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Among the seven saints canonized on October 19, 2025, Bartolo Longo (1841-1926) stands out for having undergone a dramatic conversion story. He grew up in a Catholic household and studied law at the University of Naples. He went from being a practicing Catholic to taking part in anti-papal demonstrations to becoming an atheist, then a Satanist, even to being “ordained” to the Satanist priesthood

Pope Leo XIV canonized seven new Saints in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, October 19. Among the seven was Saint Peter To Rot (1912-1945) who was the son of a village chief and his wife who were among the first baptized Catholics on New Britain Island, which is part of Papua New Guinea. As a boy Peter became a faithful altar server at both Sunday and daily Mass. When the Pastor of the Mission Church noticed Peter’s great interest in religion, he suggested to Peter’s father that perhaps Peter had a vocation to the priesthood. His father disagreed but gave consent for Peter to become a catechist. Peter went for studies at St. Paul’s College. In 1934 he received his catechist’s cross from the bishop and returned to his village to assist his pastor.

As the Church celebrates World Mission Sunday 2025 today, the late Pope Francis gave us a powerful theme that resonates deeply in this Jubilee Year: “Missionaries of Hope Among All Peoples.” In his message, the Pope Francis reminded us that hope is at the heart of the Christian mission, calling every baptized person to be “messengers and builders of hope” in a world that often finds itself overshadowed by uncertainty and despair.

On September 7, 2025, Pope Leo XIV canonized Carlo Acutis and Pier Giorgio Frassati.  Today I want to write about Pier Giorgio. 

In addition to being Respect Life Month, October is also National Domestic Violence Awareness Month.  Several years ago, the U.S. Department of Justice estimated that 1.3 million women and 835,000 men were victims of physical violence by a partner every year.