Institute for Church Life to host Seed of the Church conference | News | Notre Dame News | University of Notre Dame Skip To Content Skip To Navigation Skip To Search University of Notre Dame Notre Dame News Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Home Contact Search Menu Home › News › Institute for Church Life to host Seed of the Church conference Institute for Church Life to host Seed of the Church conference Published: July 26, 2012 Author: Jenny Monahan The Institute for Church Life at the University of Notre Dame will host the upcoming Seed of the Church conference from Nov. 4-6. The event, to be held at McKenna Hall, is open to the public. Registration is now under way and is required for all participants. Conference registration is free. Keynote speakers include Archbishop Carlo Maria Viganò, apostolic nuncio to the United States; and John L. Allen Jr., senior correspondent at the National Catholic Reporter and senior Vatican analyst at CNN. The conference will bring together bishops and lay experts from around the world — including Egypt, China, India and Pakistan — testifying to the landscape of Christian persecution in their respective contexts. The gathering intends to raise consciousness inside and outside the Church regarding the widespread persecution of Christians around the world and to explore how the Church has responded and might respond vigorously and faithfully in the future. A central objective of this conference is to rectify the lack of acknowledgment of this persecution by the secular media and Western academia and to communicate to the world the extent and character of the persecution. Yet the purpose of the conference goes beyond raising awareness. It is also to explore how the Church can respond to the persecution of Christian believers prayerfully and liturgically, out of the depths of the Church’s spiritual theology. In the most profound sense, what does it mean to be in solidarity with brothers and sisters in Christ who suffer violence for their faith? The conference will explore several dimensions of this question, including: Where exactly are the persecuted Christians? How many are there? What are the circumstances surrounding persecution in specific countries and regions, including China, Pakistan, Nigeria, the Middle East and the countries involved in the Arab Spring? What kind of responses to persecutions ought Christians to urge upon governments? How can we form partnerships with those of other faiths to secure religious freedom for all faiths? What are the most effective and faithful responses on the part of the Church? The conference will also explore a theology of martyrdom for the world today, framed in terms of Eucharistic remembering and of the “ecumenism of the martyrs” urged on the Church by Blessed Pope John Paul II. The event is being organized by John C. Cavadini, McGrath-Cavadini Director of the Institute for Church Life, and Daniel Philpott, associate professor of political science and peace studies. A complete list of speakers as well as registration information is available at http://icl.nd.edu. Contact: Jenny Monahan, assistant director, Institute for Church Life, monahan.27@nd.edu Posted In: Faith Home Experts ND in the News Subscribe About Us Related October 03, 2022 dCEC to Award 2023 ND Evangelium Vitae Medal to Robert P. George September 22, 2022 In memoriam: Rev. Richard Warner, C.S.C., longtime leader for Notre Dame, Congregation of Holy Cross September 15, 2022 In new book on global Catholicism, Provost John McGreevy explores modern history, current challenges of the Church September 15, 2022 Death penalty abolitionist Sister Helen Prejean to speak at Notre Dame September 14, 2022 Apostolic nuncio to Great Britain to deliver the 2022 Keeley Vatican Lecture For the Media Contact Office of Public Affairs and Communications Notre Dame News 500 Grace Hall Notre Dame, IN 46556 USA Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Pinterest © 2022 University of Notre Dame Search Mobile App News Events Visit Accessibility Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube LinkedIn