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By Katie Vasquez and Paula Katinas | NetTV

BEDFORD-STUYVESANT — Every Sunday, when Joseph Murray presses the keys of the pipe organ in the choir loft of Our Lady of Victory Church, he is part of a long line of musicians stretching back 130 years who have played the magnificent instrument.  

By Ralph McCloud | Network Lobby

I met Sr. Thea Bowman a couple of times. What is there to say about meeting a living saint? It was an honor? A joy? It strengthened my faith? 

Absolutely! 

Meeting Sr. Thea challenged me in my mission as a baptized believer. Her 1989 address to the U.S. bishops is a landmark event in Black Catholic History in the United States, and I try to revisit it every November, if not more often. 

November is Black Catholic History Month, an observance that coincides with the feast of St. Martin de Porres (November 3), and the birthday of St. Augustine (November 13). It begins with All Saints and All Souls Days, which evoke the reverence for ancestors in African history. For us, this cloud of witnesses isn’t merely watching. They inspire us, help us, and hold us accountable. 

By Nancy Enright | Seton Hall University

We are excited to celebrate two very important events this coming week, events both linked to larger celebrations, campus-wide. As part of Black Catholic History Month, we are hosting a panel on “Tranformational Journeys: the Legacy of African Saints Series.”  at 5 p.m., Wednesday, November 12, our panel of experts will explore the topic of African Saints, a large number of individuals including saints like Simon of Cyrene, Perpetua and Felicity and Martin de Porres. In Core II, Perpetua’s prison journal, her Passio, is a required text.

By Gina Christian, OSV News

During its 2025 fall plenary assembly, which will take place Nov. 10-13 in Baltimore, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops will consider possible revisions to its “Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services,” or ERD, document.

Now in its sixth edition, the ERD document — developed in consultation with medical professionals and theologians, and regularly reviewed by the USCCB — articulates ethical standards for health care in light of Church teaching, and provides authoritative guidance on moral issues encountered by Catholic health care.

By Tyler Arnold | Catholic News Agency

Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City was elected to serve as the next president of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) in a secret ballot on Nov. 11.

Bishops chose Bishop Daniel Flores of Brownsville, Texas, to serve as vice president. Flores, who serves in the southernmost diocese in Texas, finished second in balloting for president. Coakley subsequently won a runoff.