St. Louis Review

10/10/2025

About 20 immigrants from parishes in the Archdiocese of St. Louis shared their personal experiences of fear and faith with Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski on a recent Tuesday evening.

Several people told the archbishop they have been making plans with their children about what to do if they, the parents, are suddenly detained. Many spoke of their fear of driving, including taking their kids to school.

“What was very important to me is to realize that there are many frightened people in our nation, but the Church is here to care for them, and so I wanted, in my presence with them and listening to their stories, to let them know of the Church’s concern, love and embracing of them,” Archbishop Rozanski said in an interview afterward. “…Hearing those stories really just touches my heart, but also affirms for me that the Church needs to be where people are hurting.”

Many shared stories of getting involved in parish life and working hard to contribute to their communities, he noted. Often, people who haven’t had the same experiences can get so lost in politics that they have a difficult time embracing who our brothers and sisters really are, he added.

“It’s that jump to the realization that the Church is here to take care of people, totally outside of politics,” he said.

The archbishop met with about 20 people to listen to their stories, offer support

10/09/2025

If we find ourselves in the midst of hardship or suffering in our lives, it’s imperative that we open our hearts to God in those moments, writes Father Kavanagh. Understandably, one would be tempted to do the exact opposite and recoil from God, thinking that we know how God should act or have reacted to a situation, but let’s instead pray for the grace to run to the Father, not away from Him.

I struggle with understanding and trusting in God’s plan, especially amid suffering, do you have any advice?

10/09/2025

Many Christians “need to go back and re-read the Gospel” because they have forgotten that faith and love for the poor go hand in hand, Pope Leo XIV said in his first major papal document, “Dilexi Te” (“I Have Loved You”), released today.

“Love for the poor — whatever the form their poverty may take — is the evangelical hallmark of a Church faithful to the heart of God,” the pope wrote in the apostolic exhortation “to all Christians on love for the poor.”

The document was begun by Pope Francis, Pope Leo said, but he added to it and wanted to issue it near the beginning of his papacy “since I share the desire of my beloved predecessor that all Christians come to appreciate the close connection between Christ’s love and His summons to care for the poor.”

“I am convinced that the preferential choice for the poor is a source of extraordinary renewal both for the Church and for society,” Pope Leo wrote, “if we can only set ourselves free of our self-centeredness and open our ears to their cry.”

Pope Leo’s ‘Dilexi Te’ is an apostolic exhortation ‘to all Christians on love for the poor’

10/08/2025

A group in the Diocese of Belleville, Illinois, is offering spiritual and emotional support for Catholic single mothers from a variety of backgrounds.

Momentum, which has chapters in the U.S. and Canada, is a recognition of the Church’s pro-life work in walking with moms beyond pregnancy, Belleville member Sarah Surrey said.

The Church “is doing all this pro-life stuff and suggesting in a lot of ways that people keep their kids if they’ve had an unplanned pregnancy,” she said. “Supporting families is bigger than supporting whole families or just supporting women through pregnancy. It’s a whole journey, and I think the Momentum community supports the longevity of that journey.”

The Belleville chapter will host a daylong retreat in November in collaboration with the Respect Life offices of Belleville and St. Louis.

International ministry has chapter in Belleville; retreat to be offered in November

10/07/2025

Father Dennis Doyle, Father Timothy Foley, Msgr. Edmund Griesedieck, Father Thomas Robertson, Father Richard Tillman and Father John E. Vogler are marking the 60th anniversary of their ordination this year: six decades of service in dozens of parishes across the archdiocese.

Read about them and the rest of the priests, deacons and men and women religious celebrating milestone anniversaries this year in our annual Jubilarians section.

Archdiocesan priests Archdiocesan deacons Women religious Adorers of the Blood of Christ Adrian Dominican Sisters Apostles of the Sacred Heart of Jesus

10/05/2025

Sharing the joy of being loved by God despite one’s human flaws is the mission of the Catholic Church, Pope Leo XIV said.

“This is the heart of the mission of the Church: not to administer power over others, but to communicate the joy of those who are loved precisely when they did not deserve it,” the pope said Oct. 1 during his weekly general audience in St. Peter’s Square.

