The reign of Pope John Paul II
The reign of Pope John Paul II has been so remarkable and so long – more than a quarter century, the third-longest in history-that many Catholic leaders have pushed to grant him the honorific title of “John Paul the Great.” Only two or three pontiffs out of 264 popes have ever been given such an honor, and none in more than 1,000 years, which gives a sense of the popular views of John Paul’s impact. His influence has been felt both within the Catholic Church and outside the church, particularly in international politics and in interfaith relations. This edition of ReligionLink offers background and sources for assessing John Paul’s pontificate.
• For background and sources on papal transitions, see a ReligionLink issue on “A handbook on Pope John Paul II and Electoral politics at the Vatican”
• Read headlines from the closing days of Pope John Paul II’s reign in our daily archives.
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Biographical information
HIS LIFE
• The Vatican’s official Web site has an exhaustive index (in English and several other languages) that contains links to John Paul’s biography and to other information about his reign.
• For a summary profile of the pope’s life read a Catholic News Service biography by John Thavis.
• For a detailed chronology of major events and important dates in the pope’s life, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has a site with helpful links.
• The PBS program Frontline has an extensive gallery of information about John Paul.
• CNN has a detailed interactive Web site with useful information and summaries.
LEADING BIOGRAPHIES
• Witness to Hope (HarperCollins, 1999) by George Weigel, is the closest thing to an “authorized” biography that the pope ever granted.
• Pope John Paul II: The Biography (Simon & Schuster, 1995) by Tad Szulc is particularly good on the pope’s Polish roots and his early travels to his then-communist homeland as pontiff.
• Man of the Century: The Life and Times of Pope John Paul II (Henry Holt & Company, 1997) by Jonathan Kwitny, is considered a wide-ranging overview. It includes critiques as well as compliments.
• His Holiness: John Paul II and the History of Our Time (Penguin Books, reprint edition, 1997) by Carl Bernstein and Marco Politi combines the talents of one of the Watergate reporters and one of Italy’s leading Vatican experts. The biography drew much attention for its claim of a secret alliance between the pope and the Reagan administration to win the Cold War.
HIS WRITINGS AND HIS REIGN
A pope leaves his legacy in his writings as much as his personality. One Italian newspaper estimated on John Paul’s 25th anniversary that he had produced more than 18 million words – 22 times the length of the King James Bible – in more than 15,000 documents and speeches.
• Find a list of John Paul’s 14 encyclicals, which are the most authoritative documents a pontiff can issue, plus a list of other selected documents, on the site of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
• For a list of all the pope’s speeches and writings, generally organized by year, try the Vatican web site’s on the pope. (See links on the left.)
• John Paul was unparalleled at “making saints,” as the phrase has it, having canonized more saints – nearly 500 as of 2004 – than all of his predecessors combined, who “made” some 300 saints all told. The U.S. bishops’ site lists the canonizations by years as well as beatifications, which is the penultimate step to sainthood.
There are so many issues and events that John Paul affected that it is useful to group them into two major categories: issues affecting the Catholic Church internally, and issues affecting the political and religious world outside Catholicism. Many of these issues will naturally have interconnections.
Inside the church
A Polish Pope
While John Paul has generally been cast as a champion of tradition and orthodoxy, the very fact of his 1978 election was a revolution of sorts. As a Pole, he was the first-non-Italian pontiff in more than 450 years and the first Slavic pope ever. His frequent travels were groundbreaking, and many observers say he transformed the papal office from that of an “overseer” to more of an overtly evangelizing presence-a kind of Catholic Billy Graham. Observers also note that in an encyclical on ecumenism, Ut Unum Sint, John Paul surprised many tradition-minded Catholics by inviting a debate on the role of the pope, which he recognized as a common impediment to ecumenical dialogue.
