May 2, 2026
— Jeff Ward, Lehigh Valley News Briefs
The bid for sainthood for a Schuylkill County native is over, according to the AD Times.
The newspaper of the Catholic Diocese of Allentown said in its April 30 edition that “the documentation relating to Father Ciszek’s Cause does not support advancing his Cause for Beatification or Sainthood.”
That decision came from the Vatican.
Ciszek (1904-84) was born in Shenandoah, Schuylkill County. He spent more than two decades in the Soviet Union and sentenced to years of hard labor. He maintained clandestine ministries during his imprisonment. He was released in a prisoner exchange with the United States in 1963.
The bid for sainthood for Ciszek had many backers, the diocese noted in its statement.
“While this news may understandably bring disappointment to the many who have been inspired by Father Ciszek’s example of heroic faith, it does not diminish the enduring spiritual value of his life, witness, and legacy,” according to the statement in the AD Times.
After his release, Ciszek was a lecturer. There are Ciszek Halls at the University of Scranton and Fordham University.
Ciszek also wrote three books, including “With God in Russia.”
He died at age 80 in 1984, and was buried in the Jesuit cemetery in Wernersville, Berks County.
Lehigh Valley News Briefs 