Vatican to close seminaries? Gauthier Vaillant, La Croix Thursday, November 9, 2017 Archbishop Jorge Carlos Patrón Wong, the official responsible for seminaries at the Congregation for the Clergy, has told France’s bishops that the Vatican believes seminaries with tiny numbers of students [fewer than 20] should be closed or merged. © 2023 The Catholic Thing. All rights reserved. For reprint rights, write to: [email protected] The Catholic Thing is a forum for intelligent Catholic commentary. Opinions expressed by writers are solely their own.