St. Louis Review

06/23/2026

Why did Jesus pick Peter to lead the Church instead of someone like ‘the beloved disciple,’ who seems to have a special closeness to Jesus?

While I will not claim to know Jesus’ mindset in choosing Peter as the “Rock” upon which He built the Church, I suspect that Peter was chosen because he had a special charism, a spiritual talent given by God for service.

Peter, the first pope, stands as a shining example of community leadership. From the first days of his discipleship, he seems to have naturally spoken as a representative for his fellow apostles. This is often what gets him in trouble — he says out loud what the others are afraid to!

Then, in the fullness of time, he acts as an institutional leader, serving on decision-making bodies such as the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) to bring discussion to a close and rally the whole Church around a chosen teaching.

We all have different charisms that are expressions of the Holy Spirit at work in us. These charisms do not make us better or worse, but they do suit us for particular types of ministry.

Read Father Schroeder's column: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/dear-father-st-peter-is-an-example-of-embracing-our-charism/

06/23/2026

Camp Cana, Life Teen's newest summer camp, is in full swing in Ste. Genevieve County.

Life Teen is an independent Catholic organization that primarily offers youth ministry programming for middle and high school students. In addition to Camp Cana, the organization has two camp sites in Georgia and summer camp programs in Texas and California.

This summer, the camp will welcome 41 parish groups, 12 of which are from Missouri. In the fall, full-time Life Teen missionaries will be assigned to Camp Cana to serve people who come to the camp year-round.

On Aug. 15, Life Teen International closed on the sale of Chaumette Vineyards and Winery near Ste. Genevieve. The purchase came after actively looking for property in the area for the past five years, Life Teen chief advancement officer Steve Allgeyer said.

Camp Cana director Molly McLaughlin was hired last fall and has been working ever since to transform the former Chaumette Vineyards and Winery into a property with a gathering space, dining hall, ropes course, paintball area, and more.

A tabernacle was installed in the formerly Episcopal chapel, which was then consecrated as a Catholic space, taking the freshly canonized millennial-teen St. Carlo Acutis as its patron (and housing a first-class relic of St. Carlo’s hair).

The gathering area was previously part of a large ballroom event space, Molly explained.

“This room used to be a place where people partied and celebrated weddings. Now it’s a place where a teen’s life is about to change,” Molly said. “Having that thought makes everything worth it. It’s so life-giving to see this place full of people.”

Learn more about Camp Cana: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/a-spiritual-hub-to-encounter-the-lord/

📷️: Jacob Wiegand

06/22/2026

Tickets for the beatification Mass of Fulton Sheen will be available beginning at 10 a.m. Tuesday, June 23.

Archbishop Sheen will be beatified on Sept. 24 at The Dome at America’s Center in Downtown St. Louis.

Tickets for the beatification Mass and other events will be available through the Archbishop Fulton Sheen Foundation website at celebratesheen.com.

“We encourage you to register as early as possible. While we have worked diligently to accommodate the many pilgrims expected to travel from across the United States and around the world, demand is anticipated to be significant for several events,” Peoria Bishop Louis Tylka said in a June 21 letter.

In addition to the beatification Mass, the Diocese of Peoria is inviting pilgrims to participate in prayerful events in the surrounding days.

More information on tickets and event registration: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/fulton-sheen-beatification-tickets-available/

06/22/2026

History whispers to us of God’s purposes for humankind.

Contemporary history continues to whisper to us of God’s purposes. We must be careful: They are only whispers. Still, the same God who was at work in biblical history, and is at work in our own lives, is also at work in the world.

As we look back on the history of America, I think there are lessons to be learned about the ways we have turned toward or away from God in our “experiment in ordered liberty.”

So, as we look around at the issues of our own time, we can be just as sure that there will be consequences of turning toward or away from the Lord. History will continue to whisper to us of God’s purposes.

