assumption, the Mercedarians, the Redemptorists, the Sacramentines, the Society of St. Paul and the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart 52%, the Augustinians 49%, the Benedictines, the Dominicans and the Piarists 48%, the Spiritans 47%, the Minims 46%, the Legionaries of Christ 43%, the Salesians 41%, the Augustinian Recollects and the Camaldolese 40%, the Capuchins 39%.
These are the ones that have no remedy or whose situation is extremely complicated. And it will be impossible if this situation continues to worsen in the coming years.

Below are the percentages of losses as of January 1, 2025:

With 81%: La Salle

With 80%: Marianists

With 78%: Discalced Mercedarians, Marist Fathers and Trappists

With 72%: Marist Brothers

With 68%: White Fathers

With 67%: Brothers of the Sacred Heart

With 63%: Brothers of St. John of God

With 62%: Jesuits and Menesians

With 60%: Passionists and Montfortians

With 58%: Servites

With 57%: Franciscans

With 53%: Redemptorists and Third Order Regular of St. Francis

With 52%: Lazarists, Mercedarians, Society of St. Paul and Missionaries of the Sacred Heart

With 50%: Benedictines and Minims

With 49%: Augustinians

With 48%: Dominicans and Piarists

With 47%: Sacramentines

With 46%: Spiritans

With 43%: Legionaries of Christ

With 41%: Salesians and Amigonians

With 40%: Camaldolese of Monte Corona

With 39%: Capuchins

With 38%: Reparators or Dehonians

With 35%: Pavonians

With 34%: Discalced Carmelites

With 33%: Sons of the Holy Family

With 32%: Trinitarians

With 26%: Parish Cooperators of Christ the King

With 24%: Identes

With 21%: Conventual Franciscans

With 19%: Guanellians

With 17%: Camillians

With 13%: Combonians

With 9%: Discalced Carmelites and Cistercians

With 2%: Divine Word