The Church of St. Luke

Once an “ordained” Satanic priest, Bartolo Longo underwent one of the most dramatic conversions in recent Church history. He was canonized a saint on Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. / Credit: Courtney Mares/CNA

Rome Newsroom, Oct 28, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Newly canonized St. Bartolo Longo was a former Satanist “priest” whose remarkable conversion led him to create a Shrine to Our Lady of the Rosary.

Vladimir Putin, president of Russia expressed concern about the ongoing internal problem of “falling birth rates” in October 2025. / Credit: FotoField/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 27, 2025 / 17:08 pm (CNA).

President Vladimir Putin is voicing concern about the ongoing internal problem of “falling birth rates” in his own country and suggesting state action to address the issue.

The St. Paul Center in Steubenville, Ohio, is a nonprofit research and educational institute that promotes life-transforming Scripture study from the heart of the Church. The center serves clergy and laity, students, and scholars with research and study tools. / Credit: St. Paul Center

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 27, 2025 / 15:53 pm (CNA).

The St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology is launching a new Bible study program to help Catholics prepare for the Advent and Christmas seasons. 

The Bible study, titled “Bible Across America,” is set to begin Nov. 5 and aims to gather Catholics “around God’s Word to prayerfully study Scripture, grow in discipleship, and build one another up in the Lord,” the organization announced. The course represents the latest addition to the St. Paul Center, whose offerings include online courses, academic books on Scripture and theology, and in-person events for clergy and laity across the country.

Based in Steubenville, Ohio, the St. Paul Center is an independent, nonprofit research and educational institution dedicated, according to its website, to promoting “life-transforming Scripture study from the heart of the Church” and through its programming seeks “to raise up a new generation of priests who are fluent in the Bible and laypeople who are biblically literate.”

The initiative builds on the center’s previous “Journey Through Scripture” video Bible studies, which have as their goal empowering “Catholics and Christians across North America to experience an ‘Emmaus moment,’ encountering Christ in the pages of sacred Scripture and through the doctrine of the Catholic Church.”

In preparation for Advent and Christmas, the new course will help Catholics understand “who Christ is as ‘Teacher and Lord’ (Jn 13:13).” The Bible study will include seven weekly sessions starting Nov. 5 that will each focus on a different theme including the Infancy Narratives, exorcisms, the Sermon on the Mount, the healing of the synagogue ruler’s daughter, Martha and Mary, the Lost Sheep and Luke 15, and the Transfiguration of Jesus. 

The center’s “Bible Across America” initiative is billing itself as “a nationwide Catholic Bible movement,” encouraging Catholics to create and organize Bible study groups with their families, friends, or fellow parishioners. Leaders can register with St. Paul Center to receive a guide to help conduct discussions with their groups. Use of the Ignatius Catholic Study Bible, which was released last year and whose general editor is St. Paul Center founder Scott Hahn, is also being promoted as part of the initiative.

As “Bible Across America” is expected to simultaneously welcome thousands of participants, St. Paul Center anticipated it will be the “largest Bible study” in the United States. The organization is working in partnership with other Catholic organizations on the project, including Hallow, FOCUS, and Mount St. Mary’s University. The sessions are slated to include insights from Benedictine Father Boniface Hicks, Heather Khym, Shane Owens, Katie McGrady, and Alex Jones, the CEO of Hallow.

“By witnessing the transformative power of studying Scripture in community, ‘Bible Across America’ will inspire Catholics across the nation to introduce communal Scripture study in their own homes and parishes,” the center noted.

Gertrude Detzel (1903–1971), born in the Caucasus region of the Russian Empire, was later deported to Kazakhstan and became a key figure in the underground Catholic community. / Credit: Diocese of Karaganda

Vatican City, Oct 27, 2025 / 15:23 pm (CNA).

Gertrude Detzel kept the Catholic faith alive in Soviet Kazakhstan through decades of persecution. Her sainthood cause has now reached Rome.

A portrait of a young St. John Henry Newman hangs in Cathedral High School, part of the Ordinariate of the Chair of St. Peter, in Houston. / Credit: Amira Abuzeid/CNA

CNA Staff, Oct 27, 2025 / 13:00 pm (CNA).

Pope Leo XIV will name St. John Henry Newman a patron saint of Catholic education in a document to be published on Oct. 28 for the 60th anniversary of Gravissimum Educationis, the Second Vatican Council’s declaration on Christian education.

He will become an official co-patron saint of education, alongside St. Thomas Aquinas, during the Vatican’s Jubilee of the World of Education from Oct. 27 to Nov. 1. He will also be declared a doctor of the Church by Pope Leo at the jubilee’s closing Mass on Nov. 1, the solemnity of All Saints.

Newman will join a list of several other Catholic saints considered patrons of other aspects of education. Get to know them here:

St. Thomas Aquinas

A scholar and doctor of the Church, St. Thomas Aquinas is considered one of the Catholic Church’s greatest theologians and philosophers. He is the patron saint of Catholic colleges and universities, teachers, philosophers, theologians, and students. 

St. Albert the Great

A teacher of St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Albert the Great was a provincial of the Dominican order and is also a doctor of the Church. He is the patron saint of science students due to his belief that science and faith are compatible.

St. Joseph of Cupertino 

A Conventual Franciscan Friar, St. Joseph of Cupertino was an Italian mystic who was known for struggling with his studies. He is a patron saint of students, especially those preparing to take exams.

St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle 

St. Jean-Baptiste de La Salle was a French priest, educational reformer, and founder of the Institute of Brothers of the Christian Schools. He is a patron saint of teachers.

St. Scholastica

St. Scholastica is the foundress of the women’s branch of Benedictine monasticism, which focuses on prayer, work, and study. Her name also means “scholar.” Therefore, she is a patron saint of education.

St. Francis de Sales

Known for his influential writings on spiritual direction and formation, St. Francis de Sales is the patron saint of writers, journalists, the Catholic press, and educators.

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is considered the foundress of the Catholic school system in the United States, making her a patron of Catholic schools. In 1810, she opened the first Catholic girls school in Emmitsburg, Maryland. It was also here where she founded the first American congregation of religious sisters, the Sisters of Charity.

St. John Neumann

A member of the Redemptorist order, St. John Neumann was the fourth bishop of Philadelphia. While he was there, he founded the first Catholic diocesan school in the United States, which made him a patron saint of Catholic education.

St. Gemma Galgani 

St. Gemma Galgani is considered a patron saint of students because she was an exceptional and diligent student who excelled in her education despite her fragile health.

St. Catherine of Alexandria

A fourth-century noblewoman and scholar, St. Catherine of Alexandria is a patron saint of students, teachers, and librarians due to her incredible skills in debate, which led to many conversions among pagan philosophers.

null / Credit: Leigh Prather/Shutterstock

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Oct 27, 2025 / 12:00 pm (CNA).

About three-fourths of states scored less than 50% on Napa Legal Institute’s religious freedom index, which measures how well states safeguard religious liberty for faith-based organizations.

The “2025 Religious Freedom Percentage” was part of Napa’s Faith & Freedom Index published Oct. 27. Napa Legal Institute is an organization that assists faith-based nonprofits with legal compliance. 

Alabama scored highest, and Michigan scored lowest.

The report measures a state’s religious liberty in several ways, such as whether faith-based organizations have access to the same public programs and funds as nonreligious groups, whether the state has adopted stronger protections than guaranteed by the First Amendment, and whether employers can operate their organizations consistent with their religious beliefs.

It also considers whether the states protect the free exercise of religion under normal conditions and under a state of emergency such as when states restricted access to religious services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Most states had subpar scores, with about three-fourths failing to reach the 50% mark. Six states scored below the 30% mark, and another 19 states and Washington, D.C., were below 40%. An additional 13 states had scores below 50%. 

Seven states scored between 50% and 60% and another three states scored between 60% and 70%. Only two states scored higher than 70%: Kansas at 79% and Alabama at 86%.

“Faith-based organizations must be free to manage their internal affairs in accordance with their sincerely held religious beliefs and in ways that further their religious mission,” the report stated.

‘Worst’ states for religious liberty

The worst state for religious freedom was Michigan, which scored 22%, according to Napa. The Great Lakes state was closely followed by Delaware at 25%, Washington at 26%, Maryland at 27%, and Nevada and Hawaii at 29%.

Napa’s report called Michigan “one of the worst places to operate faith-based nonprofits in the United States.” The report cited reasons such as not exempting religious employers from nondiscrimination laws that might implicate their faith and unequal access to public programs and benefits.

In Delaware, religious employers have some protection from nondiscrimination laws implicating faith issues, but not in all situations. The state also does not adequately ensure equal access to public programs and funds, the report said.

For Washington, the report expressed concern about limited freedom for religious employers and unequal access to public programs and funds. In Maryland, the report notes a burdensome audit requirement to keep a charitable tax status and a lack of nondiscrimination exemptions.

“Laws have been enacted that impose restrictions on the religious freedom of nonprofits that serve the public,” the report notes, in reference to low-scoring states. “Such laws threaten to exclude faith-based institutions from the marketplace of charitable services and limit the access of vulnerable populations to needed services.”

Alabama ranks first

Alabama received, by far, the best score at 86%, and the report considers it “one of the best places to operate a faith-based nonprofit in the United States.”

