Catholic University Of America Research Articles

Physics event classification using Large Language Models

The 2023 AI4EIC hackathon was the culmination of the third annual AI4EIC workshop at The Catholic University of America. This workshop brought together researchers from physics, data science and computer science to discuss the latest developments in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) for the Electron Ion Collider (EIC), including applications for detectors, accelerators, and experimental control. The hackathon, held on the final day of the workshop, involved using a chatbot powered by a Large Language Model, ChatGPT-3.5, to train a binary classifier neutrons and photons in simulated data from the GlueX Barrel Calorimeter. In total, six teams of up to four participants from all over the world took part in this intense educational and research event. This article highlights the hackathon challenge, the resources and methodology used, and the results and insights gained from analyzing physics data using the most cutting-edge tools in AI/ML.

Project Spotlight: Innovative use of precast for a university facility

A new building at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., the Conway School of Nursing and Campus Gateway project, made innovative use of precast con¬crete. High Concrete Group, based in Denver, Pa., was the precast concrete producer selected for the project.

John Henry Newman and the Development of Doctrine: Encountering Change, Looking for Continuity. By StephenMorgan. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 2021. Pp. xviii, 318. $75.00.

John Henry Newman and the Development of Doctrine: Encountering Change, Looking for Continuity. By StephenMorgan. Washington, D.C.: Catholic University of America Press, 2021. Pp. xviii, 318. $75.00.

New Deal and Postwar Era Labor Collections At The Catholic University of America

ABSTRACT The Special Collections at The Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, is home to a large archive of records and documents related to the Catholic Church and social justice. These include the papers of several notable Catholic lay labor leaders, such as Philip Murray and John Brophy, as well as several “labor priests,” in particular Msgr. John A. Ryan and Bishop Francis J. Haas, who articulated Church support for workers’ rights. Additionally, there are the organizational records of the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) prior to their 1955 merger with the American Federation of Labor (AFL) to form the AFL-CIO. Many Catholics, including Murray and Brophy, were significant CIO leaders.

Christopher Dawson: A Cultural Mind In The Age of the Great War by Joseph T. Stuart, The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., 2022, pp. xv + 454, £ 31.50, pbk

New BlackfriarsVolume 104, Issue 1112 p. 489-492 Reviews CHRISTOPHER DAWSON: A CULTURAL MIND IN THE AGE OF THE GREAT WAR by Joseph T. Stuart, The Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C., 2022, pp. xv + 454, £ 31.50, pbk FERNANDO CERVANTES, Corresponding Author FERNANDO CERVANTES [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0003-4632-7618 University of Bristol, England Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this author FERNANDO CERVANTES, Corresponding Author FERNANDO CERVANTES [email protected] orcid.org/0000-0003-4632-7618 University of Bristol, England Email: [email protected]Search for more papers by this author First published: 20 June 2023 https://doi.org/10.1111/nbfr.12842Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Volume104, Issue1112July 2023Pages 489-492 RelatedInformation

Inclusive Language in Scientific Writing.

Rita H. Pickler, PhD, RN, FAAN is Editor of Nursing Research.https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9299-5583 Deborah Chyun, PhD, RN, FAHA, FAAN is Member, Editorial Board of Nursing Research, and Dean and Professor, University of Connecticut School of Nursing, Storrs, CT. https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3284-5895 Nalini Jairath, PhD, RN is Member, Editorial Board of Nursing Research, and Associate Professor, Conway School of Nursing, The Catholic University of America, Washington, DC. https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1887-0595 Acknowledgement: Parts of this editorial were included in a presentation by the authors at the Eastern Nursing Research Society Conference, Philadelphia, PA, March 2023 The Authors have no conflicts of interest to disclose. Address for Correspondence: Rita H. Pickler, PhD, RN, FAAN, The FloAnn Sours Easton Professor of Child and Adolescent Health, Director, PhD & MS in Nursing Science Programs The Ohio State University College of Nursing, 1577 Neil Avenue Columbus, OH 43210, Phone: (614) 292-5265; Email: [email protected]

A multi-dimensional reality: Carol Lally Shields.

A multi-dimensional reality: Carol Lally Shields.

