The latest edition of the Pontifical Yearbook shows that while the Church is to shrink in Europe, it continues to expand in Asia and Africa.

The Catholic News Agency (CNA) is reporting that the latest data, published yesterday, shows that there are 1.214 billion Catholics in the world, comprising 18 percent of the world’s population, a number that remained steady in 2011.

The highest number of Catholics receiving baptism in 2011 was found in the Americas at 48.8 percent, followed by Europe at 23.5 percent, Africa at 16 percent, Asia at 10.9 percent and Oceania at just under one percent.

The statistics also show that the priesthood is continuing to enjoy healthy growth in Asia and Africa. There were more than 3,000 new priests ordained on those two continents in 2011, representing an increase of 39.5 percent in Africa and 32 percent in Asia over the last 10 years.

“America remains stationary around an average of 122,000 priests and Europe, in contrast to the global average, has seen a decrease of 9 percent in the past decade,” the Yearbook states.

The number of permanent deacons is also continuing to grow globally, with an increase of over 40 percent in Europe and the United States in the last 10 years.

Even more significant is the growth in the number of professed religious women in Africa and Asia with a 28 percent increase in Africa and an 18 percent increase in Asia over the last 10 years. However, in Europe and the U.S., those numbers continue to show “a strong downward trend” with a decrease of 10 percent during the same time period.

The Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone and the Substitute for General Affairs Archbishop Angelo Becciu presented the Yearbook on May 13 to Pope Francis.

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