Pope on the move
John Paul’s travels outside Rome have been unprecedented for a pontiff, and are a hallmark of his papacy. At the time of his 25th anniversary as pontiff, it was estimated that he had traveled more than 700,000 miles to 129 different countries on more than 100 journeys outside of Italy. Before John Paul, and his predecessor Paul VI, popes rarely ventured beyond the walls of the Vatican. Experts argue that this revolutionized the papacy, turning the pope into a global statesman-and a celebrity. The Vatican web site includes information on the pope’s travels, and the U.S. bishops’ site also has an index of his trips outside Italy and, specifically, his visits to the United States.
Catholic, with a small “c”
Pope John Paul II has been a great promoter of what the church calls “enculturation”-that is, adapting the church’s rites and liturgies, if not its teachings, to various cultures. That strategy proved a wise one for Rome under John Paul, as Catholicism continued a massive demographic shift from Europe – historic Christendom – to developing countries. Catholics in Africa grew to well over 100 million during his reign, and more than 40 percent of Catholics now live in Latin America. Likewise, the College of Cardinals that will elect his successor grew ever more international, as the number of Italian cardinal-electors diminished while cardinals from the developing world increased. All this came as religious practice in Europe continued to decline. Experts say that while John Paul’s vocal advocacy of human rights and social justice made him a hero in the developing world, his refusal to allow the church or its leaders to become directly involved in political movements sparked tensions and frustration for many Catholics in those same areas. The shift in Catholic demographics also sets up a scenario, observers say, in which the choice of the next pope will come down to a choice between a cardinal who represents the Southern Hemisphere and its millions of poor but devout Catholics, or one from the Northern Hemisphere, where there is great wealth but less religious observance.
Roman Catholic, American Catholics
During John Paul’s tenure the number of Catholics in the United States has grown about 30 percent, from just under 50 million to more than 65 million. Yet his flock also continued to grow more restless, and even disillusioned. Experts say the early years of John Paul’s reign were marked by controversies and tensions with the American hierarchy and church leaders in the United States. Vatican efforts to rein in bishops and theologians who were seen as too liberal led to many headlines and books on the growing split between Rome and America. But experts say John Paul’s great personal popularity has largely overshadowed those conflicts for the average Catholic, and as he grew older American Catholics also tended to see him as an avuncular presence, more than as a taskmaster.
Then the clergy sexual abuse scandal hit like a whirlwind in 2002, and suddenly the pope’s own popularity took a hit, as well as his track record. Several bishops were removed – including his point man in the United States, Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston – and the American church he largely shaped suffered its worst crisis of credibility in history. Experts say the abuse crisis not only tarnished John Paul’s image, but it also exposed pre-existing rifts between what the pope preached and how Catholics behaved on a wide variety of issues, from birth control to abortion to gay marriage and other matters. Moreover, they say the scandal and resulting disillusionment with the institutional church that John Paul championed also contributed to a sense that Catholics would continue to go their own way on moral questions. That is the exact opposite of what John Paul wanted.
A return to tradition and orthodoxy
John Paul has strongly emphasized the need for Catholicism to return to its roots, which experts saw as a trend towards conservatism and which sparked a number of polarizing debates in the church. Many liberal and moderate Catholics were alienated by his policies, but others saw his papacy as a natural reassessment period after the great reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). Debates over liturgy, the role of lay people in ministry and worship, the bar on women from the priesthood, the disciplining of theologians, the Catholic identity of church universities, the enforcement of Catholic sexual teaching, among other issues, all became battlegrounds. Many experts view all of these debates through the lens of authority and how it is exercised in the church – from Rome, as John Paul would have it, or in a more decentralized way, as others would like.
The priesthood
John Paul has been a great champion of the all-male, celibate priesthood. But in spite of his encouragement, vocations have continued to erode, especially in relation to the world’s Catholic population, which increased 40 percent during his tenure, topping 1.1 billion. The clerical sexual abuse scandals that shadowed the latter stages of his reign also contributed to a growing ferment on issues regarding the priesthood. Issues of optional celibacy and women’s ordination were at the forefront of Catholic debates toward the end of his papacy, as they were at the beginning.
