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The Rosary Team: Bringing hope to seniors in their final years

Residents at a senior care home in the Archdiocese of Denver join together to pray the rosary thanks to the ministry of The Rosary Team. / Credit: Photo courtesy of Teresa Rodriguez

Denver, Colorado, Oct 11, 2025 / 07:00 am (CNA).

After finishing the rosary with her fellow residents and volunteers from The Rosary Team, Martha “Marty” Todd smiled with peaceful joy. Over her lifetime, she has witnessed miracles through prayer — healings in her family, conversions of loved ones, and graces that could only have come from God.

Now, in her later years, she treasures the weekly visits from The Rosary Team, whose volunteers gather to pray with elderly residents in care facilities across the archdiocese. Their presence brings comfort, companionship, and a reminder that no one is ever forgotten in God’s love.

“We all love our mother,” Todd said, her eyes brightening as she spoke of the Blessed Virgin Mary. “Sometimes, when I get uptight about things or worried, praying the rosary brings comfort and kind of eases my whirling mind.”

Martha “Marty” Todd, an independent resident in Denver. Credit: Teresa Rodriguez
Martha “Marty” Todd, an independent resident in Denver. Credit: Teresa Rodriguez

A life marked by grace

Todd’s journey to her nursing facility began unexpectedly after a seizure during a family Christmas visit made her realize that she “wasn’t infallible.” What could have been a frightening transition became a blessing, bringing her closer to her children, grandchildren, and extended family.

Her voice caught with emotion as she recalled a miracle that transformed her entire family. One of her closest relatives was diagnosed with stage 4 cancer.

“We just prayed our heads off,” Todd said.

After surgery and biopsy, the surgeon returned with impossible news: There was no cancer.

“We just know she had a healing,” she continued.

That miracle rippled through her family, drawing more relatives into the Catholic Church as they recognized “the value of Catholic prayer.” Her grandson Andrew, once a quiet and thoughtful boy, began attending daily Mass in high school. Today, he is Brother Francis, serving as assistant to the abbot at Conception Abbey.

“He was always kind of a quiet, pondering kid,” Todd reflected. “We realized he had a call.”

Teresa Rodriguez with her mother, Marian Buchheit. Credit: Paul Buchheit
Teresa Rodriguez with her mother, Marian Buchheit. Credit: Paul Buchheit

A husband’s final grace

Perhaps the most unexpected conversion came from Todd’s husband, Richard, who was not Catholic. During a visit to their son Rob in Missouri, Richard was diagnosed with cancer. Their son gently asked him: “Don’t you think it’s time you were baptized?” Richard simply replied: “I guess so.”

A priest baptized him in the hospital, giving him what Marty Todd calls “a direct line to heaven” before he passed away four months later.

These profound experiences of grace and conversion have shaped Todd’s deep appreciation for the spiritual care she now receives at Morningstar, her nursing facility. Having witnessed how powerfully God works in the final moments of life, she knows the vital importance of bringing faith to those approaching their final years.

The Rosary Team’s presence

When volunteers from The Rosary Team arrive, something special happens. Their visits bring “more connection with people,” Todd explained. “They are doing something nice for us.”

The presence of volunteers transforms the experience from routine prayer into relationship. They become bridges to the wider community, especially for those in assisted living or memory care who have limited mobility.

“It’s quite a wake-up call when you move into a facility like this,” Todd said.

Since arriving, she has seen about 20 to 25 people pass away in a single year — some who “seemed really vital and just didn’t wake up one morning.”

That reality shapes how residents think about faith.

“We all realize we’re getting closer to the end of life,” she noted. “I think we ponder a little more about what it will be.”

Among her neighbors are “fallen-away Catholics” she prays for.

“It’s never too late as long as you’re still breathing,” she said.

A legacy of faith

The Rosary Team’s ministry is more than weekly visits. It is a lifeline that shows seniors they are cared for and remembered. Volunteers bring statues of the Blessed Virgin Mary, lead familiar prayers and embody Christ’s love for those society too often forgets.

Todd sees the fruit of such faith passed down through her family. Her granddaughter, Alex Martinez, daughter of Rich and Joanie Todd, recently graduated as a pediatric nurse practitioner. Todd attended her graduation in Nashville — a joy she credits to being closer to family since moving to Morningstar.

In Alex’s healing work, like Brother Francis’ monastic vocation, Todd sees how prayer echoes through generations, bearing fruit in both religious and professional service.

Resident Dan Cummings prays the rosary. Credit: Cris Fanelli
Resident Dan Cummings prays the rosary. Credit: Cris Fanelli

Expanding a vital mission

Todd’s story highlights why The Rosary Team’s mission is so crucial. Across the country, nursing facilities house thousands of elderly residents, many of whom suffer spiritual isolation. While activities may include exercise and entertainment, few offer the kind of deep spiritual care needed as residents face mortality.

Requests for The Rosary Team’s presence continue to grow nationwide. The ministry runs entirely on the generosity of donors who believe in supporting the spiritual welfare of the elderly — fulfilling both corporal and spiritual works of mercy. Their gifts make possible the training, coordination, and expansion of this mission of prayer.

To learn more about supporting The Rosary Team, visit www.therosaryteam.org.

This story was first published by the Denver Catholic and has been reprinted on CNA with permission.

Pope to Vatican communicators: 'Our prayer makes the difference'

Pope Leo XIV warmly welcomes Vatican Dicastery for Communication's journalists and staff, along with their families, into the heart of the Vatican, and insists that the prayer that accompanies their daily work is what makes all the difference, even if the rest of the world may fail to understand that.

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Catholic ultra-endurance runner inspires men to strive for holiness

Jonathan Kuplack takes part in “The Mammoth,” a 214-mile race through the Eastern Sierras in California that he ran with the hope to inspire other men across the country. / Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke

CNA Staff, Oct 11, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).

Five years ago, Jonathan Kuplack was speaking with a friend about the need for men to have communities where they can be open with one another, challenge each other, and be inspired to become the men God intended them to be. 

The conversation led Kuplack to launch a Catholic nonprofit called “Sebaste” — which comes from the story of the 40 Martyrs of Sebaste — that challenges men to become saints through intensive summer programs, adventure, brotherhood, physical challenge, and prayer.

Kuplack lives this mission by example. From Sept. 26–28, the 37-year-old participated in “The Mammoth” — a 214-mile race through the Eastern Sierras in California — with the hope to inspire other men across the country.

Jonathan Kuplack takes part in "The Mammoth," a 214-mile race through the Eastern Sierras in California, with the hope to inspire other men across the country. Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke
Jonathan Kuplack takes part in "The Mammoth," a 214-mile race through the Eastern Sierras in California, with the hope to inspire other men across the country. Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke

As an avid endurance runner, Kuplack told CNA that he receives a “deep joy and peace” from training for races and “there’s a unity with the divine that happens — it’s very hard to explain — when I’m running through mountains and it’s silent.”

Earlier this year, Kuplack ran across the United States — 3,500 miles in 100 days — stopping to speak at churches, schools, and on podcasts. 

He said he was inspired to take part in “The Mammoth” because he believes everyone needs to get out of their comfort zone in order for growth to happen. 

“We need to grow and there’s only growth on the other side of our fear and the other side of our comfort zone,” he said. “And as long as we stay in the places where we’re comfortable, we will never grow.” 

Kuplack also wanted to motivate other men to “go to the other side of the fear and get uncomfortable and pay the price so that we can live in the fullness of joy and abundance that Christ came to give us.”

Kuplack went into “The Mammoth” hoping to finish the race within 48 hours. However, things did not go as planned and he finished the race after 71 and a half hours. 

For the first 70 miles Kuplack was at the front of the pack, but after a 28-and-a-half-mile stretch without an aid station — a stop along the course that provides runners with nutrition and hydration — his body was left depleted and he spent 45 minutes at the next aid station in a borderline hypothermic state. 

“That experience took me down and for the next 80 miles I was crawling. I was going so slow,” he recalled. “Every step was very painful and I didn’t even know if I was going to finish at that point.”

Thanks to an hour nap and refueling his body with more food, he was able to finish the last 50 miles. 

Jonathan Kuplack and his care team at an aid station during "The Mammoth." Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke
Jonathan Kuplack and his care team at an aid station during "The Mammoth." Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke

There were several takeaways from his experience of that race, including “the need to let go of our ego in order for God’s plan to play out in our lives and the need for transcendent experiences.”

“Going into this race, I’m giving this race to the Lord, I’m running for God. I’m saying to God, ‘If you grant me the victory, help me to just reflect that back onto you so everyone can see you.’ But as the race unfolded, I realized it was still about me. It’s so difficult to get out of the ego,” he said. 

He said the experience helped him realize that it’s “only when we find our part in God’s grand play, in his big movie, in his theodrama, do we become fully alive and fully actualized and become the great saints we’re made to be.”

