The Catholic University of America in Washington will host the
second in a series of conferences called “Healing the Breach of Trust” Feb. 6
from 8:15 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
“The primary aim is that people come away from this conference
with more context for understanding the church crisis,” said President John
Garvey. “We also hope that this conference, and the ones to follow, become the
place where solutions begin to come to light. There is a way forward, and we
will find it if we come together in good faith as a church.”
Participants include Galveston-Houston Cardinal Daniel N.
DiNardo; Garvey, Christopher Ruddy, associate professor of historical
and systematic theology; Benedictine Sister Nancy Bauer, assistant professor of
canon law; and Michael Root, ordinary professor of systematic theology, all
from Catholic U.; Bronwen McShea, associate research scholar with Princeton
University’s James Madison program; and Carlos Eire, professor of history and
religious studies at Yale University.
“It’s been six months since the church was hit by the current
series of sexual abuse scandals, and it seems like every day a new revelation
appears,” said Garvey. “I think we all need help — not only to process what
we’ve learned, but to find tools to put the crisis in context.”
The day will begin with Mass celebrated by Cardinal DiNardo in
Caldwell Chapel at 8:15 a.m. Mass is followed by an introductory address,
presentations and lunch. The event will be livestreamed at
livestream.com/CatholicUniversity/events/8528618.
The first part of the series took place in November with a panel
discussion of journalists, including New York Times
columnist Ross Douthat, J.D. Flynn of the Catholic News Agency, Liz Bruenig of The Washington Post, and Chris White of Crux.
“The panelists were honest and forthcoming in their comments, but
also respectful of the church and her members,” said Garvey. “We could not have
asked for a better way to launch this discussion.”
The next conferences are scheduled for March 26 featuring Boston
Cardinal Sean O’Malley, and April 25, featuring Detroit Archbishop Allen
Vigneron.
Find out more
Go to ihe.catholic.edu/event/healingthebreach2/.
