America Magazine: “How the Catholic Church adapted during the Black Plague” September 29, 2025April 5, 2020 by Tom Faranda This is a podcast put online from the Jesuit “America Magazine”. Just hit the link. It’s not really fair or responsible to draw comparisons between the Black Plague and our current coronavirus pandemic. Our situation pales in comparison to 50 million deaths, or roughly 50 percent of Europe’s population alone, in the mid-14th century. But what was true then is true now: The Catholic Church needed to change the way that it normally operated. And, as usual, history can be an illuminating teacher. Winston Black is a professor and medieval historian who focuses on the intersection of medicine and religion in the Middle Ages. We ask him to describe just how severe the Black Plague was, the church’s pastoral response and lessons the church can learn today.