The report said Alabama adopted a constitutional amendment to build on the religious liberty protections of the First Amendment. The state provides exemptions to nondiscrimination laws when faith is implicated and allows equal access to public programs. Still, the report noted a key concern: the Blaine Amendment, which restricts access to public funds.

In Kansas, which scored 79%; Mississippi, which scored 67%; and Georgia, which scored 67%, the states provide exemptions for nondiscrimination laws when faith is implicated and ensure access to public programs. However, they all lack proper access to public funds and have mixed scores on free exercise protections, the report said.

Other states ranking highly in Napa’s report included Florida at 63%, and New Hampshire and Indiana at 59%.

“Even in states with cultures friendly to religious organizations, it is worthwhile to identify areas where there is room to improve the states’ friendliness to faith-based organizations by passing more favorable laws,” the report notes.

Father Vladimír Jukl who was born 100 years ago, was a secretly ordained Catholic priest in communist Czechoslovakia, and endured imprisonment and torture. He was a key figure in the underground Catholic resistance and inspired thousands through faith, courage, and quiet leadership. / Credit: Karol Dubovan

Rome, Italy, Oct 27, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

A hundred years ago, Vladimír Jukl was born — a secretly ordained Catholic priest in communist Czechoslovakia who endured imprisonment and torture.

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Rather than educating students to "become experts in infinitesimal details of reality," Pope Leo XIV said, Catholic universities must help them have a broader vision, one that holds together faith, spirituality and knowledge of the world.

Catholic education should give students an approach that "does not oversimplify questions, that does not fear doubts, that overcomes intellectual laziness, and thus also defeats spiritual atrophy," the pope told students from the pontifical universities of Rome during an evening Mass Oct. 27.

He prayed that their studies would help them "express, explain, deepen and proclaim the reasons for the hope that is in us." 

The pontifical universities and institutes in Rome enroll more than 15,000 students from some 125 nations; they study theology and philosophy, but also liturgy, sacred music, communications, canon law, archaeology and other subjects.

Before the Mass, Pope Leo walked to a table set in front of the altar and signed his apostolic letter commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Second Vatican Council's Declaration on Christian Education, "Gravissimum Educationis."

To the applause of the students, the pope held up the document after signing it, then walked down the central aisle of the basilica to vest for Mass. The Vatican was expected to publish the document Oct. 28; its title in Italian is "Disegnare Nuove Mappe di Speranza," which could be "Drawing New Maps of Hope" in English.

In his homily at the Mass, Pope Leo prayed that the students, researchers and academics would be given "the grace of an overall vision, a gaze capable of grasping the horizon, of going beyond." 

The day's Gospel reading, Luke 13:10-17, recounted the story of Jesus healing a woman who for 18 years had been crippled, "bent over, completely incapable of standing erect."

In that condition, the pope said, the woman would not have been able to look up; her vision would have been limited to herself and the ground.

When a person, like that woman, "is unable to see beyond himself -- beyond his own experience, ideas and convictions, beyond his own frameworks -- he remains imprisoned, enslaved, unable to form an independent judgment," the pope said.

"This healed woman obtains hope, because she can finally lift up her gaze and see something new -- see differently," he said. "This happens especially when we encounter Christ in our lives: We open ourselves to a truth capable of transforming life, of drawing us out of ourselves, of freeing us from our inward curvatures."

Study at a Catholic university, he said, should help students look up, "toward God, toward others, toward the mystery of life."

Learning facts is not the point, the pope said. 

"Looking to the example of men and women such as Augustine, Thomas Aquinas, Teresa of Ávila, Edith Stein and many others who were able to integrate research into their lives and their spiritual journeys," he said, "we too are called to carry forward intellectual work and the search for truth without separating them from life."

What students learn in the university, and at every level of their educational journey, he said, should not remain "an abstract intellectual exercise, but become a reality capable of transforming life -- of deepening our relationship with Christ, of helping us better understand the mystery of the church and of making us bold witnesses of the Gospel in society."

Catholic education, he said, "is truly an act of love" that raises people up and helps them in the search for meaning. It is the way to give people "the greatest gift of all: to know that we are not alone, and that we belong to someone," to God, "who loves us and has a plan of love for our lives."
 

Jonatan Medina, son of evangelical pastors, shares how he converted to the Catholic faith. / Credit: EWTN News

ACI Prensa Staff, Oct 26, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

Jonatan Medina Espinal is a young Catholic influencer who, as the son of evangelical pastors, was considered unlikely to embrace the Catholic faith.

Cardinal József Mindszenty in 1974. / Credit: Mieremet, Rob/Anefo, CC BY-SA 3.0 NL, via Wikimedia Commons

Rome, Italy, Oct 26, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Venerable Cardinal József Mindszenty died in exile 50 years ago and became an enduring symbol of resistance to totalitarian regimes.