Cardinal Frank Leo of Toronto will celebrate the 11 a.m. beatification Mass, which will be livestreamed on social media channels and the diocesan website, diosav.org, as well as by EWTN.

Speaking about the Georgia Martyrs with OSV News, Cardinal Leo said, “We all have that same command from the Lord Jesus to go make disciples.”

“The Georgia Martyrs offered more than self-sacrifice,” he said. “They brought it to the next level in terms of self-gift. … It was a choice and a decision to make a gift to the Lord by becoming a gift to his people, who needed to know him and to live for him.”

In 1597, the Spanish Franciscans Pedro de Corpa, Blas Rodríguez de Cuacos, Miguel de Añón, Antonio de Badajoz and Francisco de Veráscola were ministering at five missions along the coast and barrier islands of present-day Georgia when they were killed out of hatred for the faith by a band of Indigenous men between Sept. 14-17.

The friars’ murders were prompted by Father de Corpa angering the heir to a Guale chiefdom, Juanillo, by telling him that as a baptized Christian, he could not follow his culture’s custom and take a second wife. Juanillo and his men killed the priest at a mission near the contemporary city of Eulonia, Georgia, before killing four of the other five Franciscan missionaries ministering in the area. The sixth friar, Francisco de Avila, was kidnapped and tortured for months before being set free. The incident is known as the 1597 Guale Uprising.

At the time, the Spaniards knew the wider coastal area as La Florida, home to the settlement of St. Augustine, established in 1565. By 1595, the friars had established five missions along the coast. Prior to their murders, the six Franciscans appear to have lived among the Guale and other indigenous peoples in peace, without a military presence, for two years.

About a month after the friars were killed, the governor of La Florida led an expedition to locate the martyred friars’ bodies. According to the Diocese of Savannah’s website on the martyrs, there is no record of Friar Francisco’s remains being found. The bodies of Friars Blas, Miguel and Antonio were found buried in shallow graves on St. Catherines Island. The men in the October 1597 expedition reburied them, with the exception of the severed head of Friar Miguel, which they took with them.

Less than a decade later, when Franciscans had returned to the coastline to evangelize, the friars’ bodies on St. Catherines Island were exhumed and brought to St. Augustine, but their whereabouts today are unknown. Some scholars speculate that Franciscans took the martyrs’ remains with them to Cuba when St. Augustine transferred to British rule in 1763.

Friar Pedro de Corpa was decapitated and his body was not found; the location of his skull is uncertain. A skull recovered at the Fort King George State Historical Site in Darien may belong to Friar Pedro or Father Francisco, and testing is underway to learn more about its origins.

The National Eucharistic Pilgrimage drew attention to the martyrs in May, as the nine perpetual pilgrims spent the third day of their pilgrimage in southern Georgia, walking in a Eucharistic procession at Fort King George, where Friar Francisco is believed to have been killed.

The five Franciscans’ martyrdom is “a reminder of how the Church has, over the centuries, continued to send out missionaries to all peoples, to all nations, to faraway places,” Father Pablo Migone, vicar for mission advancement for the Diocese of Savannah, said during that visit. “That is something we have done from the very beginning from the words of Jesus to the apostles.”

The Beatification Mass is not ticketed, and seats in the Savannah Convention Center are first come, first served. Doors for the liturgy open at 8 a.m. Oct. 31. The convention center will host the Georgia Martyr Museum between 8-10:30 a.m. and 1-2:30 p.m.

The Mass coincides with Halloween, the eve of All Saints’ Day. It also coincides with the Jubilee Year of their order’s founder, St. Francis of Assisi, which commemorates the 800th anniversary of his death.

On Nov. 1, Bishop Stephen D. Parkes of Savannah will celebrate a Mass of thanksgiving at 11:30 a.m. at the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist in Savannah, which will also be livestreamed at the cathedral’s website, savannahcathedral.org.

Reports from civil and religious leaders in the months and years after the Franciscans’ deaths reveal that the slain friars’ contemporaries saw them as martyrs. New research in the 20th century about the history of La Florida and the Georgia Martyrs bolstered efforts to move forward with a cause for their beatification.

With the support of the Order of Franciscans Minor, the Diocese of Savannah opened the cause for the martyrs’ canonization in February 1984 under Savannah’s Bishop Raymond W. Lessard, who died in 2016. In January 2025, Pope Francis authorized the Dicastery for the Causes of Saints to formally recognize the five friars’ martyrdom “in hatred of the faith.”

Alongside the sainthood cause for the five Georgia martyrs is a separate cause for the Martyrs of La Florida Missions, which encompasses 58 people martyred in the region between 1549 and 1715. Known as Antonio Inija and Companions, Servants of God, their collective cause officially opened Oct. 12, 2015, and includes Dominican, Franciscan and Jesuit priests; lay men and women; and children, including an unborn child.

“I would like to thank all those who have prayed for me in recent days. I have truly sensed your support,” the pope said after leading the crowd in St. Peter’s Square in the prayer of the Angelus.

“This experience has made me feel particularly close to all those who are living with illness or infirmity. Now that I have overcome this delicate phase, as you know, I will gradually resume my activities, always with God’s help and your prayers,” he added.

The pope said he was especially grateful to all of the doctors, nurses, and staff at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he underwent lung cancer surgery on Oct. 13 to remove the lower lobe of the right lung.

It was Pope Leo’s first public appearance since he was discharged from Rome’s Gemelli Hospital the day prior after his doctors deemed him fit to return to the Vatican earlier than had been originally expected.

Thousands of people in St. Peter’s Square on the cloudy Sunday cheered loudly when the pope waved from the window of his papal apartment less than 24 hours after his hospital discharge.

For Ylenia Casati, a 32-year-old woman from Siena, Italy, the experience was very moving.

“It was emotional. I almost started crying because it was so wonderful to see him again,” Casati told OSV News.

“Today was the first Angelus right after his hospitalization, and I wanted and needed to see him, and to be reassured by hearing him and seeing that he was doing well.”

Her friend, Ilaria Beatrice, 31, from Prato, Italy, described St. Peter’s Square as “full of passion, full of love, of excitement.”

“To feel like part of such a close-knit community of believers, it’s wonderful,” she said. “To turn around and see people clapping, crying, and cheering — it gives you so much strength.”

The Oct. 17 announcement of the pope’s imminent discharge from the hospital the day prior came earlier than previously expected, as the Holy See Press Office had originally indicated that the pope would remain in the hospital for about a week following his Oct. 13 admission to Gemelli on the day of his surgery.

Dr. Stefano Margaritora, the lead surgeon for Pope Leo’s 90-minute lung cancer operation on Oct. 13, said in an interview with Vatican News on the day of his hospital discharge that he saw no clinical reason to cancel the pope’s planned trip to South America.

“As for a long trip involving air travel in about three weeks, I would say there are no clinical reasons why it should not take place,” Margaritora said, indicating that he believed from a medical standpoint that Pope Leo could be ready to undertake the demanding visit to Latin America scheduled for Nov. 6-17.

“At the time of his discharge from the hospital, Pope Leo was in entirely satisfactory clinical condition,” the surgeon said. “The lung’s re-expansion after surgery is proceeding according to the usual timetable.”

The surgeon estimated that it usually takes “a couple of weeks to make a truly complete physical recovery after this kind of operation.”

“Since almost a week has already passed, I believe the pope could be fully recovered in another ten days or so,” he said.

Margaritora, who is the chief thoracic surgeon at Gemelli Hospital, described Pope Leo as “an ideal patient.”

“He was always serene, always smiling, and rarely complained, despite the pain a person inevitably feels, even with all the measures we take,” he said.

The doctor also shared a story of how Pope Leo offered a helping hand moving chairs in the chapel so that he could celebrate Mass two days after his cancer surgery.

“On the second day after the operation, we turned around and found him arranging the chairs in the chapel himself. We said, ‘Holy Father, we can do that.’ And he replied, ‘It doesn’t matter. I can do it, so I will.’ What can I say? He really was an absolutely ideal patient,” Margaritora said.

Pope celebrating the centenary of World Mission Sunday

In his Angelus address, the pope marked the 100th anniversary of World Mission Sunday.

