FALL 2014
September 11, 2014
Embodied vs. bodily existence? Arguments in favor of a dualistic understanding of human persons — Heinrich Watzka, S.J., professor of philosophy at Sankt Georgen Graduate School of Philosophy and Theology in Frankfurt am Main, Germany, served as an International Visiting Jesuit Fellow at Holy Cross. Co-sponsored with the Department of Philosophy.
September 16, 2014
Trigger Warnings in the Classroom — Moderated by Matthew Koss, professor of physics and director of the Center for Teaching, this fishbowl-style discussion explored the ethics of trigger warnings in college syllabi and classrooms. Co-sponsored with the Center for Teaching.
September 18, 2014
Faculty Scholarship Lunch — Decomposing mathematical objects — Cristina Ballantine, professor of mathematics and computer science, has focused much of her work on breaking down mathematical objects into their basic building blocks.
September 18, 2014
Hallowed Pain: Representing the Slave Blandina and Jesus’s Brother James as Martyrs — Karen L. King, the Hollis Professor of Divinity at Harvard Divinty School, uses stories of two martyrs to explore questions about justice and the nature of God, the self and norms, and how to deal with the isolation that pain and suffering bring. Co-sponsored with the Class of 1956 Chair in New Testament Studies and Women's and Gender Studies.
September 22, 2014
Genocide Awareness Lecture — James Waller, Cohen Endowed Chair of Holocaust and Genocide Studies at Keene State College is author of “Becoming Evil: How Ordinary People Commit Genocide and Mass Killing” (Oxford University Press, 2002). Jointly sponsored by the W. Arthur Garrity Sr. Professorship; the McFarland Center; the Center for Interdisciplinary Studies; and the Economics Department.
September 25, 2014
“Most Wonderfully Deceitful to the Eye”: The Art and History of Neapolitan Presepe — Rachel Delphia, the Alan G. and Jane A. Lehman Curator of Decorative Arts and Design at the Carnegie Museum of Art, speaks in conjunction with the Cantor Art Gallery exhibit, “The Italian Nativity - IL PRESEPE: Cultural Landscapes of the Soul.”
September 25, 2014
50 Years of the War on Poverty: What it meant for the elderly — Kathleen McGarry, professor and chair or economics at UCLA and a research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research, discusses the role of various social insurance programs in the dramatic decline of poverty among the elderly over the last 50 years. Co-sponsored with Phi Beta Kappa, the Department of Economics and the Dean’s Office.
September 30, 2014
Magic, Religion and Theology in Africa: Some Questions and a Few Answers — Stephen Buckland, S.J., an International Visiting Jesuit Fellow, leads a lunchtime discussion exploring how people define and understand magic and religion in Africa and other places. Fr. Buckland recently completed his term as Provincial Superior in Zimbabwe.
October 2, 2014
Millennials, Parents, and Grandparents: Are families still passing on their faith? — Vern Bengtson, faculty research associate with the Edward R. Roybal Institute on Aging at the University of Southern California, will talk about his 2013 book, “Families and Faith: Generations and the Transmissions of Religion.” One of the Deitchman Family Lectures on Religion & Modernity.
October 6, 2014
Understanding American Jews: demographically complicated, religiously diverse, stronger than ever, and still at risk — Rabbi Eric Yoffie is a writer, lecturer, and internationally known religious leader. A Worcester native, he is president emeritus of the Union for Reform Judaism. Supported by the Kraft-Hiatt Fund for Jewish-Christian Understanding and co-sponsored with the Worcester JCC, the Jewish Federation of Central Massachusetts and Temple Emanuel Sinai.
October 20, 2014
Faculty Scholarship Lunch — Henry George and the Crisis of Inequality in America's First Gilded Age — Edward O’Donnell, associate professor of history, shares his research on Henry George, a self-taught political economist during America’s Gilded Age.
October 23, 2014
How Do People Become Catholic? Formation, Incorporation, and the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults — David Yamane, associate professor of sociology at Wake Forest University, is author of “Becoming Catholic: Finding Rome in the American Religious Landscape.” One of the Deitchman Family Lectures on Religion & Modernity.
October 28, 2014
Unconscious Racial Bias and the Challenge of Solidarity: Catholic Social Teaching Post Trayvon Martin (and Michael Brown and ...) — Rev. Bryan Massingale, professor of theological ethics at Marquette University, is author of "Racial Justice and the Catholic Church" (Orbis, 2010). One of the Deitchman Family Lectures on Religion and Modernity.
