The Edith Stein Conference

There is a WONDERFUL conference going on right now at Our Lady's University, our alma mater.

The Edith Stein Project is an annual conference that addresses various issues of gender, sexuality, and human dignity by exploring what it means to be authentic women and men. The conference began with a focus on women and attempted to provide a new feminism which had a a vision of women and men as both equal in dignity and complementary. This vision remains the hallmark of the Edith Stein Project. However, because we firmly believe that the cooperation of both men and women is necessary to more fully realize their dignity in society, we have worked to make the conference more accessible to men. We acknowledge that these issues are not one-sided: women and men live in community with each other. Accordingly, ESP seeks to engage both men and women in ways relevant to their lives. Our goal for the conference is to promote fruitful dialogue on issues of human dignity, with an emphasis on the dignity of women. We foster a spirit of openness while remaining rooted in the Catholic Church’s teachings on authentic personhood—to provide a forum for discussion that is not reactionary, but positive and optimistic.

Conference Schedule 2009

Friday, February 13

11:00am-12:00 pm – Registration

12:00-12:15 pm - Introduction to the Edith Stein Project Auditorium

12:15-12:50 pm - Father Sam Martin, Diocese of La Crosse: Love: What Hurts and What Works? Auditorium

1:00-2:00 pm - Dr. Philip Mango, St. Michael's Institute for the Psychological Sciences: The Neurological and Psychological Contributions to Love Auditorium

2:15-3:15 pm - Dr. Tim Alan Gardner, Sagamore Institute for Policy Research: (Authentic Relationships) Auditorium

Caroline Lashutka, Alumna: No Chicken Soup for the Soul
and
Genuine Beauty and the Hook-Up Culture Room 102

Panel Chair: Natassia Kwan, Student

Panelists:

Nathan Loyd, Right to Life and Pure Love Club

Mark Skylling, Iron Sharpens Iron

Jim Redden, Knights of Columbus

Michael Bohnert, Knights of Columbus

Melissa Buddie, Student

Katie Michel, Student

3:30-4:30 pm - Dr. Philip Mango, St. Michael's Institute for the Psychological Sciences: Marriage Preparation Before You Are Engaged Auditorium

Fr. Martin Connor, L.C.: "Blessed are the Pure in Spirit:" The World, Youth, and the Search for the Sacred
and
Patrick Tighe, Student: Pornography Hurts: How to Heal the Wounds Room 102

5:00 pm - Mass with Bishop D’Arcy, Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese Alumni Hall Chapel

5:45-6:15 pm - Pizza Dinner McKenna

6:15 pm - Bishop D’Arcy, Fort Wayne-South Bend Diocese : Love and Vocation Auditorium

7:30-8: 00 pm - Notre Dame Undertones: Valentine's Day Performance Auditorium

8:00-8:45 pm - Dr. Susan Ohmer and Dr. Don Crafton, Notre Dame Department of Film, Television, and Theater: Love in Film and Television Auditorium

9:00pm-1:00 am - Movies and Snacks Knights of Columbus

Saturday, February 14th

9:00-10:00 am –

Sr. Prudence Allen, R.S.M.: The Passion of Edith Stein
and
Dr. Sarah Borden, Center for Ethics and Culture: Retrieving Aristotle for Feminist Purposes Auditorium

Sister Terese Auer, O.P.: Returning Love for Love
and
Nathaniel Campbell, Student: Divine Love as both Creative and Rational: The Theophany of Caritas in Hildegard of Bingen’s Liber Divinorum Operum Room 102

10:15-11:15 am - Dr. Janet Smith, Sacred Heart Major Seminary: Hormones "R" Us: How Contraception Affects Our Relationships and Health Auditorium

Anamaria Scaperlanda, Alumna: How Can We Be Lovers if We Can't Be Friends: Expanding Our Understanding of Vocation

and

Caitlin Dwyer, Alumna: Bound to be Free: Finding Happiness through a Committed Life in a World of Endless Options Room 102

11:30 am - 12:30 pm –

Catherine Ruth Pakaluk, Harvard University PhD. Candidate: Life as a Mother and Student

and
Bernard Klinkhammer: Balancing Work and Family Life in a Hectic World Auditorium

Dr. Gary Anderson, Notre Dame Theology Department: The Concept of Family in the Book of Ruth
and
Dr. Daniel McInerny, Notre Dame Philosophy Department and Center for Ethics and Culture: Lost in the Junoverse Room 102

12:30-2:00 pm - Lunch

and
Catherine Ruth Pakaluk, Harvard University PhD. Candidate: Heart to Heart Chat with Catherine South Dining Hall Oak Room

2:00-3:15 pm –

Violence Against Women: Hurt, Healing, and Hope for a Better Future Auditorium

Panel Chair: Amelia Ruggaber, Campus Minister at Holy Cross College
Panelists:

Survivors of Sexual Assault, Personal Testimonies of Two Notre Dame Women

Scars on the Heart: A Story of Struggle and Strength

Natassia Kwan: Behind Closed Doors: Domestic Violence in the U.S. Past, Present, and Hope for a Better Future

Tim Latham, Men Against Violence, Real Men

Fr. Joseph Carey, C.S.C.: Healing Encounters with Jesus

3:30-4:30 pm - Kate Sweeney, ENDOW: John Paul II’s New Feminism: A Call to Authentic Womanhood Auditorium

Amy Kleczinski, Student: Sex and Abstinence: The Perfect Couple

and
Theresa Schortgen, Counselor: The Creighton Model: Discovering What Every Woman Has the Right to Know
and
Victor Saenz, Student: Dostoevsky: The Grand Inquisitor and Contraception Room 102

4:45-5:45 pm - Dr. Janet Smith, Sacred Heart Major Seminary: What Does the Church Teach About Homosexuality? Auditorium

Joanna Roman, Student: Dietrich Von Hildebrand on Love
and
Dr. David Fagerberg, Notre Dame Theology Department: Sacramentality of Marriage: Source and Summit Room 102

6:30 pm –

Closing Banquet

and
Dr. Lawrence Cunningham, Notre Dame Theology Department: Deus Caritas Est McKenna, Lower Level

Image: Raphael's allegory of Theology