Core Celebrates Various Lights during this Holy Season  

A photo of Prof. Alfani and Prof. Radwan, holding their “Outstanding Article Award”.

As we have celebrated the special holidays of Christmas and Chanukah, we at the Core want to wish everyone who gets this message peace, joy, and blessings for this holy time and the New Year. Since it is a season of Light, there are several lights we want to share regarding the Core.

A while ago, I announced that Jon Radwan, Ph.D., of the Dept. of Communication, who teaches in the Core and serves on the UCCC, and Roger Alfani, Ph.D., Core Fellow, published an article together entitled "Communicating Transcendent Love: Interpersonal Encounter and Church–State transitions in Fratelli Tutti" in a special edition on Catholic Church–State Relations in Global Transition of the journal Religions, the academic editor of which is yet another Seton Hall colleague, Jo Renee Formicola, Ph.D., of the Political Science Department. Since then, their article has received the "Outstanding Article Award" of the Spiritual Communications Division of the National Communication Association. Congratulations, once again, Roger and Jon!

In addition, Radwan was asked to give a lecture about The Bhagavad Gita, one of the texts in Core I, "Meaningful Leadership and Organizational Communication in the Bhagavad Gita" to India’s Vishwakarma Skill University, December 2020.

Alfani was also interviewed by the editor of Today’s American Catholic on his scholarship in an article entitled "A Sustainable and Sustaining Peace: Roger B. Alfani on the Work of Religious Peacebuilding" in the Dec. 13, 2022 edition of that journal.

A photo of Fr. Ortega-Ortiz, Prof. Landrau, and Fr. Camilo. 

Another exciting event (held on Nov. 12) involved our Assistant Director the Core, Prof. Maribel Landrau, who was asked by Fr. Camilo Cruz, Rector of St. Patrick’s Pro-Cathedral, who also teaches in the University Core, to give a retreat for women from his parish, focusing on Mary, the mother of Jesus, and her role as a model for women who might be dealing with difficult situations. Fr. Camilo explains the importance of the retreat: "It is fundamental to empower and accompany the women in the church; especially all the Latino-immigrant women who are discovering and discerning their role in the church and the US today and who are very active in the parish communities. They carry the mission with compassion and tenacity." Landrau also felt the retreat was a moving and important experience. She says, "For me it was a beautiful experience to serve as the guest speaker (in Spanish) for the Mujer y Misión, Jornada Espiritual, Retiro de Mujeres to women that, like me, left their countries to find the American Dream in the United States. The theme of the retreat was Mary, the Blessed Mother, our Lady as our example of a brave woman who, with her simple fiat, changed our lives." She went on to explain some of the themes of the retreat: "Mary as the young immigrant that needed to flee with her child and her husband Joseph to a different country. The example of the mother who pondered all things in her heart about her child. Mary as the example of the mother who sees her son suffering and keeps her faith because she knows the Lord has his own plan." After sharing all their thoughts about motherhood and the Blessed Mother, the group went to the chapel in Boland Hall for Adoration. Landrau loved the whole day, as she quotes, "What a beautiful experience! We all left the retreat with our heart full of joy, love, and faith." Note that the chapel and Campus Ministry site were used due to the kindness of Fr. Nick Sertich, Campus Ministry Chaplain.

Finally, the Director of the Core, Nancy Enright, Ph.D., presented at the Oxford Symposium on Religious Studies this past week on the topic of "Teaching Religion in a University Core-- Appealing to the 'Nones'," dealing with how our University Core curriculum addresses religious texts and questions to students, some of whom are completely without religious background or affiliation. It led to some interesting discussion, and the presider of the symposium, Canon Brian Mountford, former vicar of St. Mary the Virgin Church in Oxford and Fellow of St. Hilda’s College of Oxford University, said that what we are doing here at Seton Hall in the Core could serve as a model for other institutions. The event, held at Wadham College of Oxford University, was a memorable exchange among scholars from a wide array of countries and disciplines.

We at the Core are grateful for these exciting connections and events happening in and related to the Core. We wish everyone reading this a blessed holiday season and a safe, and relaxing break.

Categories: Education, Faith and Service