Jonathan Kuplack at the start of "The Mammoth," which took place Sept. 26-28, 2025. Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke
Jonathan Kuplack at the start of "The Mammoth," which took place Sept. 26-28, 2025. Credit: Jacob Schmiedicke

Kuplack also highlighted the importance of “transcendent experiences in our lives.” 

“We need to have experiences that get us outside of ourselves so that we can look down and see our life from altitude. Look down from 30,000 feet and see the big picture. And these transcendent experiences draw us out of ourselves,” he said. 

“It’s like when the small group of apostles was up on the mountain and at the Transfiguration. They were drawn into something so much bigger and beautiful, but it gave a whole new perspective to their life when they went back down the mountain,” he explained. “And in these races, you’re running through incredible natural beauty, climbing mountains, descending. I saw the sun go down three times and rise three times in these incredible places where most people never get to go and I just got to be living and moving through that for 71 hours.”

“As painful as it was, it was such a gift. So it just sucks you out of yourself and you realize, wow God you are truly magnificent and great.”

Kuplack is hoping to inspire men to join in Sebaste’s “Choose the Cross” initiative, which invites men to commit to eliminating one habit or vice that may be hurting their relationship with God, engage in one physical activity daily, and do one spiritual act daily. 

He said he hopes more men will feel called to making a “full commitment to holiness and being a great saint.”

Vatican's Deepavali message: With shared values, let's join hands

The Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue sends well wishes to those celebrating the Hindu feast of Deepavali, and invites Christians and Hindus to "join hands in both small and great ways to nurture peace in our homes, communities and societies."

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Pope Leo to make official visit to Italy's president

Pope Leo will visit the Quirinale Palace on Tuesday, where he will meet with Italian President Sergio Mattarella, reciprocating the Head of State's visit to the Vatican in June.

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Holy See at UN: Build lasting peace through development, not military spending

In 2024 global military spending reached $2.7 trillion, while the funding gap for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) remains at $4 trillion per year. For every dollar invested in peace, two are spent on war. Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations tells the UN that: “Every increase in military spending represents resources that could have been used to meet people’s basic needs and to establish a lasting peace.”

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CELAM to launch global training on the study and implementation of the Synod

Starting 20 October 2025, the Council of Catholic Bishops from Latin America and the Caribbean, widely known by its acronym, CELAM, will launch a global digital training platform focused on the study and implementation of the Final Document of the Synod on Synodality.

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Pope Leo meets with group of Italian hermits in Rome for Jubilee

Pope Leo meets with a group of hermits in Rome for the Jubilee of Consecrated Life and encourages them to continue living out their vocation, helping the Church and all the faithful rediscover the importance of intimacy with God.

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Pro-life influencer’s assault case dropped; Thomas More Society fights for justice

Catholic pro-life activist Savannah Craven Antao was assaulted in New York City on Thursday, April 3, 2025, while conducting a video interview with a pro-abortion advocate.  / Credit: Photo courtesy of Savannah Craven Antao

CNA Staff, Oct 10, 2025 / 17:39 pm (CNA).

Here is a roundup of recent pro-life and abortion-related news:

Pro-life influencer’s assault case dropped; Thomas More Society fights for justice

After New York City dropped the case against a woman who assaulted a pro-life influencer, the legal nonprofit Thomas More Society is advocating for justice. 

The pro-life influencer, Savannah Craven Antao, was punched in the face by a woman she was interviewing as part of her pro-life advocacy. The video went viral, but the city dropped the case.

Thomas More Society, on behalf of Craven Antao, asked the Manhattan district attorney to reconsider and to press felony and hate crime charges. 

“The defendant made disparaging remarks about Ms. Craven Antao’s Christian beliefs and practices before brutally assaulting her,” the letter read. 

Craven Antao, a friend of the late Charlie Kirk, who was violently murdered during a debate, said she takes inspiration from Kirk in her activism. 

The district attorney’s office previously released an apology for dropping the case and said it is looking into it internally. 

Judge approves Missouri pro-life ballot proposal

A Cole County Circuit judge approved a Missouri ballot amendment that, if passed, would repeal the 2024 amendment that created a right to abortion in the state. 

The proposed ballot measure would protect unborn children throughout pregnancy, with some exceptions in cases of medical emergency, fetal anomalies, or rape and incest. 

The 2026 measure would amend the Missouri Constitution to require parental consent for minors seeking abortions and to “ensure women’s safety during abortion.” The measure would also prohibit transgender medical procedures for children.

The amendment also contains language to “guarantee women’s medical care for emergencies, ectopic pregnancies, and miscarriages.”

