Drew Christiansen, S.J., lectured to the Knights of
the Holy Sepulcher at the time of their annual investitures in San Francisco,
Columbus, and Boston on "The Christians of the Holy Land: Status
2000." He made a presentation on the Christian position on the Future
of Jerusalem at the Center for Policy Analysis of Palestine on August 1 and at a
forum sponsored by the American Committee on Jerusalem on September 12. He
talked about the Christian churches' attitudes toward the Palestinian intifada
at the Holy Land Christian Ecumenical Foundation annual Conference on October
14. He was a panelist in a Georgetown University teach-in on the
Palestinian intifada and the breakdown in the Middle East peace process.
Father Christiansen presented a paper, "What Is a Peace Church: A Roman
Catholic Per-spective," and was participant in the International Mennonite
Catholic Dialogue in Karlsruhe, Germany on November 23-30. In the October
28 issue of America, he reviewed R. Scott Appleby, The Ambivalence of the
Sacred: Religion, Violence and Reconciliation and Mark Juegensmeyer, Terror in
the Mind of God: The Rise of Global Religious Violence. His review of
Anthony O'Mahony, ed. Palestinian Christians: Religion, Politics and Society in
the Holy Land appeared in the summer issue of the Journal of Palestinian
Studies. He also contributed an analysis of the Vatican-PLO Agreement for
Information Briefs of the Center for Policy Analysis of Palestine.
Raymond B. Kemp directed with Walter J. Burghardt, S.J.,
a Preaching the Just Word retreat/workshop for 95 priests and deacons and the
Bishop of the Diocese of Bismarck, North Dakota. Bishop Paul Zipfel's
closing homily can be read on the Preaching the Just Word web page.
They also directed a retreat/workshop for priests and deacons of the Diocese of
Scranton. He led a discussion on "Catholic Identity" for the
young adults at Old St. Joseph's Parish in Philadelphia. This semester,
Father Kemp is teaching an undergraduate theology course entitled "The
Church and the Poor" at Georgetown University. This course
involved students in several on-site visits to projects in Washington with the
District of Columbia Jail proving to be the most interesting. Father Kemp
helped move the recent document of the American Bishops on prison reform and
restorative justice to reality. He keynoted the week-long Convocation for
Holy Redeemer Parish in Washington, D.C., and gave an Advent Day of Recollection
for priests and pastoral workers of the Martinsburg Deanery at Priestfield, West
Virginia.
Dolores R. Leckey was a respondent to the second
annual lecture of The Catholic Common Ground Initiative. The lecture by
Dr. R. Scott Appleby, "The Substance of Things Hoped For: Common Ground and
the Source of Our Disputes," along with the two responses, is available
from the National Pastoral Life Center. In September she gave a
presentation to the parish council members (and other parishioners) of the
Shrine of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Washington, D.C., on the topic of the
developing role of the laity in the Church. She has been invited to give a
noon-hour lecture at the Martin Luther King Memorial Library in downtown
Washington on the subject of "Everyday Spirituality" using themes from
her two books published in 1999: Blessings All Around Us (Resurrection Press)
and Seven Essentials for the Spiritual Journey (Crossroad Publishers). The
lecture is sponsored by the philosophy, psychology, and religion division of the
D.C. Public Library. The first draft of Spiritual Exercises for Church
Leaders is being field-tested with seven different groups across the
country. Dolores is co-leading a group with Father Tuck Grinnell at St.
Anthony's parish in Falls Church, Virginia. Writing and research continue
on parallel tracks for her new book, While Shepherds Kept Watch: Stories,
Memoirs, and Meditations (Catholic Church Leaders 1975-2000).
