“The Eucharist,” St. John Damascene wrote, “is a fire that inflames us.” Yet, recent surveys of Catholics suggest that a diminishing number of the faithful understand why the Eucharist is a fire or how it should inflame the Church. The 2025 convention of the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars will address how we might ponder this fire anew. Can faith in the Eucharist withstand the challenges of modern science? Are Eucharistic miracles believable? In what way is the Eucharist the source and summit not only of the Christian life in general, but also of a Catholic university in particular? Is there a psychology or sociology of Eucharistic faith? What kind of music and architecture provide the best setting for Eucharistic celebration? How might canon law help us to understand and to live our faith in the Eucharist more fully? How might we make sense of the liturgical disputes of our time? The 2025 convention on the Eucharist will bring together distinguished scholars from a variety of disciplines to help us more fully understand this central mystery of our faith.
Come explore these questions with accomplished Catholic professionals.
All sessions will take place at the Busch School of Business, located in Maloney Hall, on the campus of The Catholic University of America. Masses Saturday morning, Saturday evening, and Sunday morning will be celebrated at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, also located on the Catholic University campus.
1:00 p.m. – Mass, Maloney Hall Chapel
2:30 – 3:45 p.m. – Plenary Address I: Archbishop Timothy Broglio
4:00 – 5:15 p.m. – Panel I: The Catholic Lawyer
Paul Clement
Michael Moreland: “Friendship and the Life of Law”
5:30 – 6:45 p.m. – Dinner
7:00 p.m. – 8:15 p.m. – Panel II: The Catholic Businessperson
Andreas Widmer
Rob Hays
8:00 – 8:45 a.m. – Breakfast
9:00 – 10:15 a.m. – Plenary II: The Eucharist and the Work of Human Hands: The Sacred Task of the Lay Professions
Deborah Savage
10:30 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. – Panel III: The Catholic Physician
Natalie King
Faith Daggs
12:00 – 1:15 p.m. – Lunch
1:30 – 3:00 p.m. – Contributed Papers
3:15 – 4:30 p.m. – Plenary III: Challenges of Education and Formation
Robert G. Kennedy
5:00 p.m. – Mass
6:00 p.m. – Reception followed by Awards Banquet
7:30 a.m. – Mass
8:15 a.m. – Breakfast
9:30 – 10:45 a.m. – Panel IV: The Catholic Journalist
John J Miller
Timothy P. Carney
11:00 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. – Panel V: The Catholic Soldier and Law Enforcement Officer
Kevin Mullaney
J. Michael Waller
Dr. Vitz’s teaching and research is focused on the integration of Christian theology, especially Catholic anthropology, with psychology. This requires breaking from the modern secularism and postmodern relativism prevalent today. He is presently also addressing the following special topics: the psychology of hatred and forgiveness, the psychological importance of fathers and the relevance of psychology for understanding atheism and the psychology of the virtues. He is an editor, with two colleagues, of A Catholic Christian Meta-Model of the Person: Integration of Psychology and Mental Health Practice (2020). This book has been given an Expanded Reason Award, from the Benedict xvi Foundation, Rome and from the University Francisco de Vitoria, Madrid, Spain. He is also editor of a very recent book, 2021, CUA Press titled Complementarity in Women and Men: Philosophy, Theology, Art and Psychology.
Title: What is the Profit in Gaining the Whole World?
The address is envisioned as a brief opening reflection with Mt. 16:26 as a departure point, to consider the mission of Catholics as leaven in the world and to remind all that life is a pilgrimage with a goal beyond this world. Has acceptance diminished the impact of a Catholic worldview on society and the willingness of the believer to risk “acceptance”? The charge to be a witness (martyr) determines the use of freedom in all walks of life. Examples will be drawn from the military, Laborem Exercens, and the writings of St. Paul.
Born in Honolulu, Hawaii on May 16, 1952, Fr. Robert Spitzer is a Catholic Priest in the Jesuit order, and is currently the President of the Magis Center of Reason and Faith (www.magiscenter.com) and the Spitzer Center for Catholic Organizations (www.spitzercenter.org). He is also the Chief Educational Officer for the Ethics and Performance Institute (www.learnepi.com).
Title: Faith in Practice
Abstract: By most conventional measures, Catholics have been remarkably successful in the practice of law. Over half the Supreme Court is made up of Catholic lawyers, and Catholic lawyers are thriving in other high-profile posts in the profession. In many ways, this is unsurprising, as close attention to text, hierarchical authorities, and reasoning within a specialized framework are common features of both Catholicism and the law. At the same time, some Catholic teaching is antithetical to the prevailing views of the legal establishment, and there is always the potential for the ethics of the profession to come into conflict with the demands of the faith. While there is no ready formula for navigating these challenges, the ongoing fight for religious liberty is a critical component.
