Rome Ecumenism Course 2026

  Reflections on fundamentalism Dr. Hollander named three forms of fundamentalism we can find in today’s branches of Christianity: “Neotraditionalist culture-crusader Catholicism, Martyrological faithful-remnant Orthodoxy, and Apocalyptic christo-nationalist Protestantism.” These kinds of “fundamentalism” are more often opposed to ecumenism and interreligious dialogue. He posed a good question at the end of this lecture: does ecumenism have anything to offer in response to fundamentalism? Well, would fundamentalists listen at all to people promoting ecumenism? Is there a common goal we can establish together? It’s probably the same goal that we are promoting through the ecumenical movement: that the Gospel of Christ be proclaimed throughout the world. Now, obviously we have very different ideas of what that should look like, and maybe our priorities in evangelization look very different. Moreover, Dr. Hollander’s question itself presupposes that fundamentalism is a problem to be...

Fundamentalism Continued: In the 8th grade, a classmate said Catholics can't be Christians because we call ourselves "Catholics" first and not "Christian." In college, I met a sweet student on the girl's floor above me that believed with conviction the world is 6,000 years old and God only made dinosaur bones to give people something to wonder about. She also prayed publicly and very genuinely with gratitude thanking God for everything. I thought her ideas were absurd, but I couldn't dislike her either and admired her prayer life. At a younger age (I'm now 45), I didn't think fundamentalists were bright enough, or even now self-aware enough, to compile a list of how they see themselves.  This list was presented to us on the last day of class. But first, our professor said " fundamentalism and ecumenism are born in the same moment. They are both orientations toward the modern world ." I'm still undecided on whether I agree. Can someo...

We receive the same call to promote the goodness of God and his magnificence in different ways. The magnificence of God is expressed in the whole town of Rome. Everywhere and in every activity, both personal and academic, I feel that God wants to teach me, as He teaches Ignatius the Spiritual Exercises , after Cardoner’s vision. In that moment, I experienced how my God is wonderful and magnificent through the beauty and grandeur of the architecture of the Churches in Rome. The Basilica of St. Peter and Paul is a sign of the grandeur of the human soul. My admiration for those artistic pieces evokes and helps me understand how God invites us to be collaborators of his creation. The way art conveys the inner link to the divine is truly remarkable and inspires me to reflect on how I can express my own connection with God through my dedication to serving humanity. Everyone has a special talent from God that can help to express our connection to the divine.  Interior view of the Basilica...

For this last post, I will start with the definition of  oikonomia (οἰκονομία), as we have seen during a lecture, which means the management or stewardship of a household. In other words, this is the art of managing a house. Theologically, it refers to how God manages his household such as Creation and his plans for humankind. Similarly, Oikoumene derives from the ancient Greek word oikoumenē, meaning "the inhabited world" or "the inhabited earth" stemming from the verb oikeō, meaning "to inhabit, dwell, or reside". Thus if God manages his household, his Will guides Creation including those who dwell in it - composed of people with diverse religious faiths or belief sets. My question, then, remains: how this household work for us? Some believe we are erring on this earth. Others believe we simply need to live our lives and the rest will be taken care for. When I think back at Santiago’s excellent lecture on interreligious dialogues, some things don’t reall...

Christian Superpowers I’ve talked a lot about the importance of virtue in the ecumenical movement. But my thought this week has been that virtue is also UNIQUE to Christianity. If you call to mind government debates, or other kinds of public discourse really, there is often so much cattiness, insulting, condescension, etc. At least in some of the best examples of public discourse, there is civility, respect, and genuine concern. While I certainly wouldn’t say virtue is exclusive to Christianity, we do have the confidence that the Holy Spirit causes virtues such as faith, hope, and mercy to ABOUND if we ask him. Virtues, and all gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, are Christian “superpowers.” Because of the Holy Spirit alive within us, and actively invoked by us, we have access to divine power that permeates and carries our dialogue and makes unity possible. This divine power cannot be underestimated! A goal as great as Christian unity is not achieved without God. As Christians, we ha...

July 12, 2026   How do I effectively begin dialogue with people of other faiths? Back in Canada      Well, I have just returned from Rome, and I keep thinking about the food and the lessons learned.  Ironically, my last meal in Rome was an authentic minestrone soup, made with many visible seasonal ingredients sourced locally from the region.  You can see that the ingredients come together beautifully so that the sum is far greater than the parts.  Ecumenism is quite similar.  We have many different Christian traditions, sacraments, and history that come together for intrafaith dialogue.  Each maintains its authentic interpretation of revelation while respectfully participating in deep conversations about the faith we share in God.        After a nine-and-a-half-hour flight to Canada, the six-hour time difference made my body feel like it was midnight.  I just wanted to go to bed, but my husband made me my favourite le...

This past week has served as a reminder that we are all spiritual servants. Just as we must meet our physiological needs, we also have spiritual needs that require attention. Humans have a need to connect with transcendence in order to understand themselves. Nevertheless, each person has their own way of reaching these goals, which allows for religious plurality and several understandings of God.  Since each individual expresses their connection with divinity uniquely, dialogue elements are essential to maintain harmony and enable respectful coexistence. Agnostics, Christians, Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, and all other religious groups should dedicate themselves to dialogue for the benefit of all humanity. Dialogue is a responsibility for everyone to foster love and bring love into the world. Let's collaborate to create a better world where love, peace, and justice prevail. However, which kind of dialogue is necessary to achieve these goals? We recognize four distinct levels o...

     I've remained curious about India's religious landscape. Some of my favorite students while teaching the last two years were Hindus and Zoroastrians recently immigrated from India. They had perpetually curious and positive attitudes in my 9th and 10th grade Scripture and Church History classes.  I know many influences from the 60s who traveled to India seeking enlightenment, and recall Thomas Merton writing after visiting India that his trip wasn't necessary after all; he had similar spiritual insights accessible to him at the Abbey of Gethsemani in Kentucky, but foreign cultures bring mystery.  I suspect that for many people, mystery breeds respect and a sense of mysticism whereas "familiarity breeds contempt," and that various modes of spirituality in Eastern religions are available in round about ways within Catholicism.  I also noticed that countless spiritual seekers and pop singers travel to India seeking enlightenment, and I've co...