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Conferences

NOSTRA AETATE (In Our Time)  

November 7–9, 2019

Vatican II’s Nostra Aetate urges adherents of the world’s major religions to promote understanding, justice, peace, freedom and human welfare. Why did controversy surround this 1965 document? What is its significance today?

Join Villanova’s Institute for Catholic Social Thought and Center for Arab and Islamic Studies to examine this groundbreaking work’s historical and current ecclesial contexts.

Confirmed Speakers

Archimandrite Nikodemos Anagnostopoulos, University of Notre Dame in London
John Borelli, Georgetown University
Kail Ellis, Villanova University
Martin Ganeri, OP, Blackfriars, University of Oxford
Sidney Griffith, The Catholic University of America
Christian Krokus, The University of Scranton
Rev. Dennis McManus, Pope Leo XIII Institute and Georgetown University
David Neuhaus, SJ, Pontifical Biblical Institute, Jerusalem; and Former Patriarchal Vicar for Hebrew-Speaking Catholics in Jerusalem
Anthony O'Mahony, Blackfriars, University of Oxford
George Sabra, Near East School of Theology, Beirut
Rev. Richard Sudworth, Secretary for Interreligious Affairs to the Archbishop of Canterbury
Rocco Viviano, SX, Shinmeizan Centre of Spirituality and Interreligious Dialogue, Kyushu

Mercy, Justice, Love, & Care for the Earth

April 12–15, 2018

The goal of the conference is to provide a theological and historical analysis of this pontificate.

For questions or concerns regarding the Conference please contact Erin Buckley at (610)519-4485.

Keynote Speakers

Flight or Field Hospital: Pope Francis and the Church’s Engagement with the World

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, CSSR, Newark, NJ
 

Reconciling Doctrine, Theology, Spirituality, and Pastorality: Vatican II and Pope Francis

John O’Malley, SJ, Georgetown University
 

Pope Francis and “Laudato Si”

Jeffrey Sachs, Columbia University
 

A hunter who advances too far ahead of his fellow hunters ends up with an arrow in his behind: Following Francis’s Tough Leadership Act

Agbonkhianmeghe Orobator, SJ, President, Conference of Jesuit Major Superiors of Africa and Madagascar, Nairobi, Kenya
 

Pope Francis and His Impact on the Church of Latin America

Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodriguez Maradiaga, SDB, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
 

Pope Francis: The Catholic Church as a Social Movement

Margaret Archer, President, Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences
 

Pope Francis’ Interpretation of Vatican II

Massimo Faggioli, Villanova University
 

The Spiritual Roots of “Reform” in Pope Francis

Antonio Spadaro, SJ, Editor, La Civilta Cattolica
 

Pope Francis: A Theologian of Migration

Michelle Pistone, Villanova University School of Law

Date    Time   Event Location
April 12 7:30 PM

Welcome

Barbara Wall, PhD, Vice President for Mission and Ministry, Villanova University 

St. Thomas of Villanova Church
   

Flight or Field Hospital: Pope Francis and the Church’s Engagement with the World

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, CSSR, Newark, NJ

St. Thomas of Villanova Church
April 13 8:30 AM Continental Breakfast TBD
April 13 9:30 AM

Reconciling Doctrine, Theology, Spirituality, and Pastorality: Vatican II and Pope Francis

John O'Malley SJ, Georgetown University

Cinema, Connelly Center
April 13 10:30 AM Break Connelly Center
April 13 10:45 AM Pope Francis and Laudato Si
Jeffrey Sachs, Columbia University
Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 13 11:45 AM Break Connelly Center
April 13 12:00 PM

Noon Mass

followed by Lunch (paid registrants only please)

St. Thomas of Villanova Church
April 13 1:45 PM

A hunter who advances too far ahead of his fellow hunters ends up with an arrow in his behind: Following Francis’s Tough Leadership Act

Agbonkhianmeghe, Orobator, SJ, President, Conference of Jesuit Major Superiors of Africa and Madagascar, Nairobi, Kenya

Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 13 2:45 PM Break  
April 13 3-4 PM Concurrent Session 1 Various Locations

 

 

 

 

Group 1:  Roots of Francis’ Theology:

  • Bernard Brady / From Leo to Francis: The Narrative of Catholic Social Thought
  • Anthony Coloma / The Ignatian Spiritual Exercises and the Second Vatican Council: Pope Francis’s Framework for Communion and Dialogue with the Church in the World
  • Marcus Mescher / Mercy: The Crux of Pope Francis’ Moral Imagination
Cinema,
Connelly Center
   

Group 2:  Francis and Amoris Laetitia and Sexual Ethics:

  • Annie Selak / Missing Voices in “Amoris Laetitia”
  • William Werpehowski / Agape and Special Relations: The Case of “Amoris Laetitia”
  • James Bretzke, SJ/ Responsum ad Dubia: Harmonizing “Veritas Splendor” and “Amoris Laetitia” through a Conscience-Informed Casuistry

 

St. David's Room,
Connelly Center

   

Group 3:  Francis and Laudato Si – The Environment:

  • Abigail Lofte / Sacrifice at the Center of commitment: “Laudato Si” and “Evangelii Gaudium” in Conversation
  • Susan Nedza, MD / Responding to “Laudato Si”: Building Catholic Partnerships between Catholics in the United States and Honduras to Care for the Earth
Radnor Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 4:  College of Engineering Application of Laudato Si:

  • Gary Gabriele, Jordan Ermilio & William Lorenz / Incorporating “Laudato Si” in the College of Engineering
Haverford Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 5: Francis and the Media:

  • Thomas Dailey, OSFS / The Church at 30,000 Feet: Appreciating Pope Francis’ Interviews with Journalists
  • David Gibson / Creeping Fallibilism: How Pope Francis’ mode of discourse is reforming the papacy, and the Catholic Church
  • Michael O’Loughlin / Friending Francis: The Pope, social media, and change in the Catholic Church
Bryn Mawr Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 6: Francis and Catholic Bioethics – Health:

  • Charles Camosy, M. Therese Lysaught & Christopher White / The ‘Throwaway Culture’: Pope Francis, Markets, and a New Methodology for Catholic Bioethics
Devon Room,
Connelly Center
April 13 4:00 PM Break  
April 13 4:15 PM Pope Francis and His Impact on the Church of Latin America
Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodriguez Maradiaga, SDB, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 13 5:15 PM Break  
April 13 5:30 PM Vespers St. Thomas of Villanova Church
April 13 6:00 PM Dinner Break (on your own)  

April 13
8:00 PM Organ Concert in Honor of Pope Francis’ Fifth Anniversary
Dr. Mark Bani, Old St. Joseph’s Church, Philadelphia
St. Thomas of Villanova Church
April 14 8:00 AM Mass Villanova Room, Connelly Center
April 14 8:30 AM Continental Breakfast (paid registrants only please) Villanova Room, Connelly Center
April 14 9:15-10:15 AM Concurrent Session 2 Various Locations
   

Group 1:  Roots of Francis’ Theology:

  • Peter Folan, SJ / Scripture as ‘the Soul of Theology’?: A Critical Assessment of the Biblical Hermeneutics of Pope Francis
  • Thomas Massaro, SJ / He Drinks from His Own Wells: The Jesuit Roots of the Ethical Agenda of Pope Francis
  • Matthew Petrusek / Separating the Goat from the Sheep: The Role of the Devil in Pope Francis’ Ethics
St. David's Room
Connelly Center
   

Group 2:  Francis and Laudato Si – The Environment:

  • Mark Doorley / Ecological Conversion and the Emergent Universe: an Interpretation of Francis’ Call to Conversion in “Laudato Si”
  • Christophére Ngolele, SJ / African Identity in Dialogue with “Laudato Si” on the Environmental Crisis: Toward a Paradigm of Recognition and Sacred Care
  • Barbara Wall / Concept of Nature from “Rerum Novarum” to “Laudato Si”
Haverford Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 3:  Francis and Ecclesiology:

  • Dennis O’Brien / Pope Francis’ Theology of the Church: The God of Forgiveness
  • Erik Ranstrom / Francis’ Vision for Church and the Four Americans: Coincidence or Convergence?
  • Austen Ivereigh/ How Pope Francis is Renewing the Ecclesiology of the People of God
Cinema,
Connelly Center
   

Group 4:  Francis and the Media:

  • Michael Canaris, Mary Beth Yount & Katherine Schmidt / The Pope and the Nones’ New Habits: Pope Francis, the Millennial Generation, and the Post-Post-Conciliar Church
  • Sarah Thomas / Mercy in Cyberspace: Pope Francis as Model for a Theological Anthropology
Bryn Mawr Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 5:  Francis and Social Justice:

  • Mary Hirschfeld / The Technocratic Paradigm and Creation: The Challenge of “Laudato Si”
  • Ikenna Paschal Okpaleke / Faith as Common Good: Exploring Pope Francis’ Ecumenical Incentive to African Solidarity
  • John Sniegocki / Pope Francis and Alternative Economic Visions
Radnor Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 6:  Francis and Discipleship:

  • Mathew Verghese / Hearing the ry of the Earth in a Missionary Key: The Ecclesiology of “Laudato Si”
  • Ines Marzaku / Centered in the Periphery – Pope Francis and St. Mother Teresa
Devon Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 7:  Francis and Discipleship

  • Alessandro Rovati / The Church of Joy: Ecclesiology and Mission in Paul VI and Francis
  • Marc Tumeinski / Learning from the Call to Fraternity in the ‘World Day of Peace Messages’ of Pope Francis
Rosemont Room,
Connelly Center
April 14 10:15 AM Break  
April 14 10:30 AM Pope Francis: The Catholic Church as a Social Movement
Margaret Archer, President, Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences
Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 14 11:30 AM Break  
April 14 11:45 AM The Spiritual Roots of “Reform” in Pope Francis
Antonio Spadaro, SJ, Editor, La Civiltá Cattolica
Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 14 12:45 PM Lunch (paid registrants only please)
 
April 14 1:45 PM Pope Francis’s Interpretation of Vatican II
Massimo Faggioli, Villanova University
Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 14 2:45 PM Break  
April 14 3:00 PM Pope Francis: A Theologian of Migration
Michelle Pistone, Villanova School of Law
Cinema,
Connelly Center
April 14 4:00 PM Break  
April 14 4:15 PM Concurrent Session 3 Various Locations
       
   

Group 1:  Francis and Laudato Si – The Environment:

  • Gerald Beyer / Pope Francis’ Vision of Integral Ecology and Catholic Universities: “Everything is Interconnected”
  • Matthew Eaton / “Laudato Si” and Animal Well-Being: Exploring Food Ethics in a Throwaway Culture
  • Mark Graham / Pope Francis’ “Laudato Si”: Next Steps in a Catholic Response to the Environmental Crisis
Devon Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 2:  Francis and Ecclesiology:

  • Kevin Ahern / Integrating Mission: Pope Francis’ Challenge to Catholic Organizations
  • Paolo Gamberini, SJ / Discernment of and in Doctrine: Pope Francis’ Reform Process of Catholic Thought
  • Angela Senander, PhD/ The Spirit of Vatican II at Work in Laudato Si’
Haverford Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 3:  Francis and Social Justice:

  • M.T. Davila / Challenge to the Rich Nations: Pope Francis’ Brand of the “Option for the Poor”
  • Robert DeFina / “Such an Economy Kills”: Pope Francis and the Rise of Income Inequality
  • Brett Fawcett / A Business Ethic of Joy: A Lonerganian Reading of Pope Francis on the Economy
Cinema,
Connelly Center
   

Group 4:  Francis and Catholic Bioethics – Health:

  • Jason Eberl / Culture of Life, Culture of Death, and Culture of Waste: Pope Francis's Bioethical Vision
  • Ruth McDermott-Levy, Katie Huffling & Poune Saberi, MD / Climate Changes Health: Identifying the Health Risks in Our common Home
Rosemont Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 5:  Francis and Discipleship:

  • Anthony Chukwuemeka Atansi / From Christological Hermeneutics to Discipleship: How Pope Francis is Doing what Pope Benedict XVI Taught
  • Peter Fay / Walking at the Side of People with Mental Illness: Guidance from Pope Francis’ Model of Accompaniment
Radnor Room,
Connelly Center
   

Group 6:  Francis and Discipleship II:

  • Brian Flanagan / A Bruised, Hurting, and Dirty Church
  • Arthur Purcaro, OSA / Pope Francis: Building the City of God on the Firm Foundations of Humility
  • Rev.Robert Grant, PhD /Recta Relatio: Pope Francis’ intriguing Environmental Theology
St. David's Room,
Connelly Center
April 14 5:15 PM Break  
April 14 5:30 PM Vespers  
April 14 7:00 PM Banquet - The Inn at Villanova (Pre-registered ticket holders only)
The Inn at Villanova
April 15 10:30 AM Mass St. Thomas of Villanova Church
April 15 11:45 AM Wrap Up Panel (light refreshments will be available) Cinema, Connelly Center
logo

A Regional Conference on Faith and Collegiate Sports  


On June 7th and 8th of 2017, Vatican officials along with leaders in the world of higher education and college athletics joined together at Villanova University for the first follow-up conference on the Vatican’s “Sport at the Service of Humanity” initiative. The conference was the first to be sanctioned by the Vatican following its inaugural conference on faith and sports in Rome in October 2016.

Sport at the Service of Humanity: A Regional Conference on Faith and Collegiate Sports — hosted by Villanova University’s Office of Mission and Ministry in conjunction with the BIG EAST Conference— was an invitation-only event with participants consisting of athletic leadership, coaches, team chaplains, campus ministers and mission and ministry officers from colleges and universities, including many faith-related institutions. Representatives from 28 colleges and universities took part in the conference.  

At the conclusion of the event, conference leadership committed to establishing a working group to build upon the “Sport at the Service of Humanity” initiative at the collegiate level. The working group will focus on efforts that can be made at colleges and universities to fulfill the six Principles­—joy, compassion, respect, love, enlightenment and balance—established by the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for Culture.  

Full text of Villanova's Post Conference Press Release.

Conference Leadership

Rev. Patrick Kelly, SJ, Associate Professor of Theology at Seattle University, making his presentation at the First Regional Follow Up Conference of "Sport at the Service of Humanity." The gathering was sponsored by Villanova University, the Big East Conference and the Pontifical Council for Culture.


Under the auspices of the Pontifical Council of Culture and its Vatican Management Team, the first regional follow up conference of the “Sport at the Service of Humanity” initiative was held at Villanova University on June 7-8, 2017. The focus of the gathering was “Faith and Collegiate Sports.”

More than 100 delegates representing 28 faith based colleges and universities in the United States met to discuss how the resources of athletic departments, campus ministries and chaplaincy offices might address more intentionally the faith development and spiritual needs of student-athletes and to more fully place their combined resources “at the service of humanity.”

At the close of the conference, the Vatican Management Team, represented by Monsignor Melchor Sánchez de Toca y Alameda (Undersecretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture), Bishop Paul Tighe (Adjunct Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture), Bernard Mullin (CEO, Aspire Group) and Nick Marrone (Principal, Marrone and Associates) encouraged Barbara Wall (Vice President for Mission and Ministry, Villanova University) to form a permanent working group to facilitate continued dialogue among constituencies represented at the conference.

Among the goals of the working group are:

  • Promoting awareness of and commitment to the Vatican “Declaration of Principles” among colleges and universities, collegiate athletic conferences and related governing bodies in the United States;
  • Building stronger relationships between athletic departments and campus ministry / chaplaincy personnel;
  • Assuring that institutional mission are embedded in its athletic programs;
  • Creating a positive culture in athletic programs with a focus on inclusion;
  • Breaking down silos that may exist for student-athletes, so they can thrive as part of the larger campus community;
  • Providing resources to nurture all parts of the student-athlete, including faith and spirituality;
  • Supporting student-athletes in becoming their “whole selves,” with greater attention placed on balance in the student-athlete experience;
  • Graduating student-athletes who are well prepared to thrive in all aspects of their lives.

Delegates attending the conference were invited to volunteer for the Working Group. The composition of the inaugural committee will be determined by the Office for Mission and Ministry at Villanova University. Participants in Working Group will be selected from those that volunteered.

Wednesday, June 7, 2017

8:30 -  9:20 AM - Registration

9:30 - 10:20 AM  Welcome

                            Rev. Peter Donohue, OSA
                            President, Villanova University

                            Msgr. Melchor Sánchez de Toca y Alameda
                            Undersecretary, Pontifical Council for Culture

                            Michael Galligan-Stierle
                            President, ACCU

                            Mark Jackson
                            Director of Athletics, Villanova University   

10:30 - 11:00 AM  A Vision for a Holistic Collegiate Athletics
                            Experience

                              Val Ackerman
                              Commissioner of the Big East 

11:00 - 12:00       Collegiate Sports and the Declaration of Principles
                            Table Discussion

12:00 - 1:00 PM   Lunch

1:00 - 2:15 PM   Inclusion and Involvement
                          "Sport at the Service of Humanity: The Church
                           in Dialogue"                     
                           Bishop Paul Tighe, Pontifical Council for Culture

2:30 - 4:00 PM    Break Out Discussion

4:00 - 4:45 PM    Reports

5:00 - 5:20 PM    Vespers

6:00 - 8:00 PM    Cocktails and Dinner     


Thursday, June 8, 2017  

8:00 - 8:30 AM    Continental Breakfast

8:45 - 10:00 AM    Inspiration
                             "The Intersection of Faith, Spirituality and
                              Collegiate Sports"
                             Rev. Pat Kelly, SJ, Seattle University

10:15 - 11:45 AM    Break Out Discussion

12:00 - 12:45 PM    Mass

1:00 - 2:00 PM        Lunch

2:15 - 3:30 PM        Reports

3:30 -                      Concluding Remarks and Next Steps                

Bishop Tighe
Photo Credit: John Welsh, Villanova University.

Comments by Bishop Paul Tighe, Adjunct Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Culture

"The Sport at the Service of Humanity conference at Villanova was a very important moment in the development of the global initiative which was launched at the Vatican last fall. The conference in Rome sought to identify a number of guiding principles which would serve to inspire people of faith and people of goodwill to work together to ensure that sport continues to contribute to the good of all. The Villanova conference focused on faith in intercollegiate athletics, and brought these principles to the attention of people who are involved in this important arena. It was great to have the reaction of these people to the principles, which had been enunciated in Rome. And it was particularly helpful to learn about the practical considerations that challenge those who are committed to upholding such values."

"The conference at Villanova drew attention to the importance of the virtues. The discussion around virtues helped to ground our reflections in the universal values which should inspire all those who are concerned for the well-being of sport."

"It's very important to remember that the virtues will only flourish where they are supported by institutions and by the more general culture of sport. It was very edifying to observe the commitment among the participants, and the institutions they represented, to promoting the highest standards of fair play and integrity in the area of sport, even if at times these values do not necessarily lead to instant results and success."