Outside the church
Papal statesman
John Paul’s impact in international affairs has been obvious and profound. His visits to his native Poland and his support for the Solidarity trade union are universally considered as major factors in the collapse of Soviet communism. He is considered one of the foremost defenders of human rights and advocates for social justice, though experts say those messages did not receive nearly as much attention in the United States as they did in the developing world, where John Paul is enormously popular. The pope has often been critical of United States foreign policy, especially in the post-Cold War era when America was the lone superpower. He denounced the United States’ war in Iraq. Depending on the administration in the White House, the Vatican either worked with – or against – U.S. interests on population control issues in United Nations meetings in Mexico City, Cairo and Beijing. Experts also point out that for all of his global successes, travels and popularity, John Paul never visited Russia and China.
The modern world
The pope is a philosopher as well as a theologian, and a poet and dramatist as well. Papal experts say his efforts to engage the debate between religion and the modern world will be a signal legacy. The pope sees no conflict between faith and reason and believes they should be complimentary. But experts say John Paul dislikes much that he sees in modernism, especially when the fall of Soviet communism led to what he saw as rampant materialism and secularism. The pope considers those trends – often associated with the industrialized West – as problems every bit as dangerous as Marxism.
Ecumenism
While John Paul is known as a great promoter of Catholicism, he has continued and often amplified the ecumenical (inter-Christian) policies of his immediate predecessors. John Paul held prayer services with other Christian leaders wherever he traveled. He was the first pope to visit Canterbury Cathedral, seat of the Anglican Communion, and he promoted dialogues with Protestantism, frequently apologizing for the sins of the past against reformers. While he made groundbreaking visits to Eastern Orthodox churches, he was not able to thaw entirely the chilly relations with the Orthodox, who he considered the “other lung” of Christianity. In fact, experts say the collapse of the Soviet empire and the resurgence of nationalism and the suppressed Orthodox churches may have contributed to a worsening of Catholic-Orthodox relations.
Interfaith relations
John Paul’s efforts in the arena of interfaith relations have been extraordinary, even though a debate remains over their effect. He was the first pontiff to visit a synagogue (1986) and a mosque (2001). He reached out to leaders of all the major religions, and the Dalai Lama was a frequent visitor to the Vatican. John Paul hosted two interfaith prayer services in 1986 and 2001 at Assisi with the leaders of the major world religions that were emblematic of this push. Experts say John Paul’s efforts to forge bonds with the Muslim world were less successful than his attempts to heal divisions between Catholics and Jews. Most Jewish leaders recognize John Paul as a historic figure in this regard, even though experts in both camps say that for all the progress, many issues remain.
• A May 2004 Gallup analysis (subscribers only) looked at long-term trends in the pope’s approval ratings. It coincided with John Paul’s 84th birthday.
• A Nov. 10, 2003 America story includes findings from a Washington Post/ABC News poll and CNN/USA Today/Gallup Poll, both taken to coincide with the pontiff’s 26th anniversary in October. The Washington Post/ABC News poll showed strong support for the pope in general, but many disagreements with him among American Catholics-and moreso among non-Catholics-on specific issues. The CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll (subscriber only) showed most American Catholics approving of his performance, but a growing number expressing their disenchantment. Much of the downward trend was chalked up to the clerical sexual abuse scandals.
National sources
• The Rev. Richard P. McBrien is a noted author/editor (the Encyclopedia of Catholicism and other works), commentator and professor of theology at Notre Dame. He is insightful and knowledgeable about the politics and history of the church and the papacy. Contact 574-631-5151, rmcbrien@nd.edu.
• The Rev. Thomas Reese is editor of America magazine, author of Inside the Vatican and the leading political scientist of the church. He is widely quoted and can be reached through America’s editorial office, 212-515-0105, americaeditor@americamagazine.org.
