Francesco Rahe, a fourth-year student at the University of Chicago, has been named a 2025 Rhodes Scholar. Rahe plans to pursue a master's degree in classical Indian religions at Oxford University and aims to focus on translating Sanskrit texts.

Rahe is the 55th student from the University of Chicago to receive this honor. Recently, another fourth-year student, Anqi Qu, was also named a Rhodes Scholar for South Africa.

"It means an immense amount to have received this opportunity," Rahe stated. "I’m honestly a little stunned, but I also am trying to focus on making good on this opportunity. It’s a gift, but it also comes with responsibilities. I want to make sure what I do in the future is able to repay this thousand-fold."

Rahe hopes his studies will help address interreligious divides. As a Catholic and an avid writer currently working on his 13th novel, he believes literature can foster conversations between faiths. He noted that less than 3% of books published annually in the U.S. are translated, limiting valuable interreligious dialogues.

Having spent time with the American Institute for Indian Studies translating Sanskrit, Rahe plans to connect with UK-based organizations during his time at Oxford and learn more translation techniques. He also intends to continue improving his Persian language skills under UChicago scholar Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi and study Mughal Empire-era translations of Sanskrit into Persian.

"When we’re only reading literature from our own language and the perspective of our own belief system, this leaves us vulnerable to misinformation about other groups," Rahe remarked. "I want to fight back against those kinds of divisions by increasing the number of accessible translations of religious texts."

Melina Hale, dean of the College at UChicago, commented: "Francesco exhibits uncommon character, with enormous potential to drive meaningful change and foster mutual understanding in a world where too often we focus on what makes us different."

Rahe hails from Hillsdale, Michigan and has founded an RSO called CULT (Critical Understanding of Liturgies and Traditions) aimed at addressing religious divides through diverse perspectives on religion studies.

"Francesco is a person of boundless intellectual curiosity," said Ryan Coyne, associate professor at UChicago. "An extraordinary academic talent... Francesco possesses the courage... needed to bridge those divisions."

The Rhodes Scholar application process is rigorous; Rahe credits support from friends and family as well as guidance from the College Center for Research and Fellowships (CCRF) team for helping him navigate it successfully.