Gerald P. Boersma is Professor of Theology at Ave Maria University and Humboldt Fellow at the University of Tübingen. Boersma is a Catholic systematic theologian whose writings focus especially on the thought of Augustine and Thomas Aquinas. He is author of Augustine’s Early Theology of Image (Oxford, 2016) and numerous essays as journal articles and book chapters devoted to theology, philosophy, and literary criticism. Prior to coming to Ave Maria University, he taught for five years at St. Bonaventure University. He has held fellowships at the Villanova University and the University of Tübingen.
Title: Friendship and the Life of the Law
Abstract: St. Thomas Aquinas claims that the primary purpose of law is to create friendship. Building on this insight, I will explore the centrality of friendship to a Catholic understand of the vocation of a lawyer, including friendship as a condition for discourse, the relationship between friendship and the common good, the place of civic friendship in a political community, and friendship with God as the end of human life.
Margarita Mooney Clayton is associate professor of congregational studies in the Department of Practical Theology at Princeton Theological Seminary. She earned her MA and PhD in sociology from Princeton University, and her BA in psychology at Yale University. She has also been on the faculty of Yale University, Princeton University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Pepperdine University. At Princeton Theological Seminary, she teaches classes on philosophy of social science, Christianity and the liberals arts tradition, aesthetics, research methods for congregational leaders, intentional communities, and sociology of religion. Her research has received approximately $3 million in funding from the John Templeton Foundation.
Title: To Work Is to Create; To Create Is to Be Human
Abstract: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) often misjudges business, seeing it as something that needs to be balanced with charitable acts. But business isn’t about damage control; it’s about unleashing human creativity. Work is our way of transforming ideas into reality, not just for profit but for human flourishing. When we excel in our work, we don’t just produce more—we become more. We elevate ourselves and those around us, creating a ripple effect of growth and fulfillment. And yes, this excellence is rewarded with prosperity, embodying the American Dream. Business, at its core, is about creating value, fostering growth, and reaping well-deserved rewards.
James McCrery is the founding principal of McCrery Architects, PLLC, a firm committed to the design of churches, civic and university buildings, and unique commissions for clients desiring rich, legible meaning incorporated into their buildings. He is an internationally recognized leader in classical architectural design and construction. His built works and contributions throughout the United States have received many awards and have been favorably reviewed in The New York Times, City Journal, The Washington Business Journal, The Wall Street Journal, The Weekly Standard, Period Homes, The New York Post, Country Life (U.K.), The Washington Post, Traditional Building, The Washington Times, New York Daily News, The Classicist, and the National Review.
Title: Business as a Field of Mission
Abstract: Few people today find time to attend those groups and organizations (churches, synagogues, fraternal organizations, social clubs, service groups, etc.) that have provided crucial cultural, moral, and spiritual formation for generations. But people still go to their workplaces. As a result, businesses and their corporate cultures are uniquely positioned in the modern world to play a pivotal role in the future of the New Evangelization and the in formation of human excellence. Which means that we need to be encouraging and training the next generation of business leaders 1) to live a proper unity of life, 2) to see their workplaces as a mission field, and 3) to steep them in the virtues, the Scriptures, and Catholic Social Doctrine. While business leaders always need to respect the personal freedom of individuals, they need to lead boldly so that their companies live the Gospel faithfully.
Dr. Savage is currently a Professor of Theology at Franciscan University of Steubenville. She is a recognized scholar of the work of John Paul II.
Title: The Eucharist and the Work of Human Hands: The Sacred Task of the Lay Professions
Abstract: That the mission of the laity is to transform the temporal order has been an explicit teaching of the Church since Pope St. Paul VI promulgated the Second Vatican Council’s decree On the Apostolate of the Laity (Apostolicam Actuositatem) in 1965. Pope St. John Paul II’s own 1988 Apostolic Exhortation on the Vocation of the Laity, Christifideles laici, both affirmed this teaching and gave it new life. Both documents declare that all Christians are baptized into the three-fold office of Christ as Priest, Prophet, and King, tasking them with the great responsibility of advancing God’s plan for the world. The laity discover their vocation in the world; this is their mission field, the place where they live out their baptismal promises. And this is all to the good. But what are the practical implications of this teaching? What is the “sacred task” at the heart of every profession? What is the meaning of human work?
Renaissance Arlington Capital View Hotel
2800 Potomac Ave
Arlington, VA 22202
703-413-1300
This hotel is near the NoMa-Gallaudet University Metro station, just two stops from the Brookland-Catholic University Metro station. All convention sessions will take place at the Busch School of Business on the campus of The Catholic University of America.