• George Weigel is an orthodox-minded Catholic theologian and author at the Ethics and Public Policy Center in Washington, D.C., where he is a senior fellow. His biography of John Paul, Witness to Hope (HarperCollins, 1999), is essentially the authorized biography of this papacy. Weigel can be contacted through his assistant, Carrie Gress, at 202-682-1200 ext. 218, cgress@eppc.org.
• The Rev. Michael A. Fahey is a professor of theological studies at Marquette University in Milwaukee. He is an expert on the history and office of the papacy, and papal elections. Contact 414-288-3164, michael.fahey@marquette.edu.
• The Rev. Robert Wister is a leading expert on the history of the papacy. He is an associate professor of church history at Immaculate Conception School of Theology at Seton Hall University in New Jersey, and he is Faculty Fellow in the school of diplomacy and international relations at Seton Hall. He earned a doctorate in church history at the Gregorian University in Rome. Contact 973-761-9000 ext. 2048, wisterro@shu.edu.
• Sister Mary Johnson is an associate professor of sociology and religious studies at Emmanuel College in Boston who has given guest lectures in Australia, Europe and North America on Catholicism. She is a co-author of Young Adult Catholics: Religion in the Culture of Choice (University of Notre Dame Press, 2001) and is writing a book on Catholic religious orders. Contact 617-735-9830, johnsmb@emmanuel.edu.
• Helen Alvare is an associate professor of law at Catholic University of America Law School. She has a master’s in theology and is the former spokesperson for the United States Bishops Office on Pro-Life issues. Cq Contact 202-319-5146, alvare@cua.edu.
• Philip A. Cunningham is a theology professor at Boston College and executive director of the Center for Christian-Jewish Learning. The center is “devoted to the multifaceted development and implementation of new relationships between Christians and Jews that are based not merely on toleration but on full respect and mutual enrichment.” Cunningham is an expert on the Catholic Church’s dialogues with Judaism under John Paul. Contact 617-552-6027, Philip.Cunningham.1@bc.edu.
• The Rev. Richard John Neuhaus is the founder and editor of First Things, a monthly journal promoting orthodox religious thought. Neuhaus, himself a convert from the Lutheran church, launched an initiative called “Catholics and Evangelicals Together” with the evangelist Chuck Colson, to try to close the historic gulf between the two groups. Neuhaus is very familiar with John Paul’s thinking, especially on ecumenism. Contact at 212-627-1985, ft@firstthings.com.
• John L. Allen Jr., is the Rome correspondent for National Catholic Reporter, a leading national Catholic weekly. He is the author of All the Pope’s Men: The Inside Story of How the Vatican Really Thinks (Doubleday, 2004) and Conclave: The Politics, Personalities, and Process of the Next Papal Election (Image Books, 2002). He is considered a top Vaticanologist. Contact by email at Jallen@natcath.org.
• Eugene Kennedy is a Religion News Service columnist and longtime observer of the Roman Catholic Church who believes the church needs to go in a more reformist direction. He is professor emeritus of psychology at Loyola University in Chicago and author of several books, including The Unhealed Wound: The Church and Human Sexuality (St. Martins Press, 2001). He can be reached at his home in Florida, 941-598-3441, e.c.kennedy@worldnet.att.net.
Regional sources
• Stephen Pope is chairman of the theology department at Boston College and a frequent commentator on church affairs and the papacy. Contact 617-552-3892, popest@bc.edu.
• Alice L. Laffey is an associate professor of religious studies at College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Mass. She has written a history of papal statements and the evolution of papal teaching, and she can address issues regarding women and gender. Contact 508-793-3359, alaffey@holycross.edu.
• Lisa Sowle Cahill is the J. Donald Monan Professor of Theology at Boston College and a veteran writer and commentator on issues of sex and gender in Catholicism. Contact 617-552-3890, Lisa.Cahill@bc.edu.
