Dear Friends,
What could have the greatest impact and most influence on the Catholic Church?
Most people immediately think of the Pope. Others may say the bishops or perhaps the clergy as a whole.
But the St. Paul Center has a different answer: Biblical scholarship.
Why? Because Biblical scholarship forms our future priests—who in turn shape the laity. If a priest is formed without a love and deep knowledge of Scripture, the consequences will quickly be felt across the Church.
Dr. Scott Hahn founded the Center in 2001—its full name is the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology. Dr. Hahn recognized that Scripture, when taught with fidelity, inspires a deeper love for the Bible and the Eucharist. In contrast, a skeptical approach to Scripture (prevalent in most 20th-century academic institutions) often fosters disinterest and distrust in both Scripture and the Mass.
The St. Paul Center is righting this wrong. It’s the “teacher of teachers”—training priests and other scholars to read the Sacred Page from the heart of the Church. And it has already influenced millions of Catholics.
Watch Our Interview with Dr. Scott Hahn
From the start, the Center has issued a stream of Biblical scholarship rooted in truth. Through Emmaus Road & Emmaus Academic Publishing, it has released a slew of books and study resources. Its publications have been used by hundreds of thousands of people—scholars, clergy, and laity—in more than 3,000 parishes.
The Center has also reached rising generations of Biblical scholars. Every year, the Summer Institute Program draws doctoral candidates from Duke, Yale, Notre Dame, and other prominent universities. It has now helped form more than 100 future scholars, while building bonds of friendship that benefit them throughout their careers. They go on to teach priests and laity at seminaries and theological schools.
Most notably, the St. Paul Center has helped foster a deeper love for Scripture directly to priests. Since 2017, it has held regular priest conferences, with annual attendance now exceeding 600 priests. All told, more than 4,500 priests have been formed at the Center’s conferences. In fact, the Center believes they’re the largest events for priests in the world.
The Napa Institute has sponsored the West Coast priest conference since 2019. With the sixth annual conference scheduled for 2026 in Southern California, we’re excited to keep helping our priests grow in their understanding of the Bible and ability to preach it.
Next year, the St. Paul Center will celebrate 25 years. It has made a tremendous impact in the Catholic Church over the past quarter century—and it plans to reach even more priests and lay people in the years ahead. For instance, it’s building an endowment that will fund even larger priest conferences for generations to come.
As Ken Baldwin, the Center’s executive director, told Napa: “We’re going to keep encouraging priests, because they form us. We need priests who love their Priesthood and Sacred Scripture.”
To learn more about the incredible work of the St. Paul Center for Biblical Theology, please visit its website.
