Voices of the New Springtime
The Life and Work of the Catholic Church in the 21st Century
Whitehead, Kenneth D., editor
What is the future of the Catholic Church in America? This book provides a very informed answer to this question by collecting the various addresses delivered at the 25th annual convention of the Fellowship of Catholic Scholars on the subject of the "new springtime" of the Catholic faith so tirelessly preached by Pope John Paul II. The conference was keynoted by Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J. – who at this point in his life is surely the dean of contemporary American Catholic theologians. His considered view of the Church's future ("the springtime") is ably supplemented by contributions from such veteran scholars as Elizabeth Fox-Genovese of Emory University and Robert P. George of Princeton, writing on the subject of women in the Church and religious liberty respectively. Younger figures such as Pia De Solenni of the Family Research Council and National Review's Kathryn Jean Lopez add different perspectives, on women, again, and on how the Church is impacted by the modern media. Among other speakers is the president of the Catholic University of America dealing with Catholic higher education as it is encountered today. The book thus features an up-to-date take on where the Catholic Church is headed today provided by very knowledgeable observers.
Kenneth D. Whitehead is a former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Education who since his retirement works as a writer, editor, and translator, mostly on subjects of Catholic interest. He is the author, most recently of One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic: The Early Church Was the Catholic Church (Ignatius Press).