• Mary Ann Glendon is a professor of law at Harvard Law School and a vocal advocate of John Paul’s views on women, abortion, sexuality and related issues. In 2004 the pope appointed her as head of the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, at that time the highest Vatican post ever held by a woman. Contact at 617-495-4769, through her Web site, or through her assistant, Susan Norton, 617-496-2609, snorton@law.harvard.edu.
• Robert P. George is a professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University and a leading Catholic intellectual and expositor of the natural law theories that Pope John Paul espoused. Contact 609-258-3270, or rgeorge@princeton.edu.
• Jo Renee Formicola is a professor of political science at Seton Hall University in New Jersey and author of Pope John Paul: Prophetic Politician (Georgetown University Press, 2002). She can discuss the impact of John Paul’s papacy on world affairs. Contact 973-275-2903, formicjo@shu.edu.
• Frank J. Coppa is a professor of history at St. John’s University in Jamaica, N.Y., and editor of the Encyclopedia of the Vatican and Papacy (Greenwood Publishing Group, 1999) and The Modern Papacy Since 1789 (Pearson Longman, 1998). Contact 718-990-6090, coppaf@stjohns.edu.
• Roberto Suro is director of the Pew Hispanic Center, a Washington-based nonpartisan research center established in 2001. Suro can talk about the growth of Hispanic Catholicism in America, and as a former New York Times Vatican correspondent in the 1980s, he can talk about the pope’s legacy and his global journeys. Contact 202-292-3300, info@pewhispanic.org.
• Stephen D. Miles is an assistant professor of theology at Loyola College in Maryland whose teaching and research interests include the Catholic Church and the pope. Contact at 410-617-5025, smiles@loyola.edu.
• Elizabeth Fox-Genovese is a professor of history at Emory University who has written widely on the role of women in Christianity with a focus on Catholicism. She is an admirer of John Paul’s teachings and has written favorably about a collection of the pope’s writings titled, Pope John Paul II on The Genius of Women (U.S.Catholic Conference Publishing Services, 1998). Contact 404-727-4063, efoxgen@emory.edu.
• The Rev. Gerald P. Fogarty is a professor of religious studies and history at the University of Virginia and an expert on the Vatican. He is the author of several books on Catholicism and the papacy. His essay, “The Papacy: From Low Regard to High Esteem,” is part of a 2000 collection from Liturgical Press titled The Catholic Church in the Twentieth Century (Editor: John Deedy). Contact 434-924-6707, gpf@virginia.edu.
• Dr. Joseph Iannone is dean of the School of Graduate Studies at St. Thomas University in Miami, Fla. He is well-versed in the issues facing contemporary Catholicism and the papacy. Contact 305-628-6658, jiannone@stu.edu.
• Rabbi A. James Rudin is the senior interreligious adviser for the American Jewish Committee and a longtime veteran of Catholic-Jewish dialogue. He met with Pope John Paul many times and participated in high-level talks at the Vatican between Catholic and Jewish leaders. Rudin is currently a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Saint Leo University in Florida where he works at the university’s Center for Catholic-Jewish Studies. Contact 352-588-8597, james.rudin@saintleo.edu.
• The Rev. Peter J. Bernardi is associate professor of religious studies at Loyola University in New Orleans. He can talk about the papacy in the contemporary world. He contributed an essay to the collection in Catholicism Contending With Modernity: Roman Catholic Modernism and Anti-Modernism in Historical Context (Cambridge University Press, 2000). Contact 504-865-3941, bernardi@loyno.edu.
• The Rev. William F. Maestri is a theologian and spokesman for the Archdiocese of New Orleans with a specialty in bioethics. He can talk about John Paul’s philosophical defense of human dignity in all contexts – medical, economic, etc. Maestri can be reached through the communications office of his archdiocese at 504-596-3023, communications@archdiocese-no.org.
