VILLANOVA UNIVERSITY NEWS

Grist
After the Texas Floods, When Is the Right Time to Ask What Went Wrong?

August 18, 2025 - Within hours of last month's floods in Kerr County, Texas, which killed more than 130 people, pundits were already battling over who—or what—was responsible... "Everybody starts pointing a finger at everyone else, and then what'll happen is everything gets lost in the shuffle," said Stephen Strader, a hazards geographer at Villanova University. "Days, months, years afterwards, and we're right back to where we were."

Associated Press
100 Days of Pope Leo XIV: A Calm Papacy That Avoids Polemics Is Coming Into Focus

August 16, 2025 - As Robert Prevost marks his 100th day as Pope Leo this weekend, the contours of his pontificate have begun to come into relief, primarily where he shows continuity with Francis and where he signals change... "He's been very direct and forthright... but he's not doing spontaneous press hits," said Kevin Hughes, chair of theology and religious studies at Leo's alma mater, Villanova University.

Financial Times
The Rise of the Dupes

August 9, 2025 - Consumers, especially from Gen Z, are embracing products that proudly copy—or duplicate—luxury items ... Peggy Chaudhry, a professor at Villanova School of Business in Pennsylvania, finds Gen Z's normalising of dupe purchases "rather disturbing." Chaudhry, who has written extensively on the phenomenon, says "I don't even think some of the people that are hawking these dupes know the difference" between them and the real thing.

The Philadelphia Inquirer
Pro Sports Teams and Athletes Are Shining a Light on Local Artists. But There's a Flip Side.

August 6, 2025 - Sports teams can be "incredibly protective" over their intellectual property, Villanova law professor Waseem Moorad said, and sports artists often skirt the line of what's allowed by copyright, including depictions and variations of team mascots, wordmarks and logos. Compared to the resources at the disposal of the major sports teams, local artists have minimal recourse to defend themselves if a team were to step in to protect their copyright.

The New York Times
The Rise of Silicon Valley's Techno-Religion

August 4, 2025 - In downtown Berkeley, an old hotel has become a temple to the pursuit of artificial intelligence and the future of humanity. Its name is Lighthaven and it is the de facto headquarters of a group who call themselves the Rationalists. Every Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., almost like a Bible study, people gather to read and discuss The Sequences, the ur-text that gave rise to the movement. "Religion is text and story and ritual," said Ilia Delio, a Franciscan sister and professor of theology at Villanova University. "All of that applies here."

Associated Press
Pope to Bestow One of Catholic Church's Highest Honors on Anglican Convert John Henry Newman

August 1, 2025 - The Vatican considers among other things the candidate's holiness in life, the eminence of his or her doctrinal and theological teaching and their enduring influence on the church. That has meant that there have been only 37 doctors, and only one other—St. Therese of Lisieux—who lived in the past 200 years, noted Michael Moreland, professor of law and religion at Pope Leo's alma mater, Villanova University.