“Let us think of how much missionary history has unfolded over these 100 years,” Pope Leo said. “Let us pray that the Church may always remain faithful to the mandate of the Risen Lord: ‘Go into all the world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation.'”

Before praying the Marian prayer of the Angelus in Latin with the crowd, Pope Leo reflected on Sunday’s Gospel in which St. Matthew records Jesus as saying, “Repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God.”

Pope Leo said, “In Jesus, we contemplate a God who is not afraid of history but comes instead to dwell within it. His Kingdom does not abolish human roles and responsibilities. It does, however, call us to live without compromise, free from selfish ambitions and unjust motives, seeking above all the Kingdom of God and his righteousness.”

The pope described Jesus’ teaching to render unto Caesar as a command “to be truthful, free from servile fear or hypocrisy, (and) free to do good.”

“Let us pray to the Lord to help us live in this way. And let us entrust ourselves to the intercession of the Virgin Mary,” he said.

The ministry kicked off the Saturday events with an electronics recycling drive after morning Mass, followed by a blessing of the animals and blessing of the new St. Francis garden in the afternoon.

A young parishioner holds her hamster during the annual blessing of the animals at St. Lawrence Church in Lawrenceville to honor St. Francis’ feast day. Photo by Julianna Leopold

At the pet blessing, ministry leaders sold homemade pet treats and toys to raise money for beautification of church grounds. A future project includes a Pastor Pollinator Garden outside of the priest’s office window.

The ministry coordinators, Amy Mock and Mary Raterman, are UGA Extension Master Gardener volunteers. The Lawrenceville church first started the ministry as a book study of the papal encyclical led by parishioner Diane Maguire. After a break during the COVID-19 pandemic, Father Henry Atem asked Mock and Raterman to re-launch the ministry in the Winter of 2024.

Current projects include quarterly electronics recycling drives on the church grounds, open to the public; participation in the Adopt-a-Road initiative in Gwinnett County for roadside cleanup and placement of an aluminum can recycling trailer on church property.

The ministry uses free mulch from arborists used to help erosion areas and for beautification, and hosts scheduled workdays so all parishioners can pitch in with gardening chores.

The ministry helped the Knights of Columbus move away from use of Styrofoam products at its annual fish fry dinners. The ministry sponsors speakers on composting, monarch butterflies and other topics.

Archbishop Hartmayer joined fellow Franciscan priests at St. Philip Benizi Church in Jonesboro to celebrate the archdiocesan Mass, commemorating the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis and his journey to the next life.

Following the Mass for St. Francis, Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer greets Jack Roche, who was a longtime musician at St. Philip Benizi Church. The archbishop served as pastor for several years at the Jonesboro church where he is still affectionately called “Father Greg.” Photo by Jackie Holcombe

At the Oct. 4 Mass, the archbishop noted that Francis remains remarkably and powerfully present all these centuries later.

“The words he spoke still echo. The example he gave still challenges. The charism he received still animates the Church,” said the archbishop in his homily.

Archbishop Hartmayer shared that Francis had asked his brothers to lay him on the bare ground as he neared death. He was 44, nearly blind and bore the wounds of the crucified Christ.

“He did not shrink from death. He sang, and he greeted her as one greets a long-awaited guest,” said the archbishop.

The answer to how Francis was able to receive such a grace is found in the Gospel, where grace is received by the little ones, not the wise and learned.

“Francis had dreamed of glory as a knight; God made him little instead. And he found the yoke of Christ easy and its burden light,” said the archbishop.

He shared Francis’ testament in which he wrote, “When I was in sin, it seemed very bitter to me to see lepers. And the Lord himself led me among them, and I showed mercy to them. And when I left them, what had seemed bitter to me was turned into sweetness of soul and body.”

The yoke that once looked crushing set him free, said Archbishop Hartmayer of the man who founded the Franciscan order.

Francis was not sentimental about death but named it plainly in his “Canticle of Creatures.” The real danger, wrote St. Francis, is the second death of a soul that turned away from God.

“Our culture hides death and avoids even the word, and because we do not look at death, we often do not know how to live. Francis looked at it every day, and so he knew what mattered,” the archbishop told those gathered for Mass.

Amarachi, Arinze and Akunna Ohaya were the altar servers for the Mass celebrating the Transitus of St. Francis on Oct. 4 at Jonesboro’s St. Philip Benizi Church. Photo by Jackie Holcombe

The archbishop suggested five ways to live Francis’ legacy: repairing the house where you live whether it’s a failed relationship or a parish that needs helping hands; moving toward the leper who might be a difficult neighbor or homeless man on the street; speaking peace, treating creation as family and to make friends with “Sister Death” by examining one’s conscience.

“A Christian who has made friends with death is free to live without fear,” he said.

Pope Leo XIV proclaimed the Year of St. Francis. The jubilee began on Saturday, Jan. 10, and will conclude on Sunday, January 10, 2027.

Christians were encouraged to become models of holiness and constant witnesses of peace for the Church and the world.

For more information on Atlanta’s designated pilgrim churches for the Year of St. Francis, visit archatl.com/faith-life/jubilee-year.

“What are you doing?” I asked. “Feeding the birds,” she chortled, as crumbs rained down upon her.

I had to laugh, but really what did I expect from a three-year-old? Despite her tender age, she has taught me some vital lessons. You see, I’ve long been intrigued by Christ’s admonition that entering the kingdom of Heaven requires becoming like little children. Evidently, we can’t enter the kingdom with the heavy, ponderous steps of adults. We have to step lightly and freely, and imitate the heart of a child.

This advice seems impossible at first, especially for someone like me who doesn’t have children, but that’s where my friend enters the picture.

One afternoon my little teacher and I went for a stroll, and she spotted a bright patch of daisies. She gently stroked their velvety heads, and then, before I could stop her, tucked two flowers behind her ear. I was tempted to impart a homespun lesson about looking rather than touching, but she was smiling so radiantly, I stopped myself. I tried to recall the last time I’d acted spontaneously without consulting a list.

Moments later, she plopped down on the grass and upended a backpack filled with a menagerie of plastic animals. Under her watchful eye, toy elephants tangoed, zebras sang and horses flew. Suddenly I remembered playing “horses and cowboys” as a child, but now the plastic horse lay lifeless in my hand. When did the miracle run dry?

We wonder why God does not send us a sign, while my friend chases a butterfly and God smiles at her. We check our phones for weather predictions, while my friend admires a cloud and an angel sings.

Christ said many times, “Do not be afraid,” but we run ourselves ragged trying to squelch our seemingly endless fears. We install security systems in our houses, and still we are fearful. We fatten our savings accounts, trying to nail down the future, but still worry we’ll never have enough.

This little girl has her own fears, of course, but she knows her father’s hug vanquishes a battalion of scary monsters from under the bed. She knows taking her mother’s hand protects her from the giant metallic monsters roaring down the street.

Someday my friend will go to school, where she’ll be taught to sit quietly and color within the lines. Instead of dancing down the hall, she will process with the other children in a tidy line. Before long, she will cross the border into adulthood, where the zebras grow mute and horses stand silently. One day, she may awaken from a long, dreamless sleep and find herself like me, trying to imitate the heart of a child.

I hope she will remember the day she threw bread at the sky and wore daisies in her hair. I hope she will recall the lady who visited her and took notes. The lady who realized being childlike is the hardest thing in the world—and also the easiest.

We have to enjoy the snazzy flowers waving on green stalks and treat the birds to a feast. Laugh when things are funny and cry when things are sad. Most of all, we have to trust that someone much bigger than us has everything under control. The one who knows exactly what it was like to be a little child.

The affordable housing nonprofit marks the 30th anniversary of its founding when the Sisters of Mercy of Belmont and Sisters of Mercy in Baltimore partnered to open its first senior citizen complex in Belmont, North Carolina. It was a branch of the original Mercy Housing that grew out of a ministry of the Sisters of Mercy of Omaha in 1981. Mercy Housing has since become one of the largest providers of affordable housing in the country serving families in 45 states.

There are three decades of success working with families and individuals, said James Alexander, Mercy Housing Southeast president, proving that “we’re not going to give up and we’re not going away.”