The politics of Catholic humanitarian aid: missionaries and American relief in Algeria (1942–47)

Abstract This article examines the politics of the Catholic American aid delivered in French-controlled Algeria between 1942 and 1947. Using the archives of the White Fathers (Missionnaires d’Afrique), the Archives Nationales d’Outre Mer and the archives of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops at the Catholic University of America in Washington this article traces how humanitarian relief funds sent in support of missionaries in Algeria altered their status in the colonial order. The article focuses on the transformative aspects of this American intervention in a complex colonial environment. It argues that the American Catholic intervention, with its focus on indigenous patients rather than colonial settlers, renewed older and broader provisions of missionary relief in Algeria. American aid funded missionary work and resourced social work and later aligned Catholic relief with anti-communist activities in France.

E. J. Josey: Transformational Leader of the Modern Library Profession

E. J. Josey: Transformational Leader of the Modern Library Profession

The Life of Cardinal Humberto Medeiros of Boston: Whatever God Wants by Richard Gribble, CSC

Reviewed by: The Life of Cardinal Humberto Medeiros of Boston: Whatever God Wants by Richard Gribble, CSC Joseph White The Life of Cardinal Humberto Medeiros of Boston: Whatever God Wants. By Richard Gribble, CSC. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2021. 364pp. $120.00. The honorable tradition of episcopal and clerical biography continues. Having produced biographies of San Francisco Archbishop Edward Hanna, Bishop Vincent McCauley, CSC of East Africa, and significant priests: James Martin Gillis, CSP; Patrick Peyton, CSC; Jake Laboon, SJ; and Nelson Baker, the author examines the life of Cardinal-Archbishop Humberto Medeiros of Boston (1915–1983). Gribble introduces him as “a tragic figure who, due in large measure to his absolute fidelity to God and the magisterium of the Church, experienced much opposition,” especially in Boston. Characteristically “unwavering” in his positions, Medeiros is portrayed as “a significant figure in a difficult time of transition in the Church . . . in the wake of Vatican II and American society.” Making exhaustive use Medeiros’s papers in the relevant archives and an impressive range of published sources for context, Gribble aims to fill “lacunae” in the historical record of the Catholic Church in Boston and the United States. A Portuguese national born in 1915 on Sao Miguel Island in the Azores, Medeiros grew up in a poor and intensely pious Catholic family there. The post-World War I depression prompted his father to find work in the Portuguese community of Fall River, Massachusetts in 1923—the first of three stays. His family joined him there in 1931. Humberto then began public high school. His background as a poor immigrant formed in him the “need to reach out to the poor” that guided him throughout life. In response to his call to diocesan priesthood, the [End Page 91] Fall River diocese assigned him to studies at the Theological College of the Catholic University of America (CUA) in Washington, DC. Ordained a priest in 1946, Medeiros balanced ministry in the Fall River diocese’s parishes, while also pursuing graduate studies in CUA’s very conservative theology graduate program, obtaining the doctorate in 1951. Throughout the volume Medeiros’s understanding of priesthood builds on what he learned in seminary formation by Priests of the Society of St. Sulpice (Sulpicians), who staffed the Theological College. Reflecting their heritage in the French School of Spirituality, a priest’s supernatural identity with Christ clearly separated him from the laity. From this basic view of priesthood, Medeiros later added views of ministry especially those informed by Vatican II. From 1951 Medeiros served Fall River’s Bishop James Connolly, first as secretary then as diocesan chancellor and later also serving as a pastor. When Vatican II opened in 1962, Connolly chose him as his peritus. Attending council sessions expanded Medeiros’s understanding of the Catholic tradition without departing from a basically conservative outlook that rejected dissent. Faithful adherence to the Vatican Council’s pronouncements guided his leadership in church renewal. In 1966, Medeiros was appointed bishop of the new Diocese of Brownsville on Texas’s border with Mexico—an area partitioned from the Corpus Christi diocese. He was thereby tasked to organize a new diocese’s administrative and pastoral services. From his own experience of immigrant life, he served this largely Latino diocese as a compassionate advocate for the poor. Upon arrival there, he had to deal with migrant workers’ strike against local farmers over just compensation and worked to find a mutually satisfactory resolution for both groups. This role led to his appointment to the National Conference of Catholic Bishops’ ad hoc Committee on Farm Labor that in 1970 lent support to the California grape strike. Committee service meant regular travel to visit migrant workers’ camps around the nation and addressing social justice issues. In 1970, to widespread surprise, Pope Paul VI appointed Medeiros archbishop of Boston in succession to the retiring Cardinal Richard Cushing. Though raised in nearby Fall River, Medeiros, lacking an Irish background, received a tepid reception among Boston’s largely Irish ethnic clergy and flock accustomed to the princely style and perks of his predecessors. Raised to the rank of cardinal in 1973, Medeiros held on to his self-effacing and unpretentious ways reflecting his humble...

The Church of the Dead: The Epidemic of 1576 and the Birth of Christianity in the Americas by Jennifer Hughes

Reviewed by: The Church of the Dead: The Epidemic of 1576 and the Birth of Christianity in the Americas by Jennifer Hughes Julia G. Young, Lidia Ernestina Gómez García, Ramón A. Gutiérrez, J. Michelle Molina, Paul Ramírez, and Jennifer Scheper Hughes Jennifer Scheper Hughes, The Church of the Dead: The Epidemic of 1576 and the Birth of Christianity in the Americas. (New York: New York University Press, 2021. Pp. xviii, 245. $35.00. ISBN 10987654321) Introduction Julia G. Young (The Catholic University of America) In April 1576, a deadly plague of hemorrhagic fever began sweeping through colonial Mexico, claiming almost two million victims—most of them Indigenous—until it subsided in 1581. It was not the first such pandemic, nor was it the most deadly: Indigenous communities had already seen multiple waves of epidemic sickness and death since the arrival of the Spanish in 1519, most famously the 1520 smallpox epidemic. Yet the mortandad, as it was called by the Spanish at the time, brought the population of New Spain to its lowest point yet, and seemed to many to herald a watershed event. The resonance of the 1576 plague, and its impact on the Catholic Church in the Americas, is the subject of Jennifer Scheper Hughes’s The Church of the Dead: The Epidemic of 1576 and the Birth of Christianity in the Americas. After a brief preface (Mortandad: Requiem) in which Scheper Hughes discusses the ways that the demographic collapse of indigenous populations in the Americas has profoundly marked the geological record, the book’s Introduction (Eccelsia ex mortuis: Mexican Elegy and the Church of the Dead) describes the key questions under study. It asks how American Christianity was shaped by the “epidemic cataclysm” and argues that the epidemic was a formative event for the Church in the Americas. The aim of the book, according to Scheper Hughes, is to explore the “religious ideas, practices, emotions, and structures that emerged in response to the mortandad” for both Spanish and Indigenous people (p. 2). While the Spanish felt “apocalyptic despair” at the collapse of the Indigenous population (p. 5), Scheper Hughes argues that Indigenous people responded with “survivance” (a term that combines the concepts of ‘survival’ and ‘resistance’). Indeed, she asserts, “. . . the Mexican church endured the mortandad because communities of Indigenous Christians asserted a rival theological and institutional scaffolding that carried into the [End Page 151] future” (p. 7). By centering the Indigenous role in this history, Scheper Hughes challenges the myth that Europeans were the sole drivers of Christianization of the Americas. Rather, Indigenous people played an active role in shaping Christianity from the Colonial period onward. To substantiate her arguments, Scheper Hughes draws on a wealth of primary sources in Spanish and Nahuatl; these include 135 unpublished letters written by church officials in New Spain between 1576 and 1581, as well as Indigenous Mexican texts, especially indigenous-authored maps. In her analysis, Scheper Hughes takes a theological approach that includes a “search for densely layered meaning in reference to the long Christian tradition” (pp. 26–27). The rest of the book is structured in two parts. The first part, Ave Verum Corpus: Abject Matter and Holy Flesh contains two chapters. Chapter 1, Theologica Medicinalis: Medicine as Sacrament of the Mortandad, analyzes missionary writing in order to describe how religious orders came to see themselves as medical practitioners responsible for saving the bodies—and therefore the souls—of Indigenous people. The processes of conversion (religious conversion) and conservación (preservation) became inextricably linked in the minds of Spanish priests, friars, and bishops in Mexico. Chapter 2, Corpus Coloniae Mysticum: Indigenous Bodies and the Body of Christ describes how the Spanish in Mexico “reimagined and remade” the preexisting theology of the mystical body of Christ “in response to the spiritual and political demands of the emerging global imperial church” (p. 64). In particular, they developed specific interpretations of blood, autopsies, and a concept of indigenous people as the feet of the body of Christ, all of which incorporated the dramatic reality of the mortandad. The second part of the book, Roads to Redemption and Recovery: Cartographies of the Christian Imaginary also contains two chapters...

Digital Scholarship in the Field of Church History

Digital Scholarship in the Field of Church History Laura Morreale, Jennifer Paxton, Joel Kalvesmaki, Jeanne-Nicole Mellon Saint-Laurent, Miri Ribin, and Stephen M. Koeth C.S.C. HMML Authority File. Hill Museum and Manuscript Library. HMML Authority File. 2002. https://haf.vhmml.org. Julia Hillner, Dirk Rohmann, et al. The Migration of Faith: Clerical Exile in Late Antiquity. 2018. https://www.clericalexile.org. Rowan Dorin. Corpus Synodalium: Local Ecclesiastical Legislation in Medieval Europe. 2021. https://www.corpus-synodalium.com. Maria Mazzenga. The American Catholic History Research Center. The Catholic University of America. American Catholic History Classroom. 2022. https://cuomeka.wrlc.org. As we enter the third decade of the twenty-first century, the economy of knowledge exchange is now securely situated in the online medium. As the landscape of academic knowledge sharing continues to shift, scholars now rely upon the online medium in their everyday working lives, even if they do not consider themselves digital scholars. Every time a scholar searches through a database or internet-based catalogue from the library, he or she is entering into a computer-based approach to knowledge acquisition and production. The powers afforded to us by digital tools in turn shape our expectations about how we work; likewise, the more born-digital material we consume, the more likely it is that we will expand upon and express our scholarship in digitally-inflected formats. Online academia has changed how we receive, reuse, and cite scholarship in our own subfields. Nowadays, we are more likely to follow up on a footnote by searching for pdfs in an online library than to spend hours in the periodical reading room of the brick-and-mortar one, searching out those same materials. Additionally, we also rely upon born-digital finding aids, curated online corpora, and even projects that explore a particular research question that might open the door to other avenues of scholarly activity. Electronic communication has transformed how we share knowledge because it is both instantaneous and remains open to ongoing modification. No matter how analogue one’s practice may be, scholarly ideas are now shared, refined, and expressed in a digital world. Like colleagues in all scholarly communities, historians of the Church have witnessed the proliferation of computer-based work, and many have come to depend upon resources and research outputs that are available only in online formats. Although this scholarship does indeed trace its origins to traditional forms of research and learning and shares many of its same motivations, digital work is distinctive in a number of ways. With the power to organize and present large amounts of data, it is also interactive, communal, and team based, and it promotes accessible and open knowledge sharing. Given the importance of digital scholarship, it should [End Page 132] be more fully incorporated into systems of rewarding scholarly productivity, and those who produce it should be granted due recognition. With this in mind, the editorial board of the Catholic Historical Review is adding a review section for born-digital scholarship that addresses the journal’s purview, that is, “the history of the universal Church.” What is digital scholarship?1 Since peer review remains fundamental to all serious intellectual endeavors, the CHR section dedicated to born-digital scholarship both recognizes these newer expressions of knowledge and integrates them within the more traditional format of the scholarly journal review. Digital work is not an either/or proposition. It does not replace previous forms of scholarship, but rather accompanies and relies upon them even as it ushers in and facilitates new ways of considering, aggregating, and analyzing the materials that serve as witness to our collective pasts. Digital scholarship transcends mere digitization or database construction; instead, scholars are now using online tools and resources to study previously unknown or inaccessible materials and to use older sources in ways that were previously unimagined. Like many approaches to scholarship, machine-aided historical analysis has its own backstory. An AHA-sponsored blog post from the early 2000s put forth an early definition of digital history with an emphasis on the analytical possibilities of the medium as well as its power to disseminate information.2 Over time, the origin story of digital history has...

From the Liturgical Movement to Pope Francis's Desiderio desideravi : Frederick McManus and His German Colleagues United in Liturgical Formation and Reform

ABSTRACT: The 2023 McManus Lecture, delivered at The Catholic University of America, honors the prominent canonist and liturgist Monsignor Frederick R. McManus by highlighting his liturgical expertise and merits for the liturgical renewal. McManus notably cooperated with his German colleagues in Trier, Johannes Wagner as the head of the German Liturgical Institute, and Balthasar Fischer, the first chair of liturgical studies in Germany. Based on their letters kept in the archive of the Liturgical Institute in Trier, one can see how these important figures of the liturgical renewal became acquainted at international liturgical study meetings in 1956/60, cooperated as consultants for drafting Sacrosanctum Concilium , engaged in the liturgical reform of the Mass and the baptismal rites, and worked together in promoting liturgical studies. These three protagonists were part of the larger context of the liturgical movement as it existed between Germany and the United States in the early liturgical movement, in which Virgil Michel and immigrants brought ideas from Europe/Germany to the United States and adapted them. While the relationship first was one of influence and support, in the later liturgical movement it became one of cooperation. Pope Francis has recalled our attention to the liturgical movement in Desiderio desideravi , which demonstrates the enduring relevance of these three protagonists and the liturgical formation to which they have contributed.

Tribute: John Thomas Ford, C.S.C. (1932–2021)

TributeJohn Thomas Ford, C.S.C. (1932–2021)* Dr. Kenneth L. Parker The field of newman studies suffered the loss of a great scholar and mentor when Fr. John Ford, CSC passed from this life. He died peacefully on 29 December 2021 at Holy Cross House in Notre Dame, Indiana, after a protracted struggle with cancer, and a short bout with COVID, from which he was thought to have recovered. We do not begrudge him the next stage of his journey toward the Beatific Vision; yet, we mourn the loss of his encouraging presence, even as we celebrate the achievements of his life. Though he is best known among us as a leading North American scholar of the life, work, and influence of John Henry Newman, his life story reflects a diversity of interests and the many ways he influenced those who came into contact with him. While this tribute can only touch the surface of his rich and varied life, it is an effort to share with you some of the reasons to be thankful for Fr.John Ford's well-lived life, and to remember with gratitude his generosity of spirit and Christian example. John Thomas Ford was born on 21 November 1932 in Dallas, Texas, and was the only child of Thomas and Leonara (Senn) Ford. He attended elementary school at St. Vincent's School, led by the Sisters of the Holy Cross in Logansport, Indiana, and graduated from Logansport High School in 1950. While attending the University of Notre Dame, Fr. Ford received his call to serve God as a Holy Cross priest and entered the Holy Cross Novitiate in Jordan, Minnesota on 15 August 1951, professed final vows on 16 August 1955, and was ordained a Holy Cross priest on 10 June 1959. After graduating from the University of Notre Dame in 1955 with a bachelor's degree in philosophy, he went on to Holy Cross College in Washington, DC to earn his master's degree in theology in 1959. In 1962, Fr. Ford received his doctorate in theology from the Gregorian University in Rome. In 1962, Fr. Ford taught theology at the University of Notre Dame and served as Prefect in Cavanaugh Hall before he left that fall to teach at Holy Cross College in Washington, DC until 1967. In 1964, he was appointed Assistant Superior at the Foreign Mission Seminary and later became Superior until 1968. From 1968 to 2018, Fr. Ford served on the faculty at Catholic University of America (CUA), in Washington, DC. [End Page 101] I first came to know Fr. Ford toward the end of his years as Chair of the Department of Theology at CUA (1977–1983). I was writing my PhD thesis under the supervision of Eamon Duffy at Cambridge University and anxious to find academic employment. Having applied unsuccessfully for a position in the history of Christian spirituality in his department, I wrote to Fr. Ford to ask advice on how to improve my application materials. He responded with a generous suggestion that we meet when he was in England later that year. He spent a day with me, offering sage advice and encouragement that saw me through the difficult process of beginning an academic career. My experience is but a single example of many lives he touched in that way. As the director of 63 dissertations, 16 on John Henry Newman, he knew the fears and frustrations of the young and managed their struggles with a pastoral touch. A notable dimension of Fr. Ford's life work was his passion for ecumenical dialogue. In the post-conciliar era, he served as a member of the United Methodist/Roman Catholic Bilateral Dialogue (1971–1977), the Faith and Order Commission of the National Council of Churches (1981–2011), the Roman Catholic observer-consultant for the Consultation on Church Union (1974–1988) and its Theology Commission (1982–1985), and the Reformed/Roman Catholic International Consultation (1987–1988). His work in the field of ecumenism was recognized in 2014 by the Franciscan Friars of the Atonement with their Paul Wattson Christian Unity Award. His graduate students benefited from his ecumenical work through his course on The History...

Roman Pucinski: A Daughter's Memoir

Abstract The daughter of Roman and Aurelia Bordin Pucinski, Aurelia Marie Pucinski earned a baccalaureate degree in history from Catholic University of America in Washington, DC, and a JD from DePaul University College of Law in Chicago. In 2004, she became a judge on the Cook County (Illinois) Circuit Court and in 2010 gained election to a seat on the Illinois Appellate Court. As the daughter of Roman Pucinski and a community activist in her own right, she provides in this memoir an intimate “insider” look at her father's work as a congressman and an alderman and in the Polish community, as well as that of her grandmother, Lidia Pucinski.

Contributors

Contributors

Pope Francis’s Apostolic Letter on the Ministry of the Catechist: Transcription of a Conversation with Bishop Andrew Cozzens, on Echoing Faith Today, a Podcast, June 1, 2021, Hosted by Dr. Jem Sullivan

Pope Francis’s Apostolic Letter on the Ministry of the CatechistTranscription of a Conversation with Bishop Andrew Cozzens, on Echoing Faith Today, a Podcast, June 1, 2021, Hosted by Dr. Jem Sullivan Bishop Andrew Cozzens (bio) and Jem Sullivan, Ph.D (bio) Dr. Jem Sullivan: Welcome to “Echoing Faith Today,” a podcast conversation on themes of impact and relevance in the new Directory for Catechesis from the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, Rome. I’m Dr. Jem Sullivan, host and faculty in the School of Theology and Religious Studies at the Catholic University of America. On this podcast we hear from scholars, experts, and those in pastoral ministry. So welcome back and thank you for taking your place at this table of conversation. Dr. Jem Sullivan: Joining us on this podcast is Bishop Andrew Cozzens, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. (Note: since the interview, Bishop Cozzens was appointed Bishop of Crookston, Minnesota). Bishop Cozzens is Chairman of the USCCB Committee on Evangelization and Catechesis and he graciously agreed to join us to discuss Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter on the Ministry of Catechist, Antiquum Ministerium. Bishop Cozzens, thank you for your time today. We are very grateful for your virtual presence with us in the School of Theology and Religious Studies at The Catholic University of America. Welcome to the podcast! Bishop Andrew Cozzens: Thank you Dr. Sullivan, it’s a delight to be with you. Dr. Jem Sullivan: A year ago in June 2020, at the height of the global pandemic, the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization, Rome, published a Directory for Catechesis, the third of its kind. [End Page 79] About a year later we received Pope Francis’ Apostolic Letter, Antiquum Ministerium, instituting a lay Ministry of Catechist. Please share with our audience your thoughts on the significance of this initiative of Pope Francis. Why is the institution of a lay Ministry of Catechist important for the universal Church? Bishop Andrew Cozzens: As you point out the new Directory for Catechesis is important for the whole Church. It is a beautiful document that has been in the works for many years. It did come out in the middle of the pandemic and the document is at the heart of what it means to do the work of catechesis in the Church today. It really emphasizes, I think in a beautiful way, the role of catechesis in evangelization and that we are about an evangelizing catechesis. This new document presents evangelization as the general background to catechesis. And it’s a very comprehensive document as it talks about all aspects of catechesis. It also highlights the vocation of the catechist. And I like the fact that it highlights the missionary character of the whole Church. When Pope Francis institutes this new ministry, he’s really putting catechesis at the heart of what we do in the new evangelization. In this way the document emphasizes even more Pope Francis’ own words emphasizing even more the missionary commitment proper to every baptized person. It goes back to the first document of his pontificate, The Joy of the Gospel, where he talked about what it means to be a missionary disciple. There are lots of ways to be a missionary disciple but one of them is to be a catechist. I think it’s important to recognize too that the ministry of catechist is not new. There have always been catechists in the Church and the Code of Canon Law speaks clearly about catechists. Especially in mission countries we’ve seen, for a long time, the important role that catechists play in places where there is a dearth of priestly vocations. It’s often the catechist who runs the local parish and may even baptize children or witness marriages and be in charge of the parish. There might be fifteen or twenty of these outpost parishes that the priest doesn’t get to very often. That will continue now and those catechists will have an officially instituted ministry. But this document is much broader than that. It expands the role of the catechist to the whole Church. And in...

Major Themes in the Directory for Catechesis: Transcription of an "Echoing Faith Today" Podcast Conversation with Archbishop Rino Fisichella, Dicastery for Evangelization, Rome, October 19, 2020

Major Themes in the Directory for CatechesisTranscription of an "Echoing Faith Today" Podcast Conversation with Archbishop Rino Fisichella, Dicastery for Evangelization, Rome, October 19, 2020 Archbishop Rino Fisichella (bio) and Jem Sullivan (bio) Dr. Jem Sullivan: Welcome to Echoing Faith Today, a podcast conversation on themes of impact and relevance in the new Directory for Catechesis from the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. (Note: Dicastery for Evangelization since June 2022). I'm Dr. Jem Sullivan, host and faculty in the School of Theology and Religious Studies at The Catholic University of America. On this podcast, we hear from scholars, experts, and those serving on the front lines of pastoral ministry. So, welcome back. And thank you for taking your place at this table of conversation. Dr. Jem Sullivan: In this podcast, it is my privilege to welcome His Excellency, Archbishop Rino Fisichella, president of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. Archbishop Fisichella was a professor of fundamental theology for twenty years at the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome, and served as Rector of the Pontifical Lateran University. In 2010, Pope Benedict XVI appointed him to serve as the first President of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of the New Evangelization. In 2013, he was appointed President of the International Council for Catechesis. In June 2020, Archbishop Fisichella presented the Directory for Catechesis to the universal Church at a Vatican press conference. Archbishop Fisichella joins us from Rome to discuss the new Directory for Catechesis. Your Excellency, thank you very much for joining us today from Rome. Welcome to the podcast. I'm grateful for your time and we look forward to learning about the Directory for Catechesis. [End Page 203] Archbishop Rino Fisichella: Thank you for inviting me. My greetings to all who are following this podcast conversation. Dr. Jem Sullivan: This long-awaited Directory for Catechesis has twelve chapters divided into three parts, and today we focus on its major themes. But first, a general question. At the press conference to present the Directory for Catechesis you noted that the publication of a catechetical directory is a joyful event in the life of the Church. Please share with our listeners how the publication of this directory is a moment of joyful hope for the Church today. Archbishop Rino Fisichella: I will say that the publication of this catechetical directory is a joyful event because it shows the dynamic nature of catechesis in the life of the Church. Catechesis cannot be static. Catechesis should be a dynamic event in the Church. We should remember the beautiful expression in Lumen Gentium, the Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, when the Council Fathers wrote, "Ecclesia semper reformanda." That means the Church always needs development. And this catechetical directory is part of that process and should be understood, first of all, within this process of development. This is the third directory, so we have continuity in the development of catechesis. Because catechesis does not remain on one side of the life of the Church, but belongs to the heart, to the center of the Christian life. Dr. Jem Sullivan: When you speak of continuity, we are reminded that there is continuity and innovation that marks this catechetical directory. When you presented the directory to the universal Church you offered theological, ecclesial and cultural reasons for a new directory. What are the distinct needs of the Church today that shaped this catechetical directory? Archbishop Rino Fisichella: We should consider two main points in order to understand the redaction and also the originality of this directory. First of all, I will note the cultural context, and secondly, the ecclesial context in the life of the Church during the last twenty years. I think the first point is very important, especially for the future and for new generations, and in order to understand the originality of the directory. We face a very big challenge in the form of digital culture. Normally, we don't think about it. We use [End Page 204] it as an instrument and we forget that behind the instruments, we have a very original and powerful cultural reality. There is a difference from the...

Scribleriana

Scribleriana

Judge rules against student‐athlete

Case name: Cavalier v. The Catholic University of America, No. 16‐2009 (D. D.C. 01/12/21).