Read this week's Serve the Lord with Gladness column by Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/serve-the-lord-with-gladness-consequences-turning-toward-or-away-from-the-lord/

06/20/2026

Our prayer life and our spiritual existence is meant to be that daily deepening of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, writes Father Wester. We find in Him a safe and secure place to bring our whole life, a place where we can be free from the noise of gossip and just be at peace with Him.

12th Sunday in Ordinary Time | We can minimize the effects of others gossipping about us when we have a solid foundation in God, who loves us unconditionally

06/20/2026

On the feast of Corpus Christi, parishioners and visitors to the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France (Old Cathedral) brought the Blessed Sacrament to the Gateway Arch with a eucharistic procession.

The Corpus Christi procession is a centuries-old Catholic tradition that publicly celebrates the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist.

“The Eucharist is not merely a symbol or a reminder of Jesus — it is Jesus Himself, His Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity, given to us as food for our journey to eternal life,” said Father Nicholas Smith, rector of the Old Cathedral.

Read our coverage of the procession here: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/jesus-under-the-arch/

06/18/2026

“Human dignity has no passport and does not lose its value when crossing a border," said Pope Leo XIV in the final days of his weeklong trip to Spain, during which he delivered some of the strongest language of his pontificate on the issue.

The pope reflected on his trip during his weekly general audience on June 17, noting that one of his most significant impressions came from the Canary Islands, where the issue of migration highlighted challenges facing Europe and what he described as a Christian path toward a “civilization of love.”

While he acknowledged that migration is “complex and requires organic and coordinated action plans,” Pope Leo noted that it also challenges Christians to “reread the Gospel in today’s world, exchanging with each other the gifts of our respective cultures.”

Read more of the pope's message at stlouisreview.com: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/popes-message-migration-concerns-challenge-christians-to-reread-gospel/

06/17/2026

There is no loss more painful than the death of a child.

Especially in cases of miscarriage, the pain of the loss has been compounded at times by confusion over what happens to the soul of an unborn child who has died.

In the Middle Ages, most theologians proposed the concept of “limbo” as a solution. In the modern era, we have a deeper understanding of God’s salvific mercy.

The Vatican II document “Lumen Gentium” teaches that those in other religions and even those who have not arrived at an explicit belief in God can be saved by the grace of Christ by striving to do His will as it is known to them through their conscience, and if their lack of belief is through no fault of their own (14-16).

If that is true for them, then it would certainly be true for an unbaptized child who dies in the womb.

Christ died to save us through an act of unconditional love, and no one is excluded from heaven on a technicality.

Read the full explanation by Father Scott Jones: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/dear-father-what-happens-to-babies-souls-who-die-before-birth/

06/15/2026

Reconciliation comes through the love of Jesus — not trying to earn it on our own.

How many of us have tried to live our lives, becoming more and more perfect, believing that our perfection is our goodness and reconciles us to God?

We could live our lives looking over our shoulders and wondering if God loves us, or whether we are reconciled to Him. However, this kind of discipleship causes anxiety and frustration.

In this weekend’s letter from St. Paul, we are reminded of that truth. We are reconciled by God’s action, even while we are His enemies.

As we begin our Ordinary Time of the Church year, the Church offers us an incredible renewal of the promise and a reminder of God’s relationship with us. We have to trust that we have been reconciled with God and that His love is unconditional.

Want to read Father Don Wester's full Sunday Scriptures reflection? Head to our website: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/sunday-scriptures-reconciliation-with-god-comes-through-love-of-jesus/

06/13/2026

Happy Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus!

Yesterday, the U.S. bishops consecrated the United States to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. Throughout the month of June, Catholics around the world continue to honor the Sacred Heart, reflecting on Christ's love and mercy for humanity.

Most Sacred Heart of Jesus, have mercy on us!

Want to learn how members of the Archdiocese of St. Louis are deepening their devotion to the Sacred Heart? Check out our story: https://www.stlouisreview.com/story/sharing-the-heart-of-jesus/

Artwork of the Most Sacred Heart by Lydia Henke.