Mercy Housing is an ideal organization for anyone looking to shape affordable housing solutions—whether through philanthropy, volunteering or board service, Alexander said. It serves some 3,700 residents in 3,000 homes across 44 properties, including in the Diocese of Savannah and the Atlanta Archdiocese, according to Mercy Housing Southeast.

For the anniversary, a “Power of Home” event on Oct. 19 will draw together supporters, benefactors and others.

The organization marks its anniversary at the same time as it has three new housing projects underway. When completed, Alexander said some 400 families across the region will move into new homes.

Clairmont Family Development will offer 67 apartments to working families. It’s going up within a 10-minute walk to an existing medical clinic operated by Mercy Care and other services.

A 76-unit building called Henderson Place is for families. It is being built in Atlanta’s Old Fourth Ward neighborhood, near the Krog Street Market and the popular Beltline walking trail. It is expected to open by early 2027.

The largest ongoing project will make 100 apartments for senior citizens available in Southwest Atlanta. The organization is gutting an existing building to refurbish it for tenants.

As part of its wrap-around services, Mercy Housing has made it a priority to build a comprehensive support network. Many of the housing complexes offer food education and access to food pantries. Youngsters can participate in after-school programs at family properties while older students recently toured Georgia State University, Georgia Tech and Historically Black Colleges at the Atlanta University Center. There’s also a commitment to helping families and seniors work through healthcare issues.

Mercy Housing joined other housing providers with the Atlanta Regional Commission to write the “Housing Forward 2035” plan, aimed at reducing the housing shortage in the Atlanta area. Estimates show metro Atlanta will need more than 300,000 homes by 2035 to match demand.

Mercy Housing views homes as a human right, Alexander said, so these affordability challenges require a large response, equal to building the Interstate highway system.

“In many ways, the response to it hasn’t been as urgent” as the need, he said.

It’s part of the care he brings to support more than two-dozen students enrolled at eight colleges and universities.

Barker is the executive director of the Sister Thea Bowman Black Catholic Education Foundation, a nonprofit scholarship organization with a three-decade history of serving Black young adults attending Catholic colleges.

Joe Barker, the executive director of the Sister Thea Bowman Black Catholic Education Foundation, speaks about the nonprofit scholarship organization and how it serves the Black young adults attending Catholic colleges. Photo by Julianna Leopold

“We’re not necessarily trying to serve more students because we accept that we are a niche foundation. We work with our scholars in very personal, intimate ways and care for them and mentor them and walk beside them on their journey,” said Barker, who has been leading the organization for five years.

The foundation began in 1989 at Saint Michael’s College in Colchester, Vermont. Sister Thea Bowman herself attended the inaugural event.

As a member of the Franciscan Order of Perpetual Adoration, Servant of God Sister Thea Bowman is on the road to canonization. She is one of the “Saintly Seven” of African American Catholics being considered for sainthood.

Barker, 57, worships at St. Anthony of Padua Church in Atlanta’s West End, his home parish for nearly 50 years. His late father served as a deacon for decades, and his mother was a longtime “church mother” at the parish, leading the rosary ministry. He’s worked in Catholic education for the past 10 years.

The foundation supported N’dea Delfish as she earned her bachelor’s degree in business management from Boston College in May. An Atlanta native, she attended Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School. She is one of six scholarship students from the Atlanta area.

Receiving the scholarship was “the cherry on top” after she received the acceptance letter from the highly selective college. The 22-year-old studied business with a concentration in marketing and completed a dual degree in African and African Diaspora Studies.

Delfish said the scholarship helped lift her anxiety about finances.

“It took that weight off and made me be able to immerse myself in the experience a lot more,” she said.

Once on campus, Delfish found a deeper connection. The community hub for students of color is named in honor of the religious sister. The Thea Bowman AHANA and Intercultural Center became a familiar place as she transitioned from her Atlanta upbringing to Boston during her early years on campus.

“It just felt so full circle to me and kind of really told me that I was in the right space,” she said.  Delfish said she felt surrounded by the religious sister’s legacy through “my scholarship, but just at my school every day as well.”

N’dea Delfish stands against flags of the schools that Cristo Rey Atlanta Jesuit High School’s students have been accepted to. She is a recipient of the Sister Thea Bowman Black Catholic Education Foundation Scholarship for her education at Boston College. Delfish studied business with a concentration in marketing and completed a dual degree in African and African Diaspora Studies in May. Photo by Julianna Leopold

Although she is not Catholic, Delfish said the scholarship program introduced her to the sister’s belief in the value of education.

“It’s easy to take education for granted when it’s so easily accessible. You kind of forget it is a privilege and not everybody has that. In this scholarship, I’m reminded of that and I’m able to take so much gratitude from that.”

The foundation has a national reach as a small nonprofit. It supports two dozen students attending eight partner Catholic colleges and universities in New England and the Midwest. According to federal tax documents, it reported $443,000 in revenue in 2025, most of it from charitable contributions.

Barker works with pastors and guidance counselors to identify high school graduates. First, the students have to independently earn acceptance to one of the colleges. The Bowman scholarship can be as high as $10,000 and is renewed annually. Since he became the executive director, 85% of scholars have graduated, Barker said.

The financial award for students is just one aspect of the foundation, along with moral, spiritual and social support. He also shepherds the Bowman scholars attending a summer spiritual seminar before they start their freshman year and then throughout their college years.

The summer sessions for Delfish became a source of connection with people, a sounding board during hard times and a place to share college experiences. She later became a mentor to incoming scholarship recipients.

“It was really comforting to know that people across the country that hail from different places are having similar experiences to me,” she said. “I was able to take in a lot of mentors and hear all these different opinions and just get so many gems from different people. I really am so grateful to not only be able to get mentorship, but also pass that along as well, and to grow with the scholarship.”

“Sent to Serve: Profiles of religious life in Atlanta” is a regular Georgia Bulletin series sharing the work of the religious order priests and sisters serving in the archdiocese.

ATLANTA—Legionary of Christ priest Father Abraham Eo deepened his understanding of the vow of obedience when receiving his first assignment as a newly ordained deacon in 2023. Despite his desires to work with young adults, go to a new place, preferably international, and work anywhere but a school, he was assigned to chaplaincy at Holy Spirit Preparatory School in Atlanta.

“I was sent to the United States to work with children in a school,” Father Eo said. “God really has blessed my obedience. I’m still growing, and it’s challenging me to learn what it means to be a father to all the kids.”

Legionaries of Christ priests, who also take vows of poverty and chastity, live and work in Atlanta and Cumming. Their assignments range from school chaplaincy at Pinecrest Academy in Cumming to parish assignments at St. Brendan the Navigator, also in Cumming, to apostolates of the Regnum Christi movement.

Eight priests live in each community. There is also a house for the North American territorial directorate near Cumming.

The Legionaries of Christ were founded in 1941 in Mexico City. After a canonical investigation in the early 2000s uncovered abuse by the order’s founder, the order underwent a process of renewal, and the Vatican reaffirmed the holy contributions made by its members.

Today, more than 1,300 Legionaries of Christ come from all seven continents and evangelize in 23 countries. The order has a school of theology and philosophy, a humanities center in the United States and seminaries in Rome and Brazil.

Father Scott Reilly, pastor of St. Brendan, said the archbishops and priests of the Archdiocese of Atlanta have always been welcoming and supportive of the order’s presence in the Atlanta area. He has also served at Pinecrest and St. Pius X High School. Two other Legionaries of Christ, Father Eric Nielsen and Father Jeremy Lambert, serve as parochial vicars at St. Brendan.

“We are here to share our charism. If the archdiocese didn’t appreciate the charism, we wouldn’t be here,” said Father Reilly. “It’s in our preaching and apostolates but we are not trying to pigeonhole everyone to join Regnum Christi.”

Father Scott Reilly, LC, pastor of St. Brendan the Navigator Church, shares a lesson with the children during a recent Mass at the Cumming parish. As a Legionary of Christ, he enjoys getting to know parishioners and watching their spiritual growth. Photo by Julianna Leopold

Regnum Christi is a Catholic movement within the Church that is comprised of Legionaries of Christ, consecrated men, consecrated women and lay members. The mission of the international movement is to build the kingdom of Christ by focusing on spiritual formation through retreats, marriage, youth and missions.

