In every age, the Church faces trials—but some seasons are darker than others. This month, Steve Wood draws together the warnings of saints, popes, mystics, and prophets to show that the present crisis—both in the Church and the world—was not unforeseen. From St. John Henry Newman’s chilling vision of a coming apostasy to St. Augustine’s hope that even unbelievers will awaken through fulfilled prophecy, Steve reveals how history and Scripture converge in our own time. Yet amid the shadows, he offers a radiant truth: when faith is tested, grace abounds.
From the Desk of Steve Wood at the Family Life Center (November 2025)
The Dark Season Crisis
The crisis now engulfing both the Church and the world was:
• Predicted by Cardinal Newman
• Prophesied by St. John Paul II
• Foreseen by Pope Leo XIII
• Envisaged by Anne Catherine Emmerich
• Proclaimed by St. John and St. Paul
• Forecasted by St. Augustine
And it is far more serious than most imagine.
May the Lord give us ears to hear.
St. John Henry Newman’s Prophetic Foresight
On November 1st, St. John Henry Newman (1801–1890) was formally declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Leo XIV. Newman was a courageous Christian thinker who, after an exhaustive study of the Church Fathers, left the Anglican communion to enter the Catholic Church.
During the month honoring his new title, I feel compelled to highlight something too seldom emphasized—Newman’s prophetic insight into the Church’s future. His deep grasp of Christian history gave him a sobering view of what lay ahead. Those who know the past, he observed, perceive the future most clearly.
Newman spoke forcefully of a coming great apostasy, a spiritual falling away that would test even the faithful. His boldness in confronting such realities encouraged me to launch the Luke21 podcasts. To be honest, I hesitated at first. I feared being lumped together with the “prophecy sensationalists” who make wild, unfounded predictions.
But St. Newman was neither wild nor speculative—he was sane, grounded, and courageous. I knew I could not match his brilliance, but I could at least follow in his footsteps by addressing truths many prefer to ignore.
Even today, the key verses on apostasy in 2 Thessalonians 2 are absent from the Catholic lectionary—a silence that speaks volumes.
Let us listen carefully to Newman’s words of wisdom about the approaching darkness.
John Henry Newman Warns of a Great Apostasy
“I know that all times are perilous, and that in every time serious and anxious minds,
alive to the honor of God and the needs of man, are apt to consider no times so perilous as their own.
Still I think that the trials which lie before us are such as would appall and make dizzy even such courageous hearts as St. Athanasius or St. Gregory. They would confess that, dark as the prospect of their own day was, ours has a darkness different in kind from any that has been before it.
The special peril of the time before us is the spread of that plague of infidelity which the Apostles and our Lord Himself predicted as the worst calamity of the last times of the Church…
At least a shadow, a typical image of those last times, is coming over the world.
…There will be a crisis and a turning point.”
— Sermon 9, “The Infidelity of the Future,” October 2, 1873
From Darkness to Light — and Back Again
Pre-Christian Darkness
“He will destroy on this mountain the covering that is cast over all peoples.” — Isaiah 25:7
The Light of the World
“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.” — Isaiah 9:2
“The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light… light has dawned.” — Matthew 4:16
Predicted Reversal Before the Second Coming
“The fifth angel blew his trumpet… and the sun and the air were darkened with smoke from the pit.” — Revelation 9:1–2
The Release of Satan and Return of Deception
“When the thousand years are ended, Satan will be loosed from his prison… to deceive the nations.” — Revelation 20:7–8
Echoes Through the Ages
Pope Leo XIII’s Long Prayer to St. Michael (1888)
“Satan, the deceiver of the nations, was cast into the abyss… Yet behold, this primeval enemy now wanders about with all the multitude of wicked spirits, invading the earth to blot out the name of God and of His Christ.”
Anne Catherine Emmerich (1823)
“In the center of Hell I saw a dark and horrible abyss into which Lucifer was cast… I was told that he would be unchained for a time fifty or sixty years before the year 2000… and that certain demons would be let loose even sooner to tempt mankind.”
St. John Paul II (then Cardinal Wojtyła, 1976)
“We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has ever gone through… the final confrontation between the Church and the anti-Church, of the Gospel versus the anti-Gospel.”
Catechism of the Catholic Church
CCC 675: Before Christ’s Second Coming, the Church must pass through a final trial that will shake the faith of many believers.
CCC 677: The Church will enter the glory of the Kingdom only through her final Passover — the final unleashing of evil.
St. Augustine and the Golden Opportunity within the Apostasy
Even amid darkness, St. Augustine foresaw a surprising grace: that many unbelievers would come to faith precisely because they see Scripture being fulfilled before their eyes.
“…Some who till then shall be without, shall become firm in the faith they have hitherto rejected… mighty to conquer the devil even though unbound, God’s grace aiding them to understand the Scriptures, in which… they themselves see to be arriving.”
— City of God, Book XX, Chapter 8
I have this quotation framed in the Family Life Center lunchroom. It reminds me often that apostasy is not a time for retreat—it is a time for awakening. When darkness deepens, God’s light often breaks through in unexpected hearts.
The Fruit of Faithful Witness
One of my favorite testimonies from Luke21 listeners came from a man who wrote:
“I had been an atheist for at least 15 years before finding Luke21. Steve’s lectures played a large role in pointing me back to the Church. I really can’t tell you how grateful I am.”
Men are notoriously hard to reach through Catholic media, yet Luke21 is drawing a remarkable audience of men—especially young men—far beyond what I’ve seen in twenty years of broadcasting. I believe that even the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk is awakening many young souls who had long drifted from faith. This number may include your non-practicing grown children and grandchildren. Let them know about Luke21.
Gratitude and Mission
When I confided in the president of another Catholic apostolate about launching Luke21, he asked how I planned to fund it. I had to admit, “I have no idea.”
And yet, here we are—thanks to you.
To all who have supported Luke21 through your prayers and donations, I offer my heartfelt gratitude. You have helped make the tenuous possible.
Yours in His Majesty’s Service,
Steve Wood
P.S. If you’re able to extend a bit of financial support this November, it would mean a great deal. Your generosity allows us to continue proclaiming the light of Christ amid the gathering darkness.
Donations can be sent by mail or easily made online at BibleforCatholics.com.
P.P.S. We now have Luke21 invitation cards for new listeners. If you’d like to share them with friends or family, let us know how many you’d like by writing a note on your reply card or sending an email request to: Contact@BibleforCatholics.com.
“We see how the power of the Antichrist is expanding,
and we can only pray that the Lord will give us strong shepherds
who will defend his church in this hour of need from the power of evil.”
– Pope Benedict XVI