By Adam A. J. DeVille, PhD (Theology)
In mid-September 2011, I was given an unexpectedly great gift: a select invitation to a conference entitled “The Intellectual Tasks of the New Evangelization,” held in Washington, DC, under the auspices of the Catholic University of America and the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The conference, inspired by Donald Cardinal Wuerl of Washington and very graciously funded by the Knights of Columbus, issued an invitation to “young” theologians across the country (i.e., those without tenure who had received their doctoral degrees in the last five years) to come and reflect on two urgent and very important matters: first, how to contribute to the effort given of the “new evangelization.” This new evangelization seeks, in short, to teach the good news of Christ (that death has been destroyed and those who follow Christ can live forever) in parts of the world—such as our own, but perhaps especially Europe—that have heard the good news before, but may have forgotten, overlooked, or replaced it with an alternate message.
The second task of the conference was to build up a new relationship between theologians and bishops, a relationship which, since the 1960s, has not been as good as it could or should be—in fact, it has often been highly antagonistic. But, after this conference, I think that much of that bad blood may be behind us. The overwhelming majority of participants at the conference was extremely eager to build new, collaborative, respectful and even loving relationships between theologians and bishops. Guided by a wonderful opening lecture from Daniel Cardinal Di Nardo of Galveston-Houston, as well as excellent presentations from such as Prof. John Cavidini of the University of Notre Dame, and Archbishop Gus Di Noia (a Dominican theologian originally from the Bronx, but now the secretary of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments in Rome), the conference marked, I very much hope and believe, the turning of a new chapter in the history of the Church in this country. In a time when so much seems awry in the Church and world alike, this conference was itself infectiously good news, and for that we can and should thank God, who makes all things new.