There is a cluster of Regnum Christi members in Cumming, but they are also throughout the Atlanta area. Most of the priests in the Atlanta community are assigned to Regnum Christi apostolates, like men’s and women’s groups. Father Reilly said the Regnum Christi members have received extensive formation which he encourages them to use in apostolates, or ministries at St. Brendan.

“They bring a lot of vitality to the parish. The core of Regnum Christi is to strive to form apostles and create a culture of Christianity,” he said. “We encourage them to get engaged in many apostolates in the parish. They are very generous.

Father Edward Hopkins lives in the Atlanta community house in Dunwoody. He spent most of his 35 years as a priest dedicated to vocations work but two years ago, Father Hopkins was assigned to the men’s Regnum Christi ministry. Shortly after that, he began working with married couples and families.

“We are trying to give marriage and family life a special priority. Building up the church and Christianizing the culture has to start at home,” Father Hopkins said. “Family life is more difficult and young married couples need a lot of support.”

Six times a year, Father Hopkins leads a weekend for engaged couples preparing for marriage that is open to the entire Archdiocese of Atlanta. He recently began leading retreats for married couples whether they’ve been married for a short or long time. Those couples are invited to come together monthly for further reflection.

Working with couples and families has enriched his priesthood, Father Hopkins said. Married couples and priests have more in common than he knew before, adding that couples make sacrifices and the essence of love between the two vocations is the same, but shown in different ways.

“I’m inspired by the couples I work with. It makes me want to be a priest for them and to live my priesthood to the fullest,” Father Hopkins said.

Father Eo said he also discovered new ways of God working through him at Holy Spirit Prep. He is chaplain to the lower and upper schools serving pre-kindergarten through high school. He celebrates daily Mass, leads retreats for second grade and older and hosts adoration twice a week in addition to book studies and events for parents and teachers.

Imitating Christ the teacher

The Legionaries of Christ spend a lot of time in education because it’s an expression of their charism to imitate Christ who called the apostles, gathered the disciples, formed them and sent them out to evangelize. Father Eo wants to follow Christ’s example and do the same for his students.

Father Abraham Eo, chaplain at Holy Spirit Preparatory School in Atlanta, spends time with seventh- and eighth-grade students to help them plan their upcoming retreat. He celebrates daily Mass, leads retreats for students, and hosts adoration twice a week in addition to book studies and events for parents and teachers. Photo by Julianna Leopold

The students benefit from the Legionaries of Christ spirituality, but he also uses homilies to talk about St. Francis, St. Ignatius and other saints. He likes being present at sporting events and running with the cross country and track teams so he can be relatable to the students.

“I see the community as a gift. I need others,” Father Eo said. “My priesthood has found its meaning in serving others.”

At St. Brendan, Father Reilly said that celebrating Mass and the sacraments has brought great joy to him in his first year as pastor. He greets parishioners in the narthex following each of six Sunday Masses. He also enjoys getting to know parishioners, going to their houses for dinner, seeing their spiritual growth and watching them get involved in apostolates.

“It’s the art of working with people and keeping Jesus front and center of your heart,” he said.

The Cumming community lost their house in a 2025 fire, so the priests have been living in temporary quarters during the rebuilding process. Five priests live in a rental house and the other three live in a carriage house on the community property that did not burn. Still, they maintain community life by daily morning prayer and an hour of adoration. They attend Mass at the parish or school where they work and then put in a full day of their apostolate. The Atlanta and Cumming communities hold Monday as their community day where they can eat breakfast as a group, celebrate Mass, discuss a spiritual reading, do a fun activity and pray night prayer.

“As a human being, you need others in your life to be able to have relationship so you’re not lonely. You share your ups and downs, create memories, have fun, and share conversations,” said Father Reilly. “You work at learning to listen, to receive, and to express with love and kindness. It’s really a blessing and helps us to work with laypeople.”

More Info

Forty-three men are in formation at the order’s seminary in Connecticut, with 160 priests serving in the North American territory.

To learn more about the order and discernment, visit legionariesofchrist.org.

The Pan African Mass featured an array of music and dancing in the Lawrenceville parish. Prayers offered in seven languages represented the different nations of the Pan African Catholic Organization of Atlanta.

Bishop John N. Tran was the celebrant. A dinner reception followed with performances and recognition of the participating communities.

In his homily, Bishop Tran praised the cultural richness the communities brought to the liturgy while pointing to faith as their bond.

“You all bring the richness of your heritage and your culture, but also very importantly something greater than that gathers us here, and that is your faith in Jesus Christ,” he said.

For Thomas Fagbamiye, a Nigerian and Georgia resident for more than 41 years, the celebration was a powerful reminder that his cultural heritage and Catholic faith are inseparable.

“When our music, languages, clothing, customs and joy become part of our worship, I am reminded that I don’t have to choose between being African and being Catholic,” he said. “Both are important parts of who I am.”

Fagbamiye attends St. Theresa Church, Douglasville, where he serves the parish and broader community, through the Knights of Columbus and as a PACOA representative. Growing up with Nigerian traditions taught him the importance of family and community, he said. He maintains those connections through gatherings and relationships with other Nigerians and Africans in the area.

At the Pan African Mass, Fagbamiye saw those connections expressed through the universal language of Catholic worship.

“We may speak different languages and have different customs, but we share the same faith, the same Eucharist and the same Lord,” he said.

A tapestry of cultures

Twelve communities were represented at the celebration: the St. Josephine Bakhita Catholic Faith Community at St. Theresa Church; African Parishioners of St. Thomas the Apostle, Smyrna; the Gambian Christian Organization at Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, Atlanta; the Ghanaian Catholic Community at St. Patrick Church, Norcross; the Nigerian Igbo Catholic Community of Atlanta at Corpus Christi Church, Stone Mountain; the African Community of St. John Vianney, Lithia Springs; the Kenyan Catholic Community at St. Francis of Assisi Church, Cartersville; the Cameroon Catholic Community and Catholic Women’s Association of Cameroon at St. Lawrence Church; the African Community of St. Patrick’s, Norcross; African Catholic Families of Corpus Christi in Stone Mountain; and the Francophone Catholic Movement of Atlanta.

The Cameroonian Catholic Community sang the processional hymn, while the Nigerian Igbo Catholic Community led the Gloria. Members of the Catholic Women’s Association of Cameroon carried the Book of the Gospels in a striking procession, singing down the aisle toward the altar.

Prayers of the faithful offered in English, French, Swahili, Igbo, Twi, Yoruba and Lingala, reflected the diversity of the communities.

Bishop John N. Tran greets members of the Pan African community after the Mass celebrating their cultural heritage at St. Lawrence Church on Sept. 26. In his homily, Bishop Tran praised the cultural richness the communities brought to the liturgy while pointing to the faith as their bond. Photo by Julianna Leopold

Throughout Mass, the congregation responded with enthusiasm, joining in song and dance. At moments, worshippers left the pews to move to the music, bringing joyful and communal energy to the celebration of the Eucharist.

Together, the groups represent the breadth of Pan African Catholic life in metro Atlanta. PACOA provides a place for distinct communities to gather while remaining connected to their individual heritages and parishes.

Father Henry Atem is PACOA’s president and the pastor of St. Lawrence.

“The Pan African Catholic Organization of Atlanta plays a vital role in the Archdiocese of Atlanta by giving visibility and voice to a community whose presence, identity and contributions might otherwise remain underrecognized and even unrecognized,” he said.

African Catholics possess a rich cultural and spiritual heritage that deserves to be celebrated and woven into the wider Church, Father Atem said. Their passion and joy in practicing their faith can enrich the spiritual life and diversity of the local Catholic community, he said.

“Our annual Mass and celebration provide a unique opportunity to showcase this heritage, share the gifts of our faith and culture, and celebrate the meaningful contributions African Catholics make to the life of the Church,” Father Atem said.

A place in the universal Church

The late Charles Prejean, then director of the archdiocese’s Office of Black Catholic Ministry, established PACOA in 2010. The organization helps African Catholics connect with parishes, share traditions and receive spiritual and social support as they build lives in Georgia. Many of its communities celebrate Mass in their native languages and organize celebrations throughout the year. Members participate in parish councils, liturgical ministries and other Church activities.

