RELATED PROGRAM
EVENTS
May 31, 2013Markets, Justice, and the Law
May 31, 2013
The Good Muslim and Religious Freedom
AT THE CENTER
RELATED RESOURCES: CATHOLIC
First Nationwide Faith-based Initiative to Fight Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV Launched in Kenya
Publication
Publication
September 13, 2012
Catholic Perspectives on Religious Liberty
Featuring a keynote address by Cardinal Donald Wuerl
Since the Second Vatican Council the Church has placed considerable emphasis on the importance of religious freedom as a matter of human dignity and individual flourishing, and as central to a just and democratic society. Abroad, the persecution of Christians and others has reached significant, perhaps even crisis, proportions. At home, issues involving same-sex marriage, abortion, and contraception have sparked sharp controversy about threats to religious freedom, leading the US Conference of Catholic Bishops to establish its own committee to begin engaging these issues.
The Maryland Catholic Bishops Conference and the Religious Freedom Project of Georgetown University's Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs brought together leading Catholic scholars to address these questions from different perspectives. Cardinal Donald Wuerl gave the symposium keynote address.
Since the Second Vatican Council the Church has placed considerable emphasis on the importance of religious freedom as a matter of human dignity and individual flourishing, and as central to a just and democratic society. Abroad, the persecution of Christians and others has reached significant, perhaps even crisis, proportions. At home, issues involving same-sex marriage, abortion, and contraception have sparked sharp controversy about threats to religious freedom, leading the US Conference of Catholic Bishops to establish its own committee to begin engaging these issues.
The Maryland Catholic Bishops Conference and the Religious Freedom Project of Georgetown University's Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs brought together leading Catholic scholars to address these questions from different perspectives. Cardinal Donald Wuerl gave the symposium keynote address.
10:30am - 12:00pm: Panel I: Dignitatis Humanae and the Legacy of Vatican II
Panelists: Gerard Bradley, Lisa Cahill, John O'Malley, Tom Farr (moderator)
12:00 - 12:30pm: Lunch
12:30 - 1:30pm Keynote Address: Religious Liberty in a Pluralistic Society: The Legacy of Dignitatis Humanae
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, with introduction by Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia
1:45 - 3:15pm: Panel II: Religious Freedom, the Church, and International Law
Panelists: Robert Destro, John Langan, Daniel Philpott, Marilyn McMorrow (moderator)
3:30 - 5:00pm: Panel III: Conflicts Between Religious Freedom and Other Rights Claims
Panelists: Marc DeGirolami, Cathleen Kaveny, Mark Rienzi, Thomas Banchoff (moderator)
Panelists: Gerard Bradley, Lisa Cahill, John O'Malley, Tom Farr (moderator)
12:00 - 12:30pm: Lunch
12:30 - 1:30pm Keynote Address: Religious Liberty in a Pluralistic Society: The Legacy of Dignitatis Humanae
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, with introduction by Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia
1:45 - 3:15pm: Panel II: Religious Freedom, the Church, and International Law
Panelists: Robert Destro, John Langan, Daniel Philpott, Marilyn McMorrow (moderator)
3:30 - 5:00pm: Panel III: Conflicts Between Religious Freedom and Other Rights Claims
Panelists: Marc DeGirolami, Cathleen Kaveny, Mark Rienzi, Thomas Banchoff (moderator)
Featuring
Donald Wuerl
Donald Cardinal Wuerl is an American Roman Catholic Archbishop of Washington, DC. He is a member of the Pontifical Council for Culture, a delegate to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, chancellor of The Catholic University of America , and on the board of directors of the National Catholic Education Association. Previously, he served as Auxillary Bishop of Seattle and Bishop of Pittsburgh; while in Pittsburgh he worked to remove priests accused of child sexual abuse and pushed the Vatican to take a tougher stance on the issue. His prominent position in the United States capital has made him a key voice in Church-State interactions, particularly related to the work of Catholic social service agencies. Ordained in 1966, he earned a Doctorate in Sacred Theology from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas, and is the author of numerous books.
Participants
Thomas Banchoff
Thomas Banchoff is director of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs, and professor in the Government Department and the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. His research centers on religious and ethical issues in...
Gerard Bradley
Gerard V. Bradley, a noted scholar in the fields of constitutional law as well as law and religion, joined the faculty of the Notre Dame Law School as professor in 1992, having taught at the University of Illinois from 1983 to 1992. With Professor...
Lisa Cahill
Lisa Cahill is J. Donald Monan Professor in the Department of Theology at Boston College. Her scholarly interests lie broadly in the area of Christian ethics, particularly Catholic social ethics, sex and gender ethics, New Testament and ethics,...
Marc DeGirolami
Marc DeGirolami is Assistant Professor of Law at St. John’s University School of Law where he is the assistant director of the Center for Law and Religion. His scholarly and teaching interests are in the areas of constitutional law, criminal law,...
Robert Destro
Robert A. Destro is professor of law and is director and founder of the Interdisciplinary Program in Law & Religion at the Catholic University of America Columbus School of Law. He joined the faculty in 1982 and served as Interim Dean from 1999 to...
Thomas Farr
Full List of Publications
Thomas F. Farr is Director of the Religious Freedom Project at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and a Visiting Associate Professor of Religion and International Affairs at Georgetown’s Edmund A....
Thomas F. Farr is Director of the Religious Freedom Project at the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace, and World Affairs and a Visiting Associate Professor of Religion and International Affairs at Georgetown’s Edmund A....
Cathleen Kaveny
M. Cathleen Kaveny is John P. Murphy Foundation Professor of Law and Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame and studies issues at the intersection of law, religion, and morality; she has particular expertise in health care ethics....
John Langan
John Langan, SJ, is the Cardinal Bernardin Chair in Catholic Social Thought in the Department of Philosophy at Georgetown University. His research interests include ethics and international affairs, especially applications of just war theory;...
Marilyn McMorrow
Marilyn McMorrow, RSCJ, PhD is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the School of Foreign Service and has been at Georgetown since 1992. She is an expert on political and normative theory of international relations. She teaches courses in the...
John O'Malley
Fr. John W. O’Malley, SJ, is a Jesuit priest and University Professor in the department of Theology at Georgetown University. His specialty is the religious culture of early modern Europe, particularly Italy. He is also an expert on the Second...
Daniel Philpott
Daniel Philpott is exploring Catholic and Protestant contributions to democracy from the years 1800-2000 for the Christianity and Freedom Project. Dr. Philpott is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and the Joan B. Kroc...
Mark Rienzi
Mark L. Rienzi is an assistant professor at The Catholic University of America, Columbus School of Law, where he teaches courses on constitutional law, religious liberty, torts, and evidence. His scholarly research and interests center on the...