PARIS – As he sat in Church last Sunday afternoon, Guillaume Humblot found himself troubled by the declining number of Catholic priests in France, and asked himself if he was ready to join the cloth.

"There are almost none left," the 31-year-old Humblot said.

On Facebook, Humblot discovered a forum dedicated to people who, like him, are considering the priesthood. The page was part of a campaign, launched by the Catholic Church this month, to attract young people to the priesthood following decades of dwindling ordainments — and amid waves of sexual abuse allegations that have darkened the reputation of the Catholic priest.

There are around 24,000 priests in France today, down from 42,000 in 1975. The number of Catholics entering the diocese has declined as well, from 116 ordainments in 1999 to 89 in 2009.

"There is a crisis in vocation," said French priest and family therapist Stephane Joulain. "We don't have sufficient numbers to renew the number of priests available for ministry today."

"Pourquoi Pas Moi?" or "Why Not Me?" is the slogan for the recruitment campaign — which today may prove a tough question for the Church to answer.

The euro250,000 campaign was launched nationwide on April 20 and will last through May 5. Seventy-thousand postcards depicting a Catholic priest's outfit with a button reading "Jesus is my Boss," pinned to the lapel and the slogan "Why not?" written underneath will be distributed to 600 points throughout France, including restaurants, bars and movie theaters. A Facebook page created April 21 garnered over 1,200 fans within one week.

From Germany to the United States to Brazil, hundreds of victims have come forward in recent months to say they were abused by Catholic priests, plunging the church into a worldwide crisis that has reached Pope Benedict XVI. Many churchgoers say Vatican leadership has not reacted strongly enough.