Towards a politics of communion: Catholic social teaching in dark times

Dr. Anna Rowlands, whose area of interest ranges from political theory to Christian theology, with a focus also on migration and development, will present her recent book entitled: Towards a Politics of Communion: Catholic Social Teaching in Dark Times. The lecture will be introduced by Dr. Michael Driessen (John Cabot University) and will feature a talk by Bishop Samuele Sangalli (Pontifical Gregorian University). Dr. Rowlands holds the St. Hilda Chair in Catholic Social Thought and Practice and is a member of the Center for Catholic Studies in the Department of Theology and Religion at the University of Durham (UK). In 2021 Pope Francis appointed her as a member of the Dicastery for Integral Human Development and in 2023 she was seconded, to work at the General Secretariat of the Synod.

This inaugural lecture is part of the Rome Summer Seminar on Religion and Global Politics program, which consists of two-week writing workshops for doctoral students and a series of public events organized by the University of Notre Dame, the Pontifical Gregorian University, the Sinderesi Foundation, the Hanns Sediel Foundation, John Cabot University, the Royal Institute for Interfaith Studies (Jordan), the Adyan Foundation (Lebanon), and under the sponsorship of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation.