Conservatism, Prayer, and Flourishing Among Catholic Priests.

This article examines the relationships among well-being, theological orientation, and prayer in a nationally representative sample of approximately 2,980 Roman Catholic priests in the United States. Well-being is measured using the Harvard Flourishing Index (HFI), and theological orientation is self-identified along a conservative-to-liberal spectrum. Findings indicate that prayer has a strong, independent positive association with flourishing across all domains, while theologically conservative priests report higher flourishing, particularly in meaning and purpose, character and virtue, and happiness, with some of this effect mediated by greater prayer frequency. The study highlights that liberal priests may experience lower well-being and suggests that increased prayer could mitigate this disparity, though causal conclusions are limited by the cross-sectional design. These results have implications for clergy support and future research on the interplay of religiosity, theological orientation, and mental health among professional clergy.