Gasper F. Lo Biondo, S.J., traveled in July to the
Jesuit Universidad Iberoamericana located in Puebla, Mexico where he presented a
paper, "Microenterprise Development and the Common Good," at the
Fourth International Symposium on Catholic social Thought and Management
Education. He also reported at the Seventh World Forum of the
International Association of Jesuit Business Schools on the progress of the
Global Economy and Culture's Project. Fr. Lo Biondo then traveled to
Africa, where he conducted a workshop on "Globalization, Ethical Values,
and Ignatian Discernment," for the staff of Silveira House, the Jesuit
Social Center, located in Harare, Zimbabwe. He also visited the Jesuit
Centre for Theological Reflection in Lusaka, Zambia. From October 16-20,
he coordinated a Global Economy and Cultures Consultation, convened by the
Woodstock Center. Representatives of Jesuit social centers from 15
countries participated in the consultation. Participants included: Xavier
Albó, S.J., Bolivia; Edward Arroyo, S.J., United States; Berilengar Antoine,
S.J., Chad, Michael Doss, S.J., Bangalore, India; Vincent Foutchanste, S.J.,
Cameroun; Tom Giblin, S.J., Ireland; Francis Jayapathy, S.J., Palayamkottai,
India; Bernard Lestienne, S.J., Brazil; José Magadia, S.J., Philippines; Josep
Mária, S.J., Spain; Peter McIsaac, S.J., Jamaica; Munhumeso Manenji, Zimbabwe;
Stanislaus Obirek, SJ, Poland; Pierre-André Ranaivoarson, SJ, Madagascar;
Jesús Vergara, SJ, Mexico; and Debi Yomtou, SJ, Chad.
James D. Redington, S.J., was a speaker at a
congressional and press briefing on Capitol Hill on September 14, on
"Religious Tolerance and Intolerance in India." On September 20,
he spoke and answered questions about Hinduism for the members of the Office of
International Religious Freedom, at the Department of State. At the
Maryland Jesuit Province's "Convocation 2000: One Church, Many Faces,"
he gave a speech on November 1, entitled "Seeking the Face of Christ; or,
Krishna in Nairobi!" On November 14, he participated in the Appeal of
Conscience Foundation/Foreign Service Institute's Seminar on Religious Life, at
the National Foreign Affairs Training Center in Arlington, addressing younger
foreign service officers on "The Catholic Church in India and
Pakistan." And on November 19, he participated in the Washington
Theological Union's Town Hall Meeting on the Congregation of the Doctrine of the
Faith's recent declaration, Dominus Jesus.
Walter J. Burghardt, S.J., gave a lecture on "Liturgy and Justice"
to liturgical ministers and others at Georgetown University; presided and
preached at a Holy Week liturgy for the faculty and seminarians of the
Theological College of Catholic University; presided and preached at two Sunday
liturgies at Holy Trinity Church in the District of Columbia; and delivered the
key homily "Jesus Christ Yesterday, Today, and Forever" at "Pentecost
2000," the Diocese of Birmingham, Alabama, celebration of the Great
Jubilee of Christianity. At Seton Hall's 13th Annual Summer Institute
for Priests, he gave four addresses: "Justice Human and Divine," "God's
Justice and America's Children," "God's Justice and God's Good Earth,"
and "Just Word and Just Worship." His third book in four months, Hear
the Just Word & Live It, was published by Paulist Press.
Drew Christiansen, S.J., gave the keynote address at the Fourth Annual
John R. Quinn Colloquium on Catholic Social Teaching in San Francisco and
coordinated the U.S. bishops' delegation to the Holy Father's Holy Land
Pilgrimage in March. In April he made a presentation at the Colloquium on
Just War at the University of Dallas and made a panel presentation at the
Centesimus Annus Foundation Conference on Globalization and Finance, Vatican
City.
Dolores R. Leckey gave a lecture at St. Anthony's Church in Northern
Virginia, in early April, on "Lay Ecclesial Ministry." Later in April,
she participated in "Convergence 2000," a gathering of fifteen Madeleva
lecturers at Saint Mary's College, Notre Dame, Indiana. The Madeleva
lectures have been held annually since 1985 to honor the memory of Sr. Madeleva
Wolff, CSC. This is the first time all the lecturers met together; and
together they produced The Madeleva Manifesto: A Message of Hope and
Courage. It is addressed to women, especially young women in ministry and
theological studies, and pledges solidarity across generations on behalf of
justice. During May she completed a chapter, "From the Second Vatican
Council to the Millennium: New Profiles in Catholic Leadership," for an
ecumenical book on church leadership. She began the writing of her book,
While Shepherds Kept Watch (even as research continues). St. Michael's
College in Vermont awarded her an honorary doctorate at the May commencement.
