CHARLOTTE, North Carolina (LifeSiteNews) — The Diocese of Charlotte ordained a record number of men to the priesthood on Saturday, most of whom came from parishes where Bishop Michael Martin recently banned the traditional Latin Mass (TLM) or altar rail use.
Brian Williams shared Sunday on X that Charlotte had just ordained 10 men to the priesthood, “a record high in the diocese’s 54 year history.” Remarkably, eight of these men came from parishes which not long ago either offered the TLM or used altar rails for the reception of Holy Communion.
Yesterday Charlotte ordained 10 men to the priesthood, a record high in the diocese’s 54 year history. Interestingly, 8 of the 10 ordained came from parishes directly impacted by Bishop Martin’s restrictions against the TLM and/or altar rail ban. Meanwhile, two of the mega… pic.twitter.com/dT9l1ZnPMP
— Brian Williams (@LiturgyGuy) May 31, 2026
“Meanwhile, two of the mega parishes in Charlotte, both of which fit the liturgical style Martin favors — including one with over 12,000 registered families — haven’t produced a priestly vocation since well before COVID,” noted Williams. “Will this vocations boom continue in the coming years under Bishop Martin?”
Williams, known as “The Liturgy Guy,” has previously pointed out that the diocese inherited from former Bishop Peter Jugis a relatively high number of vocations to the priesthood, suggesting that this could be related to the prevalent use of altar rails within the diocese.
A recent study points to potential links between liturgical reverence and vocations. It found that traditional liturgical practices related to the Eucharist, such as receiving on the tongue, are tied to greater belief in the Real Presence of Our Lord in the Eucharist.
In fact, Dr. Natalie Lindemann, the study’s author, suggested reinstalling altar rails and offering kneelers during Holy Communion at churches to increase belief in the Real Presence.
Remarkably, Catholics who more often hear consecration bells during Mass show significantly stronger Real Presence beliefs, the study found.
In addition, “Catholics who attend a parish that offers Mass in Latin (versus those who do not) report moderately stronger belief in the Real Presence,” according to the study.
That the traditional Latin Mass fosters priestly vocations to a significantly greater degree than the Novus Ordo Mass is evidenced by the current growth of priestly societies that offer the TLM, which defy a trend of global overall decline in priests.
Despite evidence that the TLM fosters strong Catholic faith, last year, Martin ordered that the Traditional Latin Mass must cease at all four parishes in the Diocese of Charlotte that had continued to offer it, prompting widespread indignation among the faithful, as LifeSite reported. He designated a former Protestant chapel as the sole location at which the traditional liturgy may be celebrated.
The small chapel is located 45-60 minutes from Charlotte, forcing many to drive up to two hours to attend the Latin Mass. Martin acknowledged in a letter to the Charlotte Latin Mass faithful that the chapel “is not meant to be able to accommodate all who are currently attending the TLM.”
Martin then sparked further backlash when he commanded that “the use of altar rails, kneelers, and prie-dieus are not to be utilized for the reception of Communion in public celebrations by January 16, 2026.”
In January, 30 priests – around 40 percent of Charlotte’s diocesan priests – submitted a dubia to the Vatican’s Dicastery for Legislative Texts challenging his ban on altar rails and kneelers.
Martin also faced intense criticism for planned liturgical norms that would have banned the use of Latin and celebrating Mass ad orientem even in the Novus Ordo liturgy, birettas and other traditional or ornate vestments, altar candles, standing altar crucifixes, missal stands, veiling among women assisting at Mass in “any official capacity,” the ringing of bells to announce the entrance of clergy for Mass, and more.
The diocese later said that those ultra-radical guidelines, which violate Vatican documents and even those of the Second Vatican Council, were a “draft” and were revised after pushback.