Denver, Colo., Aug 18, 2025 /
06:00 am
The Archdiocese of Denver asked parishioners to share the names of young men they thought would make good priests.
The result? More than 900 names.
But names aren’t the only outcome of the Called By Name campaign, which launched in May.
The monthslong campaign — a collaboration between the Denver Archdiocese and Vianney Vocations, a group that supports vocations efforts in Catholic dioceses around the U.S. — has also sparked a “real openness” to vocations in the hearts of young men in the community, said Denver Vocations Director Father Jason Wallace.
The campaign, he told CNA, has “created a culture” in which speaking about vocations is becoming “more acceptable.”
“It’s not something like, ‘Oh, that’s something somebody else does,’ or you have to receive a vision by an angel to be a priest,” he said.
After the campaign, Wallace noticed that some young men who hadn’t wanted to become priests felt a call to look at priesthood more seriously.
“Even men that I’ve already known who before were not open to it, all of a sudden are like, ‘Hey, Father, can we set up a meeting?’” Wallace said.
The call to priesthood is “life-changing,” Wallace noted, and confirmation from your community can be that final push.
“All of a sudden, their name gets submitted and they get a letter from [the] archbishop,” Wallace said. “They’re like, ‘Wow, somebody else actually saw in me what I had an inkling could actually be true.’”
Denver Archbishop Samuel Aquila shared his gratitude and excitement for the potential future priests.
“Thanks to the dedicated witness of my brother priests and the prayerful support of our archdiocesan faithful, we received more than 900 names of young men who could make good, happy, and holy priests here in northern Colorado,” the archbishop said.
“I am grateful that our faithful recognized this pastoral potential in so many young men in our archdiocese,” he added.
The nationwide priest shortage affects dioceses everywhere. Seminarian enrollment in the United States has been on a decadeslong decline as fewer young men seek out the priesthood and the number of active priests in the U.S. continues to dwindle. In 2025, about 400 men were set to be ordained to the priesthood in the U.S.
The need is great in Denver, according to recent data shared by the archdiocese.
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“Our archdiocese needs more priests to shepherd, to father, our parish communities by offering the sacraments, especially the most holy Eucharist, and calling each of us to deeper conversion and encounter with Jesus Christ,” Aquila said.
The archdiocese, which serves about 600,000 Catholics, has only 148 archdiocesan priests in active ministry. More than a third of the archdiocese’s parishes are served by only one priest.
“This percentage would be much higher were it not for the generous priests from other parts of the country and world who make up for our shortfall of vocations,” read the data analysis by Denver Catholic, the archdiocesan news outlet.
Less than half of Denver’s priests were ordained for the archdiocese, and only 14% were born in Colorado.
But amid this, Denver has seen growth. Vocations are blooming in Denver this year in spite of the priest shortage. Dioceses around the U.S. tell a similar story — more seminarians are cropping up.
This year’s seminary class of 23 men was the largest in recent memory, according to Wallace — nearly doubling last year’s class size.
Wallace credits vocations as the fruit of faithfulness throughout the diocese — from the priests to the archbishop, from youth groups to Catholic schools, from parish ministry to Catholic families.
“When you go to get a crop, you could say you have one person that sows the seed, another person who cultivates the seed, and then somebody who has to reap and gather,” he said.
When asked why this year made a record-breaking class, Wallace didn’t know whom to credit — except, maybe, the Lord.
“We live in the mystical body of the Church, and this year is a jubilee year,” he reflected. “And in jubilee years, traditionally, is it time for forgiving offenses and sharing your prosperity and blessing people with special graces.”
“So perhaps Our Lord is blessing us in that regard with a lot of men for the seminary,” he continued.
The archbishop and Wallace have each sent a personal letter to the 900 men. The campaign isn’t over yet, and Wallace anticipates another 100 names.
Aquila shared his enthusiasm for his own vocation to the priesthood and for the campaign.
“The priesthood is a beautiful vocation, a pure gift, and I am grateful to the Father for calling me to be his priest and his bishop,” he said.
“I pray that these 900 men — and many more — will draw near to Jesus Christ, the vine, and abide in relationship with him,” the archbishop continued.
The men are invited to attend a “Come and See” at the seminary later this month, where the archbishop will give a talk and the men will have the opportunity to meet the rector of the seminary and spend time with the seminarians. Of the men the archdiocese reached out to, more than 70 signed up.
In a culture that tries to be “self-sufficient,” these young men are pursuing what God created them for, Wallace said.
“One thing that stands out to me is how open these young men are and how sincere they are about discovering what God created them for,” he said.
Aquila offered his prayers for the young men as they are discerning their vocations and asked the faithful to join in with him.
“As they come to know the Lord more personally, may he guide them to consider what is being asked of them,” Aquila said.
The Called By Name campaign will also continue in the form of discernment groups as well as other resources offered by the archdiocese.
“Please pray with me that they might respond faithfully, generously, and courageously — all so that, in Jesus Christ, all might be rescued and have abundant life, for the glory of the Father,” Aquila said.
Kate Quiñones is a staff writer for Catholic News Agency and a fellow of the College Fix. She has been published by the Wall Street Journal, the Denver Catholic Register, and CatholicVote, and she graduated from Hillsdale College. She lives in Colorado with her husband.