Gasper F. Lo Biondo, S.J., is tutoring Daniel Concha, S.J., from
Chile, and Berilengar Antoine, S.J., from Chad, this summer on "ethical/theological
reflection method." Both are studying at the Weston Jesuit School of
Theology in Cam-bridge, Massachusetts. A U.S. chapter is being inaugurated
for participation in the Global Economy and Cultures project. They join
with 35 other centers in this worldwide study. The U.S. chapter met on
June 23-25 and shared accounts of ways in which globalization is culturally
affecting people in a variety of geographical and ethnic/racial contexts.
James L. Nolan served as keynote speaker on "Finding God at Work at
a Time of Change" for students, faculty, and community leaders associated with
the EXCEL leadership development program at Wheeling Jesuit University in
April. On April 29, he presented Woodstock's experiences in the area of
spirituality in the workplace to the Seminar on Church and Theology in the
Contemporary World at Boston University. On May 20, he lead a group of
business and professional leaders in the Woodstock Business Conference's
process of theological reflection in Patterson, New Jersey. His article,
"A Conversation about Judas-and one CEO's Act of Loyalty," was published
in April in several diocesan newspapers including Washington, D.C.'s,
Catholic Standard, The Evangelist of Albany, NY, The Catholic Herald in
Milwaukee, The Tidings of Los Angeles, and The Florida Catholic in Orlando.
J. Michael Stebbins gave a two-day workshop on "The Spirituality of
Pastoral Leadership" to pastoral ministers in the Diocese of Orlando.
Later that same month, he joined members of two departments of Catholic Relief
Services (Catholic Social Teaching/Management, and Policy and Strategic Issues)
for a day-long planning session in Baltimore to prepare for CRS's upcoming
World Summit. At the Catholic Theological Association of America annual
convention in San Jose, he gave a presentation on the Faith and Values at Work
seminar to the Continuing Group on Catholic Social Teaching and served as co-convenor
of the Continuing Group on Method in Theology. On June 22 he participated
in the National Catholic Diaconate Conference, giving a keynote address entitled
"On the Threshold of the New Millennium: Opportunities and Challenges for
Collaborative Ministries" and a workshop on "Ecclesial Lay Ministers:
Collaborators in Ministry."
Michael Stebbins moves on to a new post. Gonzaga University's
gain is Woodstock's loss, as J. Michael Stebbins, director of Woodstock's
Arrupe Program of Social Ethics in Business accepts the role of director of the
new Tilford Institute of Ethics at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington,
starting August 1, 2000. We wish Michael well, we will miss him, but we
hope to continue collaboration with him and his center in the future.
[Woodstock Report, December 2000, No. 64]
Walter J. Burghardt, S.J., delivered the homily,
"You Are God's Building," at the blessing of Gonzaga High School's new
buildings; gave a lecture, "A Spirituality for a New Millennium," at
Old St. Joseph's Church, Philadelphia; conducted a workshop on "Preaching
Biblical Justice" during the Eucharistic Congress of the Archdiocese of
Washington; addressed the Ecumenical Society of the Blessed Virgin Mary on
"Mary and the Female Face of God"; and gave a keynote address at
Fordham Lincoln Center, "Just Word and Welfare Reform," for a
conference of the Beck Institute on Religion and Poverty. He gave a talk
on "Love of Law/Law of Love" at a prayer breakfast for faculty,
students, and staff of the Georgetown University Law Center. With Father
Raymond B. Kemp, he co-directed five-day Preaching the Just Word
retreat/workshops in the Dioceses of Bismarck, North Dakota, and Scranton,
Pennsylvania. His article, "A Spirituality for Justice," was
published in Handbook of Spirituality for Ministers 2: Perspectives for the 21st
Century, ed. Robert J. Wicks (New York/Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press, 2000)
527-45. At Loyola University, Chicago, the Jesuit Honor Society Alpha
Sigma Nu presented him with its first Life Achievement Award for contributions
through scholarship, loyalty, and service to the Church and to the Society of
Jesus-in a special way to the Christian people with his homilies delivered and
published.
January - June 2000
[Woodstock Report, June 2000, No. 62]
See Also: