St. John the Evangelist Parish

Summer is a wonderful time to take stock of just where we are in our spiritual journeys — where we are heading and what more we might do, for ourselves and for others, to respond to God’s invitations and perhaps meet more of the challenges he has laid before us. For the very ambitious there are an assortment of institutes, meetings, conferences and retreats; for many there are books, periodicals, videos and other handy sources of information, ideas, inspiration and guidance; and hopefully for all there are quiet moments alone to simply ponder and calmly reflect with God on all that is wonderful in this world and in our lives and all that needs attention and direction.  Our parish library, on the lower level of the church, is growing slowly but constantly. We encourage you to browse and borrow! For those new to Catholic literature and books on religion generally we welcome your questions and will try to give you some help in picking items to read.

The Lonergan Workshop is a terrific annual program at Boston College.  It is June 17 to 22, and while there are fees involved for some of the sessions, it is worth consideration. Prominent theologians, philosophers and other scholars come from all over the country to speak and participate in the workshops. The theme this year is “The Promise of Vatican II – Fifty Years Later”. For information check the website:  www. bclonergan.org (Bernard Lonergan was a Jesuit priest who had a long and distinguished academic career. From 1975 to 1983 he was Distinguished Visiting Professor of Theology at Boston College. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest philosophical and theological minds of the twentieth century; there is a chapter on Lonergan in Faith Maps.)

June 5, 7:30 p.m.  Lecture and Discussion on John Henry Newman by Father Robert Imbelli – Social Hall
Fr.  Imbelli is an Associate Professor of Theology at Boston College.  This lecture is sponsored by the St. John’s Book Discussion Group.
Cardinal Newman’s extensive writings reflect his drive to make sense of the Christian vision, to appreciate in greater detail just how we arrive at faith. We too live in an age when many are struggling to understand the role that God plays in our lives. The thoughts and inspirations of Newman are as relevant today as they were when he died in 1890.  Father Imbelli’s talk and the discussion will focus on the chapter on Cardinal Newman in the book Faith Maps: Ten Religious Explorers. Copies of this book are available ($16.95), or we can send you just the chapter at no cost. Contact John Stewart at johnstewart@alum.bu.edu.

With Fr. Maury Schepers, O.P.
Wednesday, May 23 at 7:30pm
Social Hall
Yves Congar’s writings in the 1950s were censored by the Vatican, but his “exile” ended in 1960 when Pope John XXIII invited him to serve on the theological commission preparing for Vatican II. He was named a cardinal by Pope John Paul II and died in 1995.  Marie-Dominique Chenu was a progressive theologian and, like Congar, his writings were banned by the Vatican for a period.  He was invited by Pope John to play a major role in drafting the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.

Fr. Schepers, a Dominican priest from Kenya, is completing a year of study as a resident scholar at the Lonergan Institute of Boston College.