At audience Oct. 1, Pope Leo reflected on Christ’s resurrection as the source of Christian faith and hope

10/04/2025

It likely goes without saying that crazy things are happening in the world. It isn’t a new occurrence for people to believe violence solves a problem and to act on that.

We have no reason to give up hope or to act with cynicism, as that only adds to the problem. Instead, we should use our gifts to assist God in building up the kingdom of God here on earth as it is in heaven, writes Father Wester.

27th Sunday in Ordinary Time | When we feel powerless, we are tempted to turn toward violence or despair

10/03/2025

Pilgrims wound along quiet river paths and prairie trails near the Audubon Center at Riverlands in West Alton, tuning into the natural world and its Creator.

“If we were on the great pilgrimage of the Camino de Santiago in Spain, we might stop at various holy sites, churches, monasteries, places where people had prayed and lived their lives and made that holy,” pilgrimage organizer Celeste Mueller told the group. “Our conviction is that the sites we will see, the places where we will stop, the land we are walking on, are those sacred sites. As pilgrims, we come to them with reverence and with an expectation that that encounter might change something in us.”

The weekend was an event of Pilgrims of Hope for Creation, a collaborative national effort by several organizations to encourage local Catholic communities to host pilgrimages to renew relationships with God and the earth during the Jubilee Year of Hope. The local planning team developed the Sept. 27-28 pilgrimage around the theme of water, particularly highlighting the fragility and beauty of the rivers and wetlands near the confluence of the Mississippi and Missouri rivers.

Archdiocesan news Pilgrims tap into connection with the natural world on Pilgrimage of Hope for Creation Photos by Jacob Wiegand | [email protected] Celeste Mueller, left, and Andrea Callard walked along a trail during a Pilgrimage of Hope for Creation on Sept. 27 at the Riverlands Migratory....

10/03/2025

Crowds gathered at Powell Hall for the premiere of “Soul On Fire” featuring the story of St. Louis Catholic John O’Leary’s survival following severe burns as a child. “Soul On Fire” hits theatres Oct. 10.

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Read more about the film here: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/soul-on-fire-movie-is-a-story-of-everyday-heroes-admist-tragedy/

10/02/2025

Memorizing the greatest amount of information is not what makes someone a great minister. The way we listen and live in love help us be great teachers, writes Father Ritter.

How are priests and deacons supposed to exercise the office of teaching?

10/01/2025

A sign at the entrance to the Carmelite Monastery off Clayton Road invites: “All are welcome to come pray with us.”

This year, that can earn the faithful a plenary indulgence. The Carmel of Saint Joseph in Ladue is one of nine pilgrimage sites in the archdiocese designated by Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski for the Jubilee Year of Hope 2025.

Carmel of St. Joseph is one of nine designated Jubilee Year sites in the archdiocese

09/30/2025

As Lance Shockley's ex*****on date approaches on Oct. 14, he's praying for more time to continue sharing God's love with others.

His own faith was kickstarted by a Kairos International Prison Ministry retreat in 2010, where the retreat team showed him unconditional love, he said.

Shockley’s is the first ex*****on scheduled under the administration of Gov. Mike Kehoe, a Catholic. The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the death penalty is inadmissible in all cases because it is a violation of a person’s inherent dignity (CCC 2267).

Catholics serving in prison ministry, Shockley's family and fellow inmates describe Shockley's service and evangelization over the past decade and half.

“One man, the judge, imposed a death sentence on Lance. So my hope is that one man, the governor, can (give) clemency after reviewing the case,” Deacon Robert Shipp said. “And not only for Lance…but abolish the death penalty. There’s no reason for it. They’re incarcerated for life, and they can do good. Lance is proof of that.”

Archdiocesan news A shoe repairman with a ‘servant’s heart’ Courtesy of Summer Shockley Lance Shockley prayed with family members during a visit at Potosi Correctional Center earlier this year. Awaiting ex*****on, Lance Shockley prays for more time to ‘recount the deeds of the Lord’ Laura ...