• The Rev. Steven M. Avella is associate professor of history at Marquette University in Milwaukee and an expert on the papacy. Contact 414-288-3556, steven.avella@marquette.edu.
• The Rev. Richard Costigan is at the theology department at Loyola University in Chicago and is an expert on the papacy and papal history and controversies. Contact 773-508-2354, or at the Jesuit Residence at 773-508-8800. Email rcostig@luc.edu.
• Dennis Martin is an associate professor of theological history at Loyola University in Chicago and an expert on papal history and Pope John Paul II’s life, history and writings. Contact 773-508-2371, dmarti1@luc.edu.
• Charles E. Curran is the Scurlock Professor of Human Values at Southern Methodist University in Dallas. He is a liberal theologian who was dismissed from Catholic University of America for his teachings on human sexuality. He can also comment on the politics of the papacy. Contact 214-768-4073, ccurran@mail.smu.edu.
• John Norris is a theology professor at the University of Dallas and an expert on Catholic history and the teachings of John Paul. Contact 972-721-5001, jnorris@dallas.edu.
• The Rev. Thomas P. Rausch is a professor of theology at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. A Catholic priest, Rausch is the author of Authority and Leadership in the Church: Past Directions and Future Possibilities (Liturgical Press, 1988) Contact 310-338-7670, trausch@lmu.edu.
• The Rev. Patrick Howell is dean of the school of theology and ministry at Seattle University. He edited the book Empowering Authority: The Charisms of Episcopacy and Primacy in the Church Today (Sheed & Ward, 1990) and is the author of Reducing the Storm to a Whisper: The Story of a Breakdown (Ulyssian Publications, 2000). Contact 206-296-5331, patrickh@seattleu.edu.
• The Rev. James Eblen is an associate professor in Seattle University’s school of theology and ministry who can speak about the papacy. Contact 206-296-5339, jeblen@seattleu.edu.
• Sally Vance-Trembath is an assistant professor in the department of theology and religious studies at the University of San Francisco. Her areas of expertise include the pope and the Catholic Church today. Contact 415-422-5137, vancetrs@usfca.edu, or through Robert Hood, 415-422-2697.
• The Rev. Stephen Sundborg is president of Seattle University. He was in Vatican City 25 years ago and witnessed the announcement of the new pope at his first appearance. Contact Sundborg at 206-296-1891 or sundborg@seattleu.edu.
USCCB sources
APRIL 2, 2005
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has supplied this list of sources for interviews about John Paul II. Contact them through:
Alecia Maniatis
Media Relations Officer
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 4th St., NE
Washington, DC 20017-1194
Ph 202-541-5419
Fx 202-541-3173
Alejandro Aguilera, Associate Director, USCCB Secretariat for Hispanic Affairs, is co-author of the series Prophets of Hope, St. Mary’s Press, and contributing editor of Liturgia y Canción, Oregon Catholic Press. He is a board member of the National Catholic Network for Hispanic Youth and Young Adult Ministry, the National Association of Catechists Working with Hispanics, and the Religious Task Force for Central America and Mexico. Mr. Aguilera is available to speak on Hispanic ministries and has been in the Holy Father’s presence a number of times over the past 20 years.
John Carr, Secretary, USCCB Department of Social Development and World Peace, has represented the USCCB at the Vatican, in Northern Ireland, South Africa, Central America, Eastern Europe, Russia, Vietnam and the Middle East. He has written on Catholics and political responsibility, housing and mediating structures and often speaks on Catholic Social Teaching and the moral dimensions of key public issues. He and his family met the pope in 2004 at the Vatican. He is available to speak on the Pope’s vast array of writings on social teaching and the impact these have had on the Church and the world at large.
