Upcoming symposium gives nod to St. John Paul II’s ‘Letter to Women’

A new winter symposium promises to explore Catholic teaching on gender, sexuality and the role of women while marking the 30th anniversary of St. John Paul II’s “Letter to Women.”

“He took the approach of acknowledging all women and their important roles in the life of the church and society, and we want to also follow his example and address the many varied positions women have in modern life,” Leah Jacobson, program coordinator for Catholic women’s and gender studies at the Nesti Center for Faith & Culture, or Nesti CFC, told OSV News about the upcoming event in emailed comments.

Nesti CFC, located at the University of St. Thomas in Houston, will host the two-day event called “The Beauty of Truth: Navigating Society Today as a Catholic Woman” Jan. 9-10. The symposium promises to be “a clear call to examine the conflict between secular theories and the Catholic vision of women, gender and the human person.”

Nationally recognized Catholic experts will serve as keynote speakers, including Erika Bachiochi, Mary Eberstadt, Angela Franks, Leah Libresco Sargeant, Pia de Solenni and Eileen Reuter, a research fellow at Nesti CFC.

“I want people to know that when they attend this event, they get to be part of that energy and conversation!” Jacobson said of the speakers’ expertise. “There will be numerous opportunities for Q&A and the chance to talk directly with nationally renowned thinkers on the topic of women in the church and society.”

Both women and men are invited to register for the symposium, Jacobson said, adding that men who minister to married couples and women are especially encouraged to attend. To ensure a more personal and intimate atmosphere, organizers are limiting the event to 200 attendees. While there is no livestream option, the presentations will be recorded and available afterward.

More than a dozen presenters will join the keynote speakers for the symposium. Among other things, they will address accompanying pregnant and parenting mothers, helping high school students realize an authentic vision of gender and sexuality, and supporting young families in work-life balance decisions.

“I think any woman who has grown up in our modern culture has faced a heavy assault on her identity as a daughter of God,” Jacobson said of the challenges she sees Catholic women face today. “We know that the enemy has been targeting marriage and the family with his lies for a long time now.”

Today’s challenges, she said, are related to challenges women faced in the past.

“Older generations faced challenges around roles in marriage — about who goes to work, who cares for the home and children, about whether it is responsible to be open to life and welcoming children,” Jacobson said. “And those types of thoughts extended beyond the married vocation into questioning roles in the church asking if women can be priests and the sacramental nature of marriage.”

“While these questions are still challenging for modern women, they have been compounded by a societal loss of guideposts about the human body and a confusion about God’s laws concerning fertility and the very nature of marriage,” she added. “The issues modern women face have become much graver in nature with the societal rejection of our God-given bodies as an integral part of our human identities.”

The event is sponsored by the Catholic women’s and gender studies program at Nesti CFC, which was founded in 1994 “to help people examine, discern, and live out the relationship between the Gospel’s universal call to love and the worldview and values of the dominant American culture.”

A recognized Catholic Cultural Center of the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education, Nesti CFC provides several degrees that align with its mission: a master of arts in faith and culture; a master of arts in Catholic women’s and gender studies; a graduate certificate in faith and culture; a graduate certificate in Catholic approaches to sexuality and gender; a graduate certificate in Catholic feminism; a graduate certificate in gender and family policy; and a graduate certificate in women’s health and wellness.

With its latest event, Nesti CFC promises to explore the application of St. John Paul’s writings to family life, education, health care and professional environments.

“We as a church are still seeking solutions to some of the challenges women have historically faced, and we need to work on broadening and clarifying our language so women can truly embrace their unique ‘feminine genius’ as Pope St. John Paul II called it,” Jacobson said. “There are many ways for women to live as holy Catholic women in this world, and it requires us to see women in all their various roles to address necessary systems of support and encouragement from the church.”

“I hope our event inspires more people to read these important documents left by Pope St. John Paul II, including ‘Mulieris Dignitatem’ and ‘Evangelium Vitae,'” she added, “and that we extend this conversation to the next generation of young women to find timely solutions.”

More about the upcoming symposium can be found at https://www.stthom.edu/programs/nesti-center-for-faith-and-culture.

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