Culture of Life Conference - More Details

Here some of the basic details of the upcoming conference.  First off the where and when.

The conference will be held in the Ballroom of the Wege Center at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids, MI.

The date is Saturday, April 20 and the doors open at 8 AM with the conference beginning at 9AM and going until 2PM.  In addition to lunch there will of course be basic refreshments available.

Now of course, you will want to know the speakers and the topics they'll be speaking on.  And in order, we have:

• President of the American Family Association, Gary Glenn - The Modern Attack Against Marriage and Family   
• Father Vincent O'Malley of St. Lazare's Retreat Center - Christ's Teaching on Family and How it  Built Western Civilization
• Dr. Dennis Marshall of Aquinas College - The Church's Teaching on Marriage and Family Since Vatican II   
• Mark Shea - The Family as an Image of the Trinity

 And there you have it.  Don't forget to click on the registration link to the right to sign up before April 10th to secure your spot! 

We're Back!

Greetings everyone!  Vivat Jesus!  It has been more than a little while since the blog here has been active.  But we are finally recharged and in fact have been working hard behind the scenes organizing the next Culture of Life Conference. 
As a matter of fact, this post serves to provide the first major update for the conference.  So, scroll down for the goods.

2nd Annual Culture of Life Conference:  Marriage and Family - Cornerstone of Western Civilization

Date:  April 20, 2013

Place:  Aquinas College, Wege Center

Speakers:  Former Senatorial Candidate Gary Glenn - The Modern Attack Against Marriage and Family

                 Father Vincent O'Malley of St. Lazare's Retreat Center - Christ's Teaching on Family and How it
                                                                                                        Shaped Western Civilization

                 Dr. Dennis Marshall of Aquinas College - The Church's Teaching on Marriage and Family Since
                                                                                 Vatican II

                 Blogger and Author Mark Shea - The Family as an Image of the Trinity

Price:  Adults - $30

          Students - $15

          Clergy - Free

And yes, lunch will be provided.  Details on that to follow soon.

So there you go!  Stay tuned for more.



                

Schedule

This is just a reminder of the schedule for The First Annual Culture of Life Conference on October 8 at Aquinas College, Grand Rapids.



9 am - Dr. Mark Pestana:  Natural Law and the Life Issues

10 am - Dr. Dennis Marshall:  Humanae Vitae

11 am - Lunch

12 pm - Dr. Robert Marko - The Gospel of Life

1 pm - Mr. Al Kresta - The Civilization of Love

Our Sponsors

One of the groups that has really helped us out a lot has been the Pro-Life Club at Aquinas College in Grand Rapids.  Very early, they agreed to sponsor our event on campus which has led to free facilities and very inexpensive printing for our flyers.  Also, one of the members dedicated a significant portion of last weeks of her summer vacation to working on this.  Without them, this event probably would not be possible.

Our Speakers

Today, we meet Dr. Robert Marko.  The Aquinas College website provides a pretty extensive biography of Dr. Marko, so I won't waste any of your time with my own words.

Background

Dr. Robert Marko, Professor and Chair of the Department of Theology, has been at Aquinas College since 1989 teaching primarily in the areas of Catholicism, moral theology, social ethics and ecclesiology. Trained as a systematic theologian beginning at age six by the Dominican Sisters of St. Mary's of the Springs, Ohio, he has memorized all the answers of the systematic theology of the Council of Trent articulated in the Baltimore Catechism. Dr. Marko hails from the Western Pennsylvania steel town of Braddock. He, his wife Faith and their children, Jonathan, Joshua and Hannah are all die hard Pittsburgh Steelers' fans.

Research Interests

Professor Marko, somewhat eclectic in interests yet always grounded in the Catholic Tradition, has primarily studied history and theology while having been a National Science Foundation Fellow in urban studies, a Center for Learning Writing Fellow in moral education, a Scaife-Mellon Fellow in international studies and a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellow in justified war and nonviolence.  During the fall of 2008 he served as a Fulbright Scholar in religious studies in Ukraine.  Here Dr. Marko researched the relationship of religion, ethics and society while he taught Catholic Social Teaching: Eastern Christian Perspective for the Licentiate of Sacred Theology degree at the Ukrainian Catholic University in Lviv. A 2004 Metropolitan Sheptytsky summer sessional lecturer at St. Paul's University in Ottawa in Eastern Christian Ethics, Professor Marko has been a passionate advocate for a deeper understanding of the riches of the Christian East by those in the West. Moreover, his study and experience of the prayer tradition of Eastern Christianity has affirmed his plea to students to not splinter spirituality, doctrine, liturgy and ethics.

Professional Work

Dr. Marko has published articles and book reviews in various scholarly and popular journals including The Josephinum Journal of Theology, Horizons: The Journal of the College Theology Society, Bohoslovia (The Journal of the Ukrainian Theological Academic Society) and Spirituality Today. A regular commentator on Catholicism and Eastern Christianity in the media,. Dr. Marko has presented at conferences of the College Theology Society, Dominican Colloquium on Higher Education, American Academy of Religion, National Association of Pastoral Musicians, the Catholic Theological Society of America, and the Ukrainian Theological Scientific Society. Professor Marko's greatest work, however, has been with the countless students he has been privileged to teach and advise.

The Menu

When you submit your registration email, please select one of the following as your meal.

Classic Caesar

tossed romaine hearts, romano and parmesan cheeses,
topped with croutons. Tossed with classic caesar dressing

Cashew Chicken Salad

crisp mixed salad greens, topped with roasted chicken, grapes
apples, celery, red onion, toasted cashews and dijonaisse chicken salad
served with your choice of dressing.

Veggie Muffuletta

marinated artichokes, oven roasted tomatoes, grilled zucchini and summer squash
with provolone cheese, lettuce and an olive tapenade

Avocado Turkey Club

honey roasted turkey breast with bacon
white vermont cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato
and avocado aioli on a pretzel roll

AQ Italian

ham, pepperoni and genoa salami stacked on rosemary ciabatta bread
with sliced banana peppers, kalamata olives, feta, shredded lettuce
tomatoes and an Italian vinaigrette

Chicken Bruschetta

grilled chicken breast on ciabatta
with balsamic marinated tomatoes
and fresh mozzarella

The Poster has arrived.

Here is a thumbnail of the 8x11 promo poster, courtesy of an Aquinas student who has spent the last few days of her summer vacation hard at work on this.




There is an 11X17 version on the way as well, which I will also be sure to post.

Flyer

Here's a rough draft of the basic flyer for the conference.  All of the relevant info that we have so far is included. 

1st Annual Culture Of Life Conference


What:  A Catholic Conference on Core Life Issues & The Natural Law Of Love

When:  Saturday October 8th, 2011 9 a.m. --- 2 p.m.

Where:  Aquinas College---Wege Center - Fulton St. Grand Rapids, Michigan

Who:  DR.. MARK PESTANA, PHD (GVSU) “THE NATURAL LAW”

         DR. DENNIS MARSHALL, PHD. (AQUINAS COLLEGE) “HUMANAE VITAE"

         DR. ROBERT MARKO, PHD. “THE GOSPEL OF LIFE”

         MR. AL KRESTA (CONVERT, RADIO HOST) “A CIVILIZATION OF LOVE"

Why:  To help today’s Catholic Christians understand the biblical and magisterial
          teaching about human life, the sacred nature of marriage and sexuality and
          the challenges we and our families face in today’s culture.


Cost:  $20 for adults, $10 for students
          Includes snacks, lunch and handouts (Lunch is included for pre-registrants only)
          Registrations must be postmarked no later than 9/17/2011

For More Information contact: www.kofc-cultureoflife.blogspot.com
                                             kofccultureoflife@gmail.com

Contact either Eric Postma or Steve Redmond for additional information:
Steve 616-399-5520 steveredmond@sbcglobal.net
Erik 616-994-7466 ejpostma2@gmail.com

Our Speakers

Today, we have Dr. Dennis Marshall.  Unfortunately, the Aquinas College website has even less about him than we were able to post on Dr. Pestana.  Therefore, I'll simply tell you what little I know.  Dr. Marshall is a professor of theology, and holds a PhD from Duquesne University.  He is generally known as a very articulate and philosophical inclined person, making him an excellent addition to our conference.  He is also a supporter of the Knights of Columbus, a member of Aquinas' Catholic Studies Department and an adviser for Aquinas' pro-life club.