Mark E. Chopko, General Counsel, USCCB, holds a law degree from Cornell University and is an expert on church-state relations. He has been a member of the Board of Scholars of the DePaul Law School’s Center for Church-State Studies, the American Corporate Counsel Association, and the National Council of Churches Religious Liberty Committee. He is the author of numerous articles on Church-related topics for law reviews and the religious press; among his publications are Faith and the Law – Public Lives, Private Virtue (Texas Tech Law Review). He is an adjunct professor of law at Georgetown University and an advisor to a project of the American Law Institute, restating the law of nonprofit institutions.
Cathleen Cleaver Ruse, Director of Planning and Information, USCCB Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, holds a law degree from Georgetown University. Her professional experience spans the fields of communication, public policy and law. She has appeared on PBS’s Firing Line and CNN’s Crossfire. She has published scholarly legal articles on constitutional issues and has filed “friend of the court” briefs with the U.S. Supreme Court. She is author of the chapter “Lessons from History’s Most Calamitous Experiment” from Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia: Past and Present, by J.C. Willke. She also has testified as a legal expert in hearings before congressional committees in the U.S. House and Senate. Cathleen is available to speak on the Pope and his many pro-life writings.
Stephen M. Colecchi, D. Min., Director, USCCB Office for International Justice and Peace, holds a master of arts in religion from Yale University and a doctor of ministry degree from St. Mary’s Seminary and University. He has written numerous articles on Catholic social teaching, social justice, political responsibility, jubilee and the infusion of Catholic social teaching into Christian education programs. He authored a Leader’s Guide to Sharing Catholic Social Teaching and In the Footsteps of Jesus Parish Resource Manual, both published by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Mr. Colecchi was in a private audience with Pope John Paul II in October of 2004. Besides his expertise on social teaching, Dr. Colecchi is also available to speak on the Pope’s teachings on human life, human dignity, and human rights.
Ronaldo Cruz, Executive Director, USCCB Secretariat for Hispanic Affairs, is winner of the Midwest Regional Conference for Hispanic Ministry Award for Leadership in 2000. He is on the Board of Directors of the Mexican American Cultural Center in San Antonio and the National Catholic Association of Diocesan Directors for Hispanic Ministry. He is a frequent conference presenter and meeting facilitator. He speaks on Hispanic education issues, as well as on the Hispanic presence in the multi-cultural parish. Mr. Cruz has met the Pope on several occasions, including at dinner in the Pope’s personal apartment at the Vatican.
Deacon William T. Ditewig, Executive Director, USCCB Secretariat for the Diaconate, is a deacon of the Archdiocese of Washington, and holds a Ph.D. in ecclesiology from The Catholic University of America. He has authored two books, Leading Our Children to God: A Faith Guide for Catholic Parents, and Lay Leaders and Resources for a Changing Parish, both published by Ave Maria Press. He also has been published in several journals, including The Jurist, Deacon Digest, and Diaconate, and he is a contributor to the New Catholic Encyclopedia. He contributed to and was on the editorial board of the National Directory for the Formation, Ministry and Life of Permanent Deacons in the United States. He is a member of the governing board of the International Diaconate Center, and a member of the Catholic Theological Society of America. Deacon Ditewig led the U.S. delegation of permanent deacons to Rome in 2000 and participated in two papal audiences. He is available to speak on the Second Vatican Council and Deacons, and the Diaconate during John Paul II’s papacy.
Richard M. Doerflinger, Deputy Director, USCCB Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, holds a master of arts in divinity degree from the University of Chicago and has pursued doctoral studies at the University of Chicago and The Catholic University of America. He is adjunct fellow in bioethics and public policy at the National Catholic Bioethics Center. He frequently writes and speaks on euthanasia, assisted suicide, embryo experimentation and reproductive technologies. He has been published in such periodicals as National Catholic Bioethics Quarterly, Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal, Hastings Center Report, Linacre Quarterly, and Duquesne Law Review. He is available to speak to the media on the Pope’s pro-life writings and his legacy of protecting human life and human dignity.
Eugene J. Fisher, Director of Catholic-Jewish Relations