While the Catholic population in the United States fell last year, it increased 1,121 in the Archdiocese of Atlanta to a new high of 53,329 out of a total population of 2,584,300.

Also, while priests ranks were declining nationwide, they rose from 114 in Atlanta to 119: brothers decreased from 21 to 19; seminarians rose from 33 to 34; students in the two archdiocesan high schools dropped from 1,233 to 1,180 and in Marist they rose from 486 to 498; elementary school students rose from 5,279 to 5,328, and total students under Catholic instruction increased from 16,072 to 16,423.

The number of teaching nuns rose from 126 to 142 and of lay teachers from 99 to 153.

Baptisms decreased from 1,857 to 1,705, and marriages from 643 to 477. Deaths rose from 253 to 579.