Missouri’s current constitution, following the 2024 amendment, allows almost unfettered access to abortion as it says that “the right to reproductive freedom shall not be denied, interfered with, delayed, or otherwise restricted” by the government.

Texas arrests 8 members of illegal abortion operation

Texas arrested eight people in connection with an alleged illegal abortion operation in the Houston area. 

Yaimara Hernandez Alvarez, Alina Valeron Leon, Dalia Coromoto Yanez, Yhonder Lebrun Acosta, Liunet Grandales Estrada, Gerardo Otero Aguero, Sabiel Bosch Gongora, and Jose Manuel Cendan Ley were arrested for allegedly providing illegal abortions and practicing medicine without proper licensing, according to an Oct. 8 press release from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s office.

The Houston area medical clinics allegedly performing the abortions are owned by Maria Rojas, who was previously arrested for posing as a physician and operating the clinics.  

Louisiana sues FDA over abortion pill mailing  

Louisiana filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to prevent other states from mailing illegal abortion drugs into Louisiana. 

Filed last week, Louisiana v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration challenges the loosening of safeguards around chemical abortion drugs by the Biden administration during the COVID-19 era.

Under President Joe Biden, the FDA approved abortion pills to be prescribed remotely, without any in-person interaction with a doctor or clinic.

Policy Director for Louisiana Right to Life Erica Inzina celebrated the lawsuit, saying the FDA “abandoned its duty to protect public health by allowing abortion pills to be distributed through the mail without proper medical supervision.”

Sister Jean Dolores, beloved nun and Loyola University basketball chaplain, dies at 106

Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt at the first round game of the NCAA Tournament in Dallas on Thursday, March 15, 2018. / Credit: Lukas Keapproth/Loyola University Chicago

CNA Staff, Oct 10, 2025 / 17:07 pm (CNA).

Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, the beloved Catholic nun who became known across the country at the age of 98 as the chaplain of the Loyola University Chicago men’s basketball team, died Oct. 9 at the age of 106. 

“In many roles at Loyola over the course of more than 60 years, Sister Jean was an invaluable source of wisdom and grace for generations of students, faculty, and staff,” said Mark C. Reed, Loyola president, in a statement. 

“While we feel grief and a sense of loss, there is great joy in her legacy. Her presence was a profound blessing for our entire community and her spirit abides in thousands of lives. In her honor, we can aspire to share with others the love and compassion Sister Jean shared with us,” he added.

Sister Jean, as she was more commonly known, was born Dolores Bertha Schmidt on Aug. 21, 1919, to Joseph and Bertha Schmidt. She was raised in a devout Catholic home in San Francisco’s Castro District.

Since the age of 8, Sister Jean had a calling to religious life. In her memoir, published in 2023, she recalled meeting a kind and joyful teacher who belonged to the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary (BVM). Admiring this teacher, she would pray every day: “Dear God, help me understand what I should do, but please tell me I should become a BVM sister.”

In 1937, she joined the Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and took the name Sister Jean Dolores. In 1991, she joined the staff at Loyola Chicago and three years later became part of the basketball team, first as an academic adviser before transitioning to chaplain. 

Sister Jean burst onto the scene when her beloved Ramblers upset the University of Miami in the first round of the 2018 March Madness tournament with a down-to-the-wire three-point basket.

Following this win, Twitter (now X) featured Sister Jean in a Twitter moment, and she received shoutouts from high-profile accounts including ESPN and former President Barack Obama. The New York Times also ran a profile on her.

Sister Jean lead the team in prayer before each game — praying for her players to be safe, for the referees to be fair, and for God’s assistance during the game. She also admitted to praying for the opposing team, but “not as hard.”

In her memoir, she recalled her pregame prayers with the players where she would also get on the microphone at Gentile Arena and offer a prayer for all in attendance.

“Does God really care who wins a basketball game? Maybe he cares more than we think?” she wrote in her memoir.

“If nothing else, I imagine God must laugh sometimes when someone prays to win a game. God sees a lot of horrible stuff going on. Sometimes he needs a good laugh. I’d like to think I give him a chuckle every time I say into that microphone, ‘Amen and go Ramblers!’”

When she turned 100, Loyola Chicago announced a scholarship fund in her honor to support students, and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker proclaimed Aug. 21, 2019, “Sister Jean Day” across the state. At 103, the Chicago train station plaza at the Loyola campus was renamed in her honor, with a large sign that read “Home of the World Famous Sister Jean!”

She is survived by her sister-in-law, Jeanne Tidwell, and her niece, Jan Schmidt. Visitation and funeral arrangements will be announced soon by Loyola University.