Russian Satanist-turned-seminarian impresses Pope Francis

Michie · Sep 10, 2023

A young Russian bears witness to how Christ led him from the darkness of Satanism to the light, transforming his perception of himself.

On Friday, August 25, Pope Francis participated by videoconference in the 10th Meeting of Young Catholics of Russia, held in St. Petersburg from August 24 to 27. During the event, one testimony was particularly striking: that of seminarian Alexander Baranov, 34, who had been a Satanist before his conversion.

Out of darkness into light

As Baranov himself described it:

Ten or 12 years ago, I was as far away from the Church as possible. I was a Satanist. I took part in occult rituals. I did and said a lot of bad things. I’ve been in the Church for five years now, and in my second year of seminary, I recognized a call to the priesthood.

The young Russian emphasized that he sees the Catholic Church as having a special mission from which he himself has already benefited: “To bring people out of darkness. At least that’s how it was in my life.”

Factors that can lead to Satanism

Continued below.