Catholic Theological
Society of America

For its last CTSA consultation session on the sex abuse crisis, the Consultation has planned a reflective discussion of two important questions: 1) methodologically, how can or should the sex abuse crisis change our ways of doing theology? and 2) practically and structurally, how do we ensure that this question remains robust and lively in the CTSA, and in Catholic theology generally?

In preparation for the session, we invite you to download and read the two short essays and the Examen in the session Dropbox folder. They are in the “Session materials” subfolder; the Examen is below as well. In addition, we invite you to visit the “Additional resources” subfolder and download the list of suggested further readings.

Even if you do not have the opportunity to look over any of the materials before the session, please come! Your insight is essential to ensuring ongoing theological engagement with this issue.

Sincerely,

Julia Feder, Daniel Horan, Stan Chu Ilo, Megan McCabe, Cristina Traina

Consultation Committee

Examen

Because some of us are not directly involved in the sex abuse crisis as perpetrators or victims, and we may not address sexuality directly in our scholarship, we may feel that we have had no role in the crisis and that theological and moral responses to it need not affect our corner of the profession in the future. Thus, we may not have reflected adequately on the ways in which our own theological habits and our practices as a guild have helped to facilitate this crisis, to perpetuate it, or to diminish its importance. We invite you to reflect on the questions below.

Does my own work encourage a focus on the rehabilitation and forgiveness of the sinner to the detriment of attention to the care and rehabilitation of the sinned-against? Of potential future victims of sin?

Have I used the ideas of trauma and moral injury too generally, diminishing their precision and impact?

Who and what are the credible sources with which I do and teach theology? Do I treat the witness of children, gender queer persons, women, or people of color as less credible than others’ accounts?

What interpretive frameworks do I apply to scripture and theology? Do any of them impose psychological or gendered grids that might lead me to diminish the impact of, or explain away, abuse?

Have I thought adequately about how oppression, trauma, and wounds of all sorts might affect my vision of sin, grace, virtue, eschatology, sacramental theology, exegesis, and other theological questions?

Does my theology treat sins involving sex as either more significant or less significant than other classes of sins?

Do hiring, promotion, and colleague and student mentoring practices in my department create power imbalances that encourage abuse or that blame victims?

Do my writings or style of teaching promote greater deference to ordained scholars than to lay scholars?

The CTSA remembers and prays for Daniel Maquire, who died on Wednesday, May 21.

  

Eternal rest grant unto Dan, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon him.
May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Dan's contributions to the CTSA include the following, which are available via the CTSA Proceedings:

"Human Sexuality: The Book and The Epiphenomenon", Proceedings, Vol. 33 (1978).

"A Response (II) to Doctor Noonan", Proceedings Vol. 27 (1972).

Link to Obituary. A funeral service will most likely be held in the summer of 2025.

Photo courtesy of Marquette University.

The CCS Public Lectures – as part of the Franciscan Studies Summer School 2025

The Centre for Catholic Studies at Durham University is hosting two online public lectures, as part of our Franciscan Studies Summer School. Our guest speakers are Professor John McCafferty and Sr Margaret Carney.

Although registration for the Summer School is now closed, the public lectures remain open for booking. Those who have already registered for the Summer School will automatically be sent the joining link for these lectures.

 

CCS Public Lecture: Professor John McCafferty (UCD)

‘Sandals, Spaniards and Scotus: Defending Francis and his Friars 400 Years After his Death’

Wednesday 11 June, 6pm BST Online

Tickets: £5, free to those registered on Week 1 of the Franciscan Studies Online Summer School

Booking via Eventbrite: https://bit.ly/3EB3dDG

John McCafferty is a Professor of History at UCD and a Honorary Professor at CCS Durham. His research is concerned with religious change in early modern Ireland and Britain with special reference to the role of the Franciscan family. He is General Editor with James Kelly of the Oxford History of British & Irish Catholicism (2023). He is Chair of the Irish Manuscripts Commission and Director of the Mícheál Ó Cléirigh Institute. He is also President of the Board of the Collegium Sancti Bonaventurae (Quaracchi), Rome.

 

CCS Public Lecture: Sr Margaret Carney

‘Francis of Assisi, Francis of Rome and a Church Re-Imagined’

Wednesday 18 June, 6pm BST Online

Tickets £5, free for those registered on the Franciscan Foundations for Moral Theology course as part of the Franciscan Studies Online Summer School.

Booking via Eventbrite: https://bit.ly/3EIpYp2

 

The synod on synodality ushered in a vision and an exercise leading to a dramatic re-centering of the Catholic Church. What is the “through line” connecting the magisterium of Pope Francis to the renaissance in Christian life created by the charism of St. Francis of Assisi? Eight centuries separate the two. Are we guilty of magical thinking when we try to connect their remarkable impact?

 

For any queries about the two online public lectures, please email ccsfranciscan.admin@durham.ac.uk.

 

The CTSA remembers and prays for longstanding member Wendy M. Wright, who died on Monday, May 19.

Eternal rest grant unto Wendy, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon her.
May her soul and the souls of all the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen

Wendy Wright's theological contributions to the Society include serving as the convener of the following, which are accessible via the CTSA Proceedings.

Convener, Spiritual Habits for the Cultivation of Ecological Virtue, Spirituality Topic Session, CTSA Proceedings 72 (2017).

Convener, Mary in Global and Contemporary Perspective: Mary in Ecumenical and Interfaith Perspective, CTSA Proceedings 67 (2012).

The following information was provided to the CTSA via the Department of Theology and Christian Spirituality Program at Creighton University.

Wendy Mae Wright, 78, of Santa Barbara, California, passed away from cancer on May 19, 2025 at her home while surrounded by her husband and three adult children.  

Wendy was born on March 5, 1947, in Burbank, California, the only child of Walter Wright, a jeweler and peace activist, and Elizabeth “Betty” Wright, a writer and civic volunteer. 

After an early adulthood spent training and performing as an actress and singer, Wendy moved to Santa Barbara in 1974 in a period of personal and theological inquiry to attend the Religious Studies program at the University of California, Santa Barbara. It was there that she met Roger Bergman, of Kansas. They married on June 21, 1977, at the Old Mission in Santa Barbara. 

Wendy and Roger had three children: Emily Frances, born 1977; Elizabeth June, born 1983; and Charles Walter, born 1985.

After obtaining her PhD from UCSB in 1983, Wendy embarked on a notable career as a professor and writer of Christian spirituality. Her areas of expertise included the history of Christian spirituality, particularly the Salesian tradition, Catholic devotional traditions, and the spirituality of family life. She served for almost thirty years as Professor of Theology at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, and later as Affiliate Faculty at the Oblate School of Theology’s Institute for the Study of Contemporary Spirituality. She was the author of seventeen books and over sixty academic articles. She also enriched many people’s spiritual lives as a long-time spiritual director and cantor.

Wendy was a devoted mother and grandmother and an avid hiker and lover of nature and the arts. Upon her retirement from full-time teaching, she and Roger moved back to Santa Barbara, where they lived in the beautiful surroundings of the home she had inherited from her parents.

Wendy is survived by her husband Roger; her three children Emily, Elizabeth, and Charles; her six grandchildren Evelyn Elizabeth, Oliver Hastings, Elliot Franklin, Cecilia Lola, Anabel Mae, and Miriam Carmen; her son-in-laws Ryan Shelstad and Clark Baechle, and daughter-in-law Alexi Motta.

Wendy Wright was also an Affiliated Faculty Member at the Institute for the Study of Contemporary Spirituality, Oblate School of Theology.   

A funeral mass will be held on Thursday, May 29 at 10:30am at the Old Mission-Santa Barbara, followed by a reception.

Memorial gifts may be made to:

• Cancer Foundation of Santa Barbara, which supports the Ridley-Tree Cancer Center: https://cfsb.org/support-local-cancer-care/giving/
• Visitation Monastery of Minneapolis: https://www.visitationmonasteryminneapolis.org/support-us/” 

 

The Pentecost Vigil Project invites you to join us on May 30-June 7 at 7pm eastern daylight time on zoom to pray for the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.  We are inviting Catholic organizations, groups and networks across the US and Canada to join together in friendship and solidarity in response to the call of Pope Leo to courageously face the challenges confronting us at this time in history.  All are welcome! Please visit our website to register: 

www.pentecostvigilproject.org

Sincerely, Margaret Mary Moore

The Distance Learning programmes in Catholic Theology, led by Durham University’s Centre for Catholic Studies (CCS), are designed so that participants can work through material at their own pace, studying equally well in any time zone and in many different life situations, alongside work, ministry, family or caring obligations. 

In addition to the Postgraduate Certificate , the Postgraduate Diploma , and the MA , students can enrol for a single module. Students with a BA or BSc who have not studied Theology or a related discipline before, are able to apply for the single module, ‘Catholic Theology: A Preliminary Tour’ and proceed to the MA following its successful completion. Further details are available at Distance Learning – Durham University including videos from current students.

NEW BURSARY FUNDS AVAILABLE FOR 2025-26 – The Janet Erskine Stuart Scholarship Fund, funded by the Society of the Sacred Heart (RSCJ), intended primarily to support teachers or chaplains. Applications are especially invited from:

• Teachers of RE wishing to pursue an MA to enhance the quality of their subject knowledge.
• Teachers of any discipline who wish to retrain to teach RE.

Other bursary funds are also available. Full information can be found at CCS Bursary for Distance Learning 2025-26 - Durham University

If you have any questions about the Distance Learning programmes or bursaries, please contact the CCS Manager - theresa.phillips@durham.ac.uk +44 (0) 191 334 3952.

The CTSA remembers and prays for longstanding member Ladislas "Les" Orsy, S.J., who died on Thursday, April 3.

Les Orsy was awarded the prestigious John Courtney Murray Award in 1999.  

Eternal rest grant unto Ladislas, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon him.
May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed,
through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

Jesuits USA East, Remembering Jesuit Father Ladislas "Les" Orsy (April 3, 2025) 

INSeCT ~ General Assembly Report
December 8 - 13, 2024
Rome, Italy

Please find here the final report of INSeCT General Assembly.

Linh Hoang, OFM, PhD
President, INSeCT
CTSA Liaison to INSeCT 

On May 8, 2025, Cardinal Robert Francis Prevost, O.S.A., 69, was chosen as the 267^th pope.  He chose the name Leo, making him Pope Leo XIV. 

Pope Leo XIV was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois to parents of French, Italian, and Louisiana Creole (African, French, Haitian, and Spanish) descent. He holds a Doctorate and a Licentiate in Canon Law from the Pontifical University of St. Thomas Aquinas - Angelicum (Rome); a Master of Divinity from Catholic Theological Union (Chicago); and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from Villanova University (close to Philadelphia).  He speaks Spanish, Italian, French, Portuguese, and English.  He also reads Latin and German. He was ordained a priest in 1982 at the age of 27 in the Order of Saint Augustine, a religious order with a charism of contemplative prayer, a practical love for all others especially the poor, and an ardent pursuit of truth.  In 1985, at the age of 30, as an Augustinian missionary, he was sent to Peru where he has lived for much of his adult life, serving there early on as a pastor, and as a seminary teacher in Trujillo in the northwestern part of Peru. From 1998 - 2001, he returned to Chicago, serving as Prior Provincial of his religious order.  Then, in 2001, he was elected Prior General of the Augustinians and lived in Rome until 2013.  Pope Francis named him Bishop of Chiclayo, Peru in 2014 where he served until 2023, the year he became a Cardinal.   In 2023 he moved back to Rome when Pope Francis named him President of the Pontifical Commission for Latin America, and Prefect of the Dicastery for Bishops, a position which oversees the selection of new bishops worldwide.

Pope Leo is an American in the most expansive sense; he is a citizen of Peru as well as of the United States.  His significant Latin American background represents a continuity with Pope Francis, an Argentinian.  Pope Leo is known as a bridge-builder, as a good listener, as a pastor first, and, as such, he is perceived to be a pope who will likely favor continuity with the reforms initiated by Pope Francis.  He is said to share Pope Francis’ views on migrants, the poor, and the environment as well as his commitment to synodality, a promising means for addressing divisions in the U.S. Catholic Church.

Pope Leo’s choice of the name “Leo” is telling, signaling his commitment to social justice.  The previous Pope Leo XIII (1878-1903) is often recognized as the father of Catholic social justice, largely owing to his groundbreaking 1891 encyclical, Rerum Novarum.  This encyclical, and others that followed, transformed Catholic teaching by launching what is now known as Catholic Social Teaching.  Rerum Novarum focused on issues of social inequality and social justice, claiming that workers have rights as well as obligations.  It was critical of both capitalism and communism.   

In addition, the choice of “Leo” may also signal a connection to the first Pope Leo, Leo the Great (440-461), whose theological work on the divine and human natures of Jesus Christ helped the Church deepen its understanding of the Incarnation, laying the groundwork for the Council of Chalcedon.  In addition, this Pope Leo was known as a Western leader and peacemaker, convincing Atila the Hun, who had been plundering northern Italy, not to attack Rome in 452.    

By taking the name “Leo,” perhaps our new pope is locating himself within the tradition of these predecessors. 

Long live the Pope Leo XIV!

Nancy Pineda-Madrid

President, Catholic Theological Society of America

Good music is part of what makes our CTSA liturgies so special and we need your help to make it happen!  All members are invited to join the choir for our Saturday evening liturgy in Portland. The more voices the merrier--all are welcome.

Do you play the flute, violin, or cello? Join the ensemble!

Please contact CTSA Liturgical Liaison, Layla Karst, at layla.karst@lmu.edu for more information.