October 30, 2014
Coloring Outside the Color-Line: Community Muralism and Racial Justice — Maureen O'Connell, chair and associate professor of religion at LaSalle University, is the author of “If These Walls Could Talk: Community Muralism and the Beauty of Justice” (Liturgical Press, 2012). Co-sponsored with Montserrat’s Divine Cluster and Arts Transcending Borders.
November 3, 2014
To Capture the Fire: The Life and Works of Elie Wiesel — Alan Rosen, a renowned scholar of Holocaust literature, gives a lecture on Holocaust survivor and Nobel Peace Prize winner Elie Wiesel, under whom Rosen studied. Supported by the Kraft-Hiatt Fund for Jewish-Christian Understanding.
November 10, 2014
Adjudicating Sexual Assault on Campus — This fishbowl-style discussion focuses on the national debate over the pros and cons of whether college campuses, as opposed to law enforcement authorities, are the best venue for adjudicating sexual assault cases. Participants include: Associate Dean of Students Paul Irish, Stephenie Chaudoir, assistant professor of psychology; Elizabeth Inman '15; and a representative from the District Attorney's office. Co-sponsored with Women's and Gender Studies.
November 12, 2014
Stigmata on the Hudson: the Strange Tale of Sister Thorn — Paula Kane ’80, Marous Chair of Catholic Studies at the University of Pittsburgh, leads a discussion on themes in her new book "Sister Thorn and Catholic Mysticism in Modern America" (University of North Carolina Press, 2013). Co-sponsored with the The Alexander F. Carson Lecture Series.
November 13, 2014
Eloquence for Everyone: The Past, Present and Future of Eloquentia Perfecta in Jesuit Higher Education — Cinthia Gannett, associate professor of English at Fairfield University, is co-editing a book on “Traditions of Eloquence: The Jesuits and Rhetorical Studies.” Holy Cross professors Patricia Bizzell, English, and Rev. Thomas Worcester, S.J., history offer responses to the talk.
November 14-15, 2014
Moral Sentimentalism and the Foundations of Morality — This two day conference explores the renewed philosophical interest in moral sentimentalism, which favors emotions and desires as the basis for morality versus rational thought processes.
November 19, 2014
Faculty Scholarship Lunch — Revisioning Talmud Study: When a Religious Treasure Hit the Secular University — Alan Avery-Peck, professor of religious studies and Kraft-Hiatt Professor of Judaic Studies, discusses the arc of his scholarly career, focusing on the emergence and development of the still relatively new field of the university study of Judaism.
SPRING 2015
February 4, 2015
Catholics & Cultures: Launch of a Global Online Resource — This preview event and reception celebrates the official launch of the Catholics & Cultures website with viewing stations, Catholics & Cultures scholars, and refreshments. Thomas M. Landy, director of the McFarland Center, College President Rev. Philip L. Boroughs, S.J. and Vice President and Dean Margaret N. Freije offer brief remarks.
February 4, 2015
The Camino Experience: Making the Way — 2014 Artist-in-Residence Cristina Pato returns to present a work-in-progress inspired by the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage and her Galician roots. Making the Way brings together the College Choir (dir. David Harris), Theatre Department faculty and students, and the Cantor Art Gallery in a spiritual journey guided by the stories of local pilgrims who have walked the Camino. Presented by Arts Transcending Borders and co-sponsored with Catholics & Cultures, an initiative of the McFarland Center, and the Cantor Art Gallery.
February 24, 2015
The Pope and Mussolini — David Kertzer talks about his recent book, “The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe” (Random House, 2014). He is the Paul Dupee University Professor of Social Science at Brown University, where he is also professor of anthropology and Italian studies. Supported by the Kraft-Hiatt Fund for Jewish-Christian Understanding. Co-sponsored with the Worcester JCC.
February 25, 2015
FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP LUNCH 'Forget me not:' narrative marginalization in the making of Alzheimer's patients — Renee Beard, associate professor of sociology, draws on a sociological lens to explore what Alzheimer's means to seniors who are currently being diagnosed with the condition in American memory clinics.
February 25, 2015
Oh God — The Israeli Stage, a Boston-based theatre troupe dedicated to producing the works of Israeli playwrights for college audiences, reprises their American premiere of Anat Gov’s play about a psychotherapist and single mother to an autistic child who gets a visit from a new, desperate patient: God. Supported by the Kraft-Hiatt Fund for Jewish Christian-Understanding.
March 10, 2015
Faculty Workshop: Liz Lerman's Critical Response Process — Choreographer, dancer and educator Liz Lerman returns to Holy Cross to lead a faculty workshop on her Critical Response Process (CRP), a widely recognized method that nurtures the development of work-in-progress through a multi-step, group feedback system. Co-sponsored by the Center for Teaching, the McFarland Center, and Arts Transcending Borders.
March 16, 2015
FACULTY SCHOLARSHIP LUNCH — Poverty, Environmental Degradation, and Catholic Theology — Matthew Eggemeier, assistant professor of religious studies, discusses theological responses to the dual crises of global poverty and environmental degradation by drawing on the sacramental and prophetic resources of the Catholic tradition.
March 16, 2015
Adelante: Film Screening and Director’s Talk — Just outside of Philadelphia, Mexican newcomers are revitalizing a dying Irish-Catholic parish. Director and producer Noam Osband talks following the screening. Co-sponsored by Catholic Studies, Latin American and Latino Studies, and Catholics & Cultures.
March 19, 2015
Caesar or God? The Source of Authentic Power according to Mt 22:15-22 — Luc Bonaventure Ayité Amoussou, S.J., International Visiting Jesuit Scholar for the Spring 2015 semester, examines a popular proverb used to support the separation of Church and State and consider whether it's an apt defense of the modern dichotomy between politics and religion. Originally from Benin and the West Africa Province, Fr. Amoussou is founder and coordinator of Rays of Hope, a center for helping disadvantaged students in Benin.
March 23, 2015
Christian Theology and the Crisis of Capitalism — Kwok Pui Lan, the William F. Cole Professor of Christian Theology and Spirituality at Episcopal Divinity School, joins Mary Hobgood, associate professor of social ethics, and Peter Fritz, assistant professor of theology, for a panel discussion on the contemporary crisis of capitalism, which has been shaped by the economic collapse of 2008 and the Occupy movement of 2011.
March 25, 2015
From the Civil War to Ferguson: The Role of the Black Church as a Training Ground for Activism — Karsonya Wise Whitehead, assistant professor of communication and African & African American studies at Loyola University Maryland, explores the role of the black church in the context of American history, the recent events in Ferguson and New York, and the African American experience.
April 8, 2015
Teaching at the Jezreel Valley Art Center in Israel, where Jewish, Christian and Muslim Youth are Making Music Together — Acclaimed harpsichordist Marina Minkin shares her experiences teaching at the Jezreel Valley Art Center in Israel, where both students and teachers represent the cultural and ethnic mosaic of the region, including Jews and Arabs, Christians and Muslims, religious and secular. Supported by the Kraft-Hiatt Fund for Jewish-Christian Understanding.
April 15, 2015
Père Marie-Benoît and Jewish Rescue — Historian and author Susan Zuccotti discusses her recent biography of the French Capuchin priest, “Père Marie-Benoît and Jewish Rescue: How a French Priest Together with Jewish Friends Saved Thousands during the Holocaust” (Indiana University Press, 2013). Supported by the Kraft-Hiatt Fund for Jewish-Christian Understanding.
April 20, 2015
The Roman Triumph in its Urban Context: Building Memories and Identities in Republican Rome — Maggie Popkin, assistant professor of Roman art at Case Western Reserve University, explores the triumph, an elaborate procession celebrating Rome’s military victories, and the ways it connected monuments, urban space, ritual, and Roman identities.
April 23, 2015
Consumerism, the Culture of Indifference, and the Work of Solidarity — Vincent Miller, Gudorf Chair in Catholic Theology and Culture at the University of Dayton, gives a talk on how the full consequences of our consumption are hidden from us, and how we might change these shallow economic relationships to relationships of responsibility and solidarity. One of the Deitchman Family Lectures on Religion and Modernity.
April 24, 2015
Reading Heidegger after the Black Notebooks: Methodological Considerations on Philosophy, History, and Politics — Peter Gordon, the Amabel B. James Professor of History, Harvard College Professor, and faculty affiliate in the Department of Germanic Languages & Literatures and the Department of Philosophy at Harvard University, discusses the conflicted legacy of German philosopher Martin Heidegger. Heidegger was one of the most influential thinkers of the modern era — and a convinced Nazi.