This is the Global Catholic Church Hierarchy Statistics for 2021-2022.

The Catholic Church has a hierarchy or structure of positions. This hierarchy clarifies authority in the church's pastoral ministry.

According to the Catholic Faith website, the highest position is the Pope. Below him are cardinals, archbishops, bishops, presbyters, deacons, and the faithful.

A report from *The 2024 Pontifical Yearbook and the 2022 Statistical Yearbook of the Church*, compiled by *Vatican News*, gathers statistics on several parts of this hierarchy.

In 2021, there were 5,340 bishops, increasing by 0.25% to 5,353 bishops in 2022. A bishop is a leader of a local congregation or community, with duties similar to those of a pastor, priest, or rabbi.

There were 407,872 priests in 2021, decreasing by 142 to 407,730 in 2022.

Deacons, however, increased by 2%, from 49,176 in 2021 to 50,150 in 2022. Deacons are members of the diaconate, a ministry of service within the church.

Meanwhile, the number of male Catholic lay people was 49,774 in 2021 and decreased to 49,414 in 2022.

However, the number of female Catholic lay people was higher, at 608,958 in 2021. Unfortunately, this number decreased to 599,228 in 2022, a relative decrease of 1.6%.

"In 2022, their number exceeded the number of priests worldwide by almost 47%, but it is currently experiencing a sharp decline," wrote *Vatican News*, as quoted on Wednesday (4/9/2024).

The number of men preparing to become priests in seminaries was 108,481 in 2022. This is a 1.3% decrease from 2021, when the estimated number was 109,892. A seminary is an educational institution for Catholic priest candidates.

Globally, the number of baptized Catholics reached 1.39 billion in 2022. This is a 1% increase from 2021, when there were 1.37 billion adherents.

Here are the statistics of the global Catholic Church hierarchy 2021-2022:

* Bishops
2021: 5,340
2022: 5,353
* Priests
2021: 407,872
2022: 407,730
* Deacons
2021: 49,176
2022: 50,150
* Male Catholic Lay People
2021: 49,774
2022: 49,414
* Female Catholic Lay People
2021: 608,958
2022: 599,228
* Seminary Members
2021: 109,892
2022: 108,481

(Also read: [Global Catholic Population Increases, Priests Decrease](https://databoks.katadata.co.id/datapublish/2024/09/04/umat-katolik-global-bertambah-pendeta-berkurang))