For Ashley Morris, director of the Office of Black Catholic Ministry, the Mass illustrates what the wider Church would lose without the participation of African Catholics.

“The fullness of the body of Christ cannot be experienced without gift and presence of our sisters and brothers from the continent of Africa,” Morris said.

“Personally, the Pan African Mass is always a joy to celebrate with our diverse African communities because of the enthusiasm and fervor with which they honor, celebrate and glorify God,” he said.

Father Atem described the celebration as a spiritual turning point for participants, comparing it to the biblical account of Jesus’ Transfiguration on Mount Tabor. Just as the disciples were strengthened by their encounter with Christ before returning to their mission, he said, the Mass renews African Catholics in faith and identity before they return to their parishes and communities.

The gathering also is an opportunity for African Catholics to share their gifts with the broader Church rather than preserve traditions only within their own communities, Father Atem said.

Fagbamiye hopes that message reaches Catholics of every background, particularly younger generations who may feel caught between their family heritage and the culture in which they were raised.

He wants young African Catholics born or raised in Georgia to understand that they don’t have to choose between being American, African or Catholic.

“They can be fully American, fully Nigerian or African and fully Catholic,” he said. “Their cultural heritage is something to be proud of, and their Catholic faith gives them an even larger family in which to share it.”

He hopes young people learn their history, remain connected to family and recognize their role in the Church’s future.

For Fagbamiye, the Mass’ music, languages, traditional attire and dancing are all meaningful expressions of African Catholic identity, but most important is the Eucharist.

“Regardless of what country welcome from or what language we speak, we gather around the same altar and receive the same Body and Blood of Christ,” he said. “That is a beautiful picture of Catholic unity in diversity.”

Those fears are reaching Catholic communities across the Southern region in the United States, said church leaders on Sept. 30 at the regional gathering, “Deepening Our Moral Witness.”

Nearly 200 people gathered in Knoxville to confront the effects of immigration enforcement and organize a plan rooted in solidarity with migrants.

The conference invited diocesan leaders and communicators, including bishops, clergy, religious sisters, Catholic ministry leaders, communication directors, journalists and community partners from across the region to discuss how the Church can better respond to the fear affecting families.

Organized by Hope Border Institute, the Diocese of Knoxville, the Diocese of Lexington and the Center for Migration Studies of New York, the day included discussions on Catholic social teaching, Hispanic ministry, communications, parish planning and Mass.

“The church stands with families who are afraid,” said Dylan Corbett, executive director of the Hope Border Institute, during a press conference at the Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. “The church affirms the God-given dignity of every person. And the church is calling on public leaders for meaningful immigration reforms that respond to that dignity, that respond to the contributions of migrants.”

“Parents think twice before driving to work, going to Mass, picking kids up from school, children are listening for a knock at the door,” Corbett said. “These aren’t strangers. They’re parishioners, co-workers and neighbors.”

Participating dioceses included the Archdiocese of Atlanta; Archdiocese of Louisville, Kentucky; Diocese of Charleston, South Carolina; Diocese of Memphis, Tennessee; Diocese of Nashville, Tennessee; Diocese of Owensboro, Kentucky; Diocese of Wheeling-Charleston, West Virginia; and the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee.

Standing with immigrant communities

The day began with a presentation on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops’ “You Are Not Alone” campaign, which seeks to help the Church accompany immigrant communities affected by immigration enforcement.

Corbett then turned to Catholic social teaching on migration, emphasizing that migration is not separate from the Church’s identity or mission. He pointed to “Strangers No Longer: Together on the Journey of Hope,” a 2003 pastoral letter issued jointly by Catholic bishops in the U.S. and Mexico.

The letter outlines principles that include the right to remain in one’s homeland when possible, the right to migrate when basic needs cannot be met, the right of nations to regulate their borders humanely, the protection of refugees and asylum-seekers and respect for the dignity and human rights of all migrants.

“A litmus test for social justice today is the treatment of migrants,” Corbett said during his session.

Dylan Corbett, executive director of the Hope Border Institute, hosts a session on the Catholic social teaching on migration at the Sept. 30 regional gathering, “Deepening Our Moral Witness,” in Knoxville, Tenn. The gathering invited nearly 200 Catholic leaders and communicators to discuss how to better accompany immigrant communities. Photo by Natalia Duron

The discussion emphasized that the Church could recognize a government’s responsibility to regulate its borders while also insisting that immigration policies respect human dignity. Those principles, Corbett said, cannot be separated.

That responsibility, he shared, extends beyond public statements. It requires accompanying families, protecting vulnerable people, organizing communities and advocating for policies that respect the dignity of every person.

Parishes on the front lines

A session on Hispanic ministry explored how dioceses and parishes can turn that responsibility into practical support for immigrant families.

Blanca Primm, director of Hispanic Ministry for the Diocese of Knoxville, discussed efforts to connect parish leaders with community organizations and public officials, share families’ stories and accompany people to court hearings.

Deacon Chris Gutiérrez, director of Hispanic and Latino Ministry for the Diocese of Owensboro, emphasized the importance of maintaining contact with people in detention.

Elizabeth Elfers of Christ the King Church in Nashville urged others to make connections with nonprofit organizations and educate parish communities about Catholic teaching on immigration.

These efforts reflect the role parishes can play in supporting people who may be afraid to seek help or uncertain about where to turn.

During a press conference held before the noon Mass, Bishop Mark Beckman of Knoxville called for advocacy.

Participants of the regional gathering, “Deepening Our Moral Witness,” attended Mass in the Cathedral of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus in Knoxville, Tenn., on Sept. 30. The day also included discussions on Catholic social teaching, Hispanic ministry, communications and parish planning. Photo by Natalia Duron

“We have a responsibility to care for the dignity of each and every human person and to respect the rights and due process that are due to citizens and anyone who lives on U.S. soil,” Bishop Beckman said.

Yuri Cunza, president and CEO of the Nashville Area Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, described the impact on businesses with fewer customers, employers whose workers are afraid to leave home and the wider economic effects of immigration enforcement.

“Because behind every economic number is a person,” Cunza said. “Behind every worker is a family. And behind every immigration case is a human story.”

Bishop Brian Cole of the Episcopal Diocese of East Tennessee, who joined the Catholic leaders at the press conference, likewise emphasized that welcoming migrants is rooted in Christian faith.

“As Christians, we are called to welcome the migrant and the stranger,” he said. “We are all living in a time of fear and chaos and brutality.”

Bishop John Stowe of Lexington urged the Church to stand directly alongside immigrants rather than speak about their troubles from afar.

“Not adjacent to the suffering, not issuing statements about it from a safe distance, but right in the midst and in solidarity with immigrants and migrants,” he said.

Bishop Stowe described families who fear that a parent may not return from their job or that a child may be left waiting for someone who never comes home.

“Migrants and refugees are not an issue, are not a problem to be solved, and not a population to be managed,” he said. “They are members of the one human family.”

When asked how Catholics can help parishioners understand immigration as a pro-life issue, Bishop Stowe said the Church’s defense of life must include every person, regardless of immigration status.

“Pro-life begins with understanding that each person made in the image and likeness of God is given inalienable rights,” he said. “That doesn’t require documents. That doesn’t require papers.”

To be pro-life, Bishop Stowe said, is to affirm not only the unborn child but also life at every stage and each person’s right to live and flourish.

Communicating with shared values

Afternoon sessions focused on how dioceses and parishes can communicate about migration safely and plan an appropriate response.

Astrid Liden, communications officer for the Hope Border Institute, encouraged participants to approach conversations about immigration by starting with shared values rather than statistics alone.

The Church already has guidance from the pope, bishops and Catholic teaching, she said, including an emphasis on respecting life. The challenge is applying those principles in everyday conversations, especially when immigration has divided families and communities, she said.

Rather than beginning with numbers or descriptions of the most disturbing events, Liden encouraged Catholics to start with values people can recognize, which is the desire to keep families together and the belief that every person has dignity.

“We have to start from common ground,” she said. “And how do we start there? By using the values we share as people and the values we have as Catholics, which reflect the teachings of the Church.”

The goal is not simply to change opinions, she said, but to help people understand that immigration is not an issue affecting only immigrant communities, but also the Church and the country, she shared.

“Take a step back and realize that, maybe your parish isn’t affected, but your archdiocese is,” she said.

Parishioners can stay informed about what is happening in their communities, learn what resources their diocese already offers, and pray and discern how they can help, Liden said. Possible steps include sharing information with parishioners, speaking with a pastor, starting a parish discussion group or creating a fund to assist families in need.

“The Church can contribute a narrative of hope amid the terrible things immigrant communities are experiencing,” she said. “This cannot be done individually. It cannot be done alone.”

Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., speaks at a discussion panel at the regional gathering in Knoxville, Tenn., “Deepening Our Moral Witness.” Archbishop Hartmayer emphasized the importance of protecting immigrant communities because of the continued positive impact they have had in the Archdiocese of Atlanta. Photo by Natalia Duron

The wider impact

During a panel discussion, Archbishop Gregory J. Hartmayer, OFM Conv., connected the discussion to the contributions of immigrants throughout Georgia.

Archbishop Hartmayer, who previously served as bishop of Savannah, said the state’s dioceses differ in their needs and circumstances, but immigrant communities are an important part of life across Georgia.

He pointed particularly to agricultural workers in southern Georgia, where migrant labor helps sustain the production of fruits and vegetables.

“If the migrant workers weren’t there, economically, there would be a tremendous hit to the state and to the global economic area,” he said.

Archbishop Hartmayer also raised concerns about the consequences of delays in renewing work permits and visas. When people are forced to leave the country while waiting for their paperwork to be processed, families can lose their income, struggle to pay mortgages and face separation.

“It’s just making people’s lives miserable,” he said. “There’s no simple answer, but what we’re going with right now is not an answer.”

The final sessions of the gathering focused on planning next steps within dioceses and parishes. The aim was to move beyond understanding the challenges facing immigrant communities and toward discerning how the Church can respond together.

For Bishop Beckman, that work requires a sustained commitment rather than a single day of discussion.

“The work of building a civilization of love does not happen overnight,” he said during the press conference. “This is an ongoing journey.”

Bishop Joel M. Konzen, SM

Even the term retirement is not entirely accurate. When a bishop retires, he does not become inactive. Instead, his duties are reduced. Most office and administrative duties go away. He is still likely to be seen in parishes and schools celebrating Masses and conferring the sacrament of confirmation. Some dioceses have no auxiliary bishop, but they might have one or two retired bishops. There was a point when the Archdiocese of New Orleans had an archbishop and three retired archbishops—close to a full house of archbishops!

After the piece that ran in The Georgia Bulletin this past April, indicating I had submitted my letter of resignation, as required, some have asked me what it is like to be retired. I then explain that that has not yet happened, but some day it will happen. One day there will be a letter—I presume, but I’m not really sure how this takes place—that informs me that I am officially retired. I am not holding my breath. I am glad to continue to be fully occupied. I have 34 Masses of confirmation on my calendar between now and the end of June 2027.

A bishop who is actually retired often continues to attend the national and regional meetings and events for bishops. Retired bishops are very likely to join in the Ad Limina visit to the Holy Father and to the dicasteries (offices) of the Holy See, a visit that takes place every seven years or so. The Archdiocese of Atlanta is part of Region 14 of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, and we are scheduled to be in Rome for the Ad Limina visit in September 2027. I am looking forward to being a part of the region bishops’ visit to Rome, regardless of whether I am “active” or retired. Unless I am incapacitated or have been promoted to the final stage of life, I hope to join my brother bishops in Rome.

Visiting Rome with the other bishops also gives me a chance to visit the motherhouse of my religious order, the Marists. We refer to this site as the “general house” of the Marists. Although when one becomes a bishop he is no longer officially a member of the order—because he no longer answers to his provincial superior—bishops such as Archbishop Hartmayer, Bishop Wack in Pensacola-Tallahassee, and me maintain our ties to our religious family. These congregations are where we received our formation and our education. Over several decades, the members have become our family. Archbishop Hartmayer and I are both grateful that we have local communities of our orders that we can see regularly, allowing us to maintain our fraternity with the other men even if we are technically no longer one of them.

When an auxiliary bishop is granted retirement, he is not automatically replaced. The local bishop must request another auxiliary, a process which can take a substantial amount of time. As with other things in the Catholic Church, there is no predicting how long such a process might take. So, I am thinking that I will, one way or the other, be busy for the foreseeable future.

I thank God for my health and my vocation. And I look forward to seeing the good people of the Archdiocese of Atlanta for as long as our Lord will have me in his vineyard.

The sacred music weekend will culminate Saturday evening with a full Floriani concert at 6:30 p.m. in the church sanctuary. The concert is free and open to the public, and a free-will offering will be accepted.

A Floriani concert is an experience of transcendent sacred beauty, with music spanning thousands of years and bridging the gap between east and west, ancient and original.

But the weekend is designed to be more than a concert. On Saturday, Nov. 21, Floriani will lead a chant and sacred music workshop for singers from St. Michael the Archangel and throughout the Atlanta area. Participants will work with the ensemble on the music of the Church and then put that formation immediately into practice.

The workshop will culminate at the 5 p.m. Vigil Mass for the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, King of the Universe, when Floriani will lead a combined choir including the St. John Bosco Choir, members of St. Michael’s scholas and singers from other parishes attending the workshop.

That movement—from learning sacred music, to singing it in the liturgy, to hearing it presented in concert—reflects Floriani’s mission.

Floriani is a professional Catholic men’s vocal ensemble dedicated to the renewal of sacred music in the life of the Church. Describing its mission as being a “Voice of Sacred Music Revival,” the ensemble seeks not simply to preserve the Church’s musical inheritance, but to help Catholics encounter it as a living tradition of prayer, beauty and evangelization.

Through concerts, liturgies, recordings and educational programs around the country, Floriani introduces audiences to the Church’s treasury of sacred music while also helping parish musicians gain the skills and confidence to carry that tradition into their own communities. At the center of that mission is the conviction that sacred beauty has the power to draw the human heart toward God.

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco has described that effect after hearing Floriani sing at Mass.

“Sacred beauty has the power to lift hearts and minds and draw them into contemplation of Divine beauty,” he said. “I have personally witnessed this effect at Masses sung by Floriani.”

He praised the ensemble for using its musical gifts not to draw attention to itself, but to “magnify the sacred in worship.”

That distinction is important to Floriani. Gregorian chant and sacred polyphony were created not primarily for the concert hall, but for the worship of God. Floriani’s work seeks to restore an awareness of sacred music not as decoration added to the liturgy, but as a means of helping the faithful enter more deeply into its prayer.

The Woodstock weekend will give Catholics several ways to experience the tradition. Singers can participate directly through Saturday’s workshop and Mass. Parishioners and visitors can hear Floriani in its liturgical setting at the 5 p.m. Vigil Mass and again at Sunday morning Masses. And Saturday’s 6:30 p.m. concert will offer the broadest invitation of the weekend: an evening devoted entirely to the beauty and breadth of Catholic sacred music.

Floriani previously visited the Archdiocese of Atlanta in 2023 and now returns with a weekend intended not simply to present sacred music, but to help cultivate it within local parish life.

Dr. Stefano Margaritora, chief thoracic surgeon at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, led a medical team in the video-assisted technique operation. In a joint statement with Dr. Luigi Carbone released at just before 10 p.m., the doctors said that the “examination confirmed the diagnosis of lung adenocarcinoma, as suspected by the preoperative tests.”

“The Holy Father was in the operating room for about 3 hours; the surgery itself lasted approximately 90 minutes,” the statement said. “After the surgery, the pope woke up as expected and, following a brief period of observation, returned to his room on the 10th floor.”

The pope underwent the surgery in the late afternoon after being admitted to Rome’s Gemelli Hospital at 1 p.m.

“The surgery was successful, completed on schedule and as planned, and the Holy Father has returned to his room,” the Holy See Press Office said in a statement issued shortly before 8 p.m.

Pope Leo was expected to remain for one week of recovery in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, located atop Monte Mario, the highest hill in Rome. The Vatican has canceled all of the pope’s scheduled audiences through Oct. 20.

According to Vatican News, post-operation tests will be conducted on the removed tissue in the coming days. The Holy See was expected to provide an update on Pope Leo’s condition the morning of Oct. 14.

Following the operation, Pope Leo had dinner and spent the evening in the company of Vatican staff members, according to Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See’s press office.

According to Vatican News, post-operation tests will be conducted on the removed tissue in the coming days. The Holy See was expected to provide an update on Pope Leo’s condition the morning of Oct. 14.

Following the operation, Pope Leo had dinner and spent the evening in the company of Vatican staff members, according to Matteo Bruni, director of the Holy See’s press office.

The hospital’s chapel was overflowing with people on Tuesday evening as Cardinal Baldassare Reina, the vicar general of the Diocese of Rome, led a rosary for the pope’s healing as people anxiously awaited the results of the pope’s operation.

Among those who came to pray was Sister Alphonsa Manikkathan from India’s state of Kerala and her fellow sisters from the Daughters of Divine Providence whose residence is located near the hospital.

“We pray for the pope every day, not only today,” Sister Alphonsa told OSV News. “Jesus said wherever two or more are gathered and pray for something, he will give. So for his fast recovery, we are praying.”

Father Miguel Silvestre Bengoa from Spain also joined in the rosary at the hospital. “If the pope is suffering, we also suffer with him,” he said. “But we want also to see him again in the Vatican.”

“It was so nice to be close to the pope in this same hospital,” the priest said. “We entrust the health of the pope to the hands of Our Lady.”

Pope Leo’s operation took place just days after he first revealed to the world that he needed surgery at the end of his Angelus address in St. Peter’s Square on Oct. 11.

Speaking from the window of the Apostolic Palace, the pope announced that doctors had discovered a nodule in his lung during a medical examination, adding that the growth was detected “at a very early stage” and it was “well-contained.”

“The doctors believe intervention is advisable, so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to have it removed,” Pope Leo said.

Since the pope’s announcement, prayers and messages of support have poured in from around the globe from prime ministers, presidents, religious leaders and Catholic bishops.

This was the second hospitalization in the 71-year-old pope’s life, according to a recently published biography. Shortly after his election, Pope Leo said that he had only been hospitalized once in his life before becoming pope when he caught typhoid fever after recently arriving as an Augustinian missionary in Peru in 1985.

“It’s the only time in my life I’ve been hospitalized,” Pope Leo is quoted as saying in the book, “Pope Leo XIV” by Elise Ann Allen, calling it “a very significant” moment in his life that helped him more sharply focus on his new ministry.

Pope Leo’s surgery occurred less than one month before he was scheduled to depart for South America for what would be the longest international trip of his pontificate Nov. 6 to 17, with stops in Uruguay, Argentina and Peru. The Vatican has not yet announced any changes to the trip.

Speaking to pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square Oct. 11, during his Sunday Angelus address, the pope said the nodule was “detected at a very early stage” during a medical checkup and it is “well-contained.”

“The doctors believe intervention is advisable, so, following their advice, I have decided to undergo surgery to have it removed. The procedure is already scheduled for the coming days,” he said.

Concluding his address, the pope thanked the crowds in the square for their “spiritual closeness” and entrusted himself to their prayers.

Responding to questions from journalists, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni confirmed that the surgery is scheduled within “the first few days” of this week and that “the expected post-operative hospital stay is about one week.”

The Vatican also confirmed that the pope will undergo the medical procedure at Rome’s Gemelli Hospital.

In response to the announcement, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni expressed her closeness and that of the Italian government “in this time of trial he is called to face in the coming days.”

“The serenity and peace of mind with which he spoke about it during today’s Angelus reassures us,” Meloni said in a post on X. “I am certain that the Italian people, too, will not fail to offer their support and affection.”

In one of the first immediate reactions to the news, Archbishop Charles Scicluna of Malta posted on X, following the Angelus: “The Church in Malta is united in prayer for the Holy Father, wishing him well for the surgery he will be undergoing.”

Archbishop Luis Argüello of Valladolid, president of the Spanish bishops’ conference, also urged prayers for the pontiff, saying: “From Rome, I invite the entire Spanish Church, dioceses, institutions of consecrated life, lay communities and associations, all members of the People of God, and our fellow citizens, to pray for the health of our beloved Pope Leo XIV.”

Archbishop Argüello is in Rome for Oct. 7-14 gathering of the world’s bishops’ conference presidents and the heads of Eastern Catholic churches, marking the 10th anniversary of “Amoris Laetitia.”

Pope Leo was originally scheduled to celebrate the Oct. 14 closing Mass. However, the Vatican has not announced whether the pope’s surgery will take place before or after the Mass.

Greeting Peruvian pilgrims, Pope Leo indicated his Latin American visit remains on schedule.

The surprise announcement comes less than a month before his longest international trip to date, a 12-day apostolic visit to Latin America that includes stops in Uruguay, Argentina and Peru.

Nevertheless, during his address to pilgrims, the pope greeted members of the Hermandad del Señor de los Milagros, or the Brotherhood of the Lord of Miracles, a Peruvian religious association that spreads devotion to a revered image of Christ crucified, and said he was moving forward with his visit.

“Thank you for your prayers for the pastoral visit I will fulfill in Peru,” the pope said before announcing his surgery.

The pope’s surgery is the first major surgical intervention he has publicly disclosed during his pontificate. A pontiff rarely makes medical announcements, which are often handled by the Vatican press office.

On July 12, 1992, St. John Paul II told pilgrims: “I would now like to share something personal with you,” and announced that he would be visiting Gemelli “for some diagnostic tests,” which resulted in him undergoing surgery to remove a large tumor from his colon.

Pope Francis’ visits to Gemelli for checkups or medical procedures, including his 2021 colon surgery and his 2023 abdominal surgery, were disclosed by the press office.

Megan, the oldest of Kyle and Melissa Snipes’ three daughters, is one of the best softball players in the state. The third baseman will continue her softball career at Kennesaw State University as the only War Eagles softball player with a scholarship offer.

Kyle Snipes, a coach for more than 30 years, including currently as the head girls’ varsity basketball coach at Mount Pisgah Christian School, is always game to talk about his daughter, as a student-athlete, big sister and Christian.

“Megan is very mature for her age. She’s an old soul,” said Snipes. “She’s our oldest of three daughters, and she has taken on a sort of mom role for her little sisters.”

Megan is also a leader on the field. Along with being a power-hitting infielder for the War Eagles softball program, she told The Georgia Bulletin that she is looking forward to savoring her final seasons of basketball and track and field. But first, the softball season is underway.

Megan Snipes

“Spending my final year with my teammates and taking it all in,” said Megan when asked what she has planned for her senior seasons at Marist School. On the softball team, there are four other seniors that might be playing their last seasons of competitive softball, so these next couple of months of wins, losses, and memories will need to last a lifetime.

“This will be my last season of basketball and shot put, so I plan on soaking that up, too,” Megan said.

For a personal goal for softball, Megan said she would like to hit double-digit home runs this season. Her contact hitting and glove in the infield got the attention of college programs. In many ways, she was destined to be a college athlete.

Along with her father’s experience as a coach, her mother, Melissa, played softball and volleyball at Georgia Tech. Despite having earned a scholarship at a major collegiate program, Megan believes God continues to get all of the credit. The Snipes family worships at Peachtree Presbyterian Church in Atlanta.

“God is the biggest focus of my life. I really believe He has helped me in everything,” Megan said. She used her recent college recruitment as an example. She wanted to remain close to home and had several options. The decision to choose the Kennesaw State University Owls softball program, with a plan to major in exercise science, was all by the grace of God, according to Megan.

“I believe He has helped me make the right decision,” she said.

Kyle said he and his wife support the commitment for several reasons, including that Kennesaw State is close to home and Megan’s dream was to play softball on the highest level.

Megan is also an inspiration to her younger sisters, who are both athletes in their own right. Molly, 14, is a freshman second baseman at Marist, and Mary Mason, 12, is a seventh-grade basketball player at Marist.

“Megan has a kind heart and has a knack for making everyone feel like they are the only person in the world,” says her father. But that said, she’s still a super competitor.

