But look at the positive side: could we really take care of 105 million? (I am being facetious, of course.) But even with 75 million Catholics we are clustering parishes, at least in the East. Yet why the Bishops won't ordain married men ("proven" worthy, as Francis suggests, encourages), won't ordain women deacons (or promote it), more lay deacons?? Why, why? Who knows. But our Bishops -- the National Conference of  Bishops -- won't budge on this. How can they do that? Because they can. Purely and simply.