St Mary’s Hosts Annual Catholic Theological Association Conference

This week, 8th to 11th September, St Mary’s University, Twickenham welcomed leading theologians and academics from the British Isles, the rest of Europe and North America to its Strawberry Hill campus as part of the annual conference of the Catholic Theological Association of Great Britain. The four day event, Church, Theology and War: Remembrance and Collusion, commemorated the First World War and offered delegates the opportunity to reflect on the conflict in relation to the Church, religion and theology. The 90 conference delegates were welcomed to the University’s campus by Dr Anthony Towey, Director of the St Mary’s Aquinas Centre, whilst St Mary’s Vice-Chancellor Francis Campbell chaired the panel discussion on the second day, A World Without War? Meanwhile academics delivered lectures including Programme Director in Pastoral Ministry Dr Ashley Beck with How Catholic Teaching about War Has Changed: the Issues in View, Tarcisius Mukuka, Lecturer in Theology at St Mary’s, who led a session on the encyclical letter of St John XXIII, Pacem in Terris, and Dr Paul Rowan, Programme Director in Theology, who gave a paper about Chesterton and the Great War. The event culminated in a visit from St Mary’s Chancellor Cardinal Vincent Nichols who joined the delegation for the conference dinner, together with the Chairman of Governors Bishop Richard Moth. Fr Beck, who is a member of the CTA Committee said, “The conference was a great success; we felt it was important to mark the Great War centenary with serious theological reflection about the nature of war.” The CTA was formed in 1984 as a way to provide Catholic theologians in higher education with the opportunity for debate common interests, to provide mutual support, and to enable theologians to serve the Church’s mission.