“She’s a little bit like her mom. She can’t keep still,” Snipes said of his oldest daughter. “She always has to be doing something.”

Megan enjoys the team sports she participates in but also likes the individuality of the shot put. “I like that it’s all up to you in the ring,” she explained. “You know what to focus on and how to use your power.”

With all the sports and academics that surround Megan’s life as a student-athlete, she says she always makes time to pray to God for direction and peace. There is a team prayer that takes place before every softball game. After that, Megan likes to find a quiet place to talk to God. She said it’s a way she prepares to do what she has been blessed to be able to do.

“Praying is very relaxing and it gets me ready for the game,” she said. “Prayers help me slow down.”  That might be the only time Megan Snipes slows down this season.

By worshipping Christ, “the Righteous One who died for the unrighteous,” the faithful are called to work for justice, peace and fraternity, the pope said Oct. 7 in St. Peter’s Square.

“The Church, therefore, ‘has no fiercer desire than that in pursuit of the welfare of all she may be able to develop herself freely under any kind of government which grants recognition to the basic rights of person and family, to the demands of the common good,'” he said, quoting from the conciliar constitution, “Gaudium et Spes,” as he continued his series of talks on documents from the Second Vatican Council.

Just as Christ was incarnated to reconcile the world with God, the Church exists within the world as a “sign of the incarnation of God, in order to manifest His plan to make us all His children in one great human family,” Pope Leo said.

Journeying through history alongside different peoples and cultures helps the Church understand more clearly the scope of its mission, he said. That mission begins with helping people “be attentive to the profound questions of life: those concerning our origin and our destiny, as well as those concerning the meaning of love and suffering.”

“The logic of profit at all costs and the manipulation of information risk exerting undue pressure on people to conform to a lifestyle centered on the consumption of material goods, but our hearts are made to look upwards,” Pope Leo said.

The Church’s mission also includes contributing to building the “earthly city,” he said, although its methods and aims are not primarily political. Rather, the Church bears witness to “faith and charity, together with commitment for justice, peace, and fraternity.”

To live the Gospel fully, Catholics must cooperate with the grace of the Holy Spirit so that their professed faith is reflected in their daily lives, the pope said, continuing his reflections on the constitution “Gaudium et Spes.”

The discrepancy between professed faith and daily life, the council wrote, “deserves to be counted among the more serious errors of our age.”

Living the faith in contemporary society also requires pastors, theologians and the faithful to discern what in modern cultures is worthy of consideration without “watering down” Christianity to make it more attractive, Pope Leo said.

“This requires a balanced mind, free from cultural trends, capable of viewing the world in a positive light whilst remaining steadfast in preserving and presenting the Gospel message in its entirety,” he said.

The Church is not “above” or “beside” the world, but rather “grafted into it,” Pope Leo said, and its ultimate purpose is that God’s kingdom may come and “the salvation of the whole human race may come to pass.”

“She strives towards this end above all through personal holiness and fraternal love,” he said.

With a big piece of yellow chalk, we drew squares on the sidewalk and then played the classic game of hopscotch. We also played the alphabet game, which involved bouncing a ball while singing: “A, my name is Anna and my husband’s name is Art. We come from Arizona and we sell apples.” Whoever made it through the alphabet without faltering was declared the winner.

On some days, we skated along the brutally hard sidewalks in our native Miami gear—baggy shorts and midriff-bearing tops. Being somewhat clumsy, yours truly often crashed her knees against the concrete, which led to screaming my way into the house for first aid. I’ll never forget my Aunt Rita, who dipped a tiny brush into the bottle of orange medicine and painted a heart upon the wound—which somewhat lessened the volume of my pain.

When we jumped rope, the pace started gently enough, but often exploded into “hot pepper,” which necessitated daring and skill for the participants. I did my best not to get tangled in the rope, which swept the sidewalk in powerful arcs, while the kids sang an age-old litany: “Bluebells, cockleshells, evie, ivy, over; I like coffee, I like tea, I like the boys, and the boys like me.”

Sometimes I wish I had a time machine and could return to those days. I would love to try my hand again at skating with my aunt nearby. I would love to see the concrete block house with jalousie windows, terrazzo floors and the white brocade couch that was off limits to kids. I would savor the sound of my father whistling at dusk to call us back home.

My best friend, Alice, and I invented our own ways to while away the broiling summer days. She had a black cocker spaniel named Junior, and whenever I slept over at her house, we would attach a makeshift bowtie to his collar and put a white chapel veil on his head. Fortunately, Junior was a patient fellow, who endured our antics as long as he was paid in treats.

On Saturdays, Alice and I often took the bus to the blissfully air-conditioned Trail Theater. There, armed with celery sticks, we proceeded to noisily munch to our hearts’ content in an effort to disrupt the movie for everyone. No one considered our antics as hilarious as we did, and their annoyed looks soon silenced us.

When I went to college, my parents sold the concrete block house and bought a condo. They died six months apart when I was 29. For decades, Alice and I exchanged long, detailed letters, until she followed them a few years ago.

Fortunately, I have discovered my own version of a time machine, although it wouldn’t make headlines in a scientific journal. You see, when I pray for folks long gone, I am transported back in time through God’s grace. Suddenly, I’m standing beneath a palm tree next to the concrete block house. There is chalk on the sidewalk and skates strewn on the lawn. I see my mom in the kitchen making supper, while my father whistles a familiar tune into the darkness.

As for the couch, it remains forever off limits to kids, although it wouldn’t surprise me to glimpse Junior sitting there someday, looking rather feisty and decked out in his chapel veil.

At Morning of Hope on Sept. 24 at Flourish Atlanta, parish communities, Vincentian volunteers, supporters, business and civic leaders gathered around the theme “Our Mission for This Moment.” Following an invocation by Bishop Bernard E. Shlesinger III of Atlanta, guests reflected on St. Vincent de Paul Georgia’s call to feed, clothe, house and heal neighbors across Georgia.

The morning’s Hope Builder awards highlighted three examples of that response: Richard Whitcomb, Publix Super Markets and the Men of St. Brigid, who were recognized for their support of neighbors across Georgia.

Individual Hope Builder Richard Whitcomb was recognized for his support of Marillac Moms, St. Vincent de Paul Georgia’s transitional housing program for pregnant mothers and their children experiencing homelessness. Marillac Moms is now planning its seventh transitional home and has welcomed five healthy babies.

Community Hope Builder The Men of St. Brigid Church was honored for its parish-based commitment to neighbors and its support of Marillac Moms. Through this year’s Charity Challenge, the group raised $30,000 to provide supportive housing.

Corporate Hope Builder Publix was recognized for its partnership in hunger initiatives. The grocery story provides food for St. Vincent de Paul Georgia’s Chamblee Food Market and 40 statewide food pantries.

Keynote speaker Alan Graham, founder and CEO of Mobile Loaves & Fishes, spoke about faith expressed through service, relationships built over time and the call to love one’s neighbor.

Georgia Power and Gas South served as co-presenting sponsors of Morning of Hope.

The annual celebration took place at Our Loving Mother’s Children Retreat Center (The Farm) in Conyers, drawing Ghanaian Catholic faithful from across the archdiocese for a day of prayer, Marian devotion and cultural tradition.

The highlights of the day included a rosary procession through the retreat grounds, culminated by the traditional crowning of St. Mary.

The liturgical and devotional events were led in close collaboration by the Catholic Women Association (CWA), the Christian Mothers Association, the choir and the Legion of Mary, whose members helped direct the procession, traditional hymns and prayers.

The celebration event was crowned by a Mass by the chaplain, Father Anthony Baffour Awuah.

The SVdP conference cares for neighbors by meeting them where they are, instead of waiting for them to reach out for assistance. The conference partners with local agencies that also assist families.

In this case, the St. Mary’s conference worked with the Butts County’s Senior Center to identify seniors who could not make it to community hosted food events. Many of them do not have transportation to make it to grocery stores, so the Vincentians team up with the local Meals on Wheels program.

St. Mary’s SVdP group also partners with the director of the summer lunch program and the managers of the local subsidized housing neighborhood in identifying hungry children—especially when school meals are not available.

The programs are designed to be conducted quarterly, depending on availability.

For information relating to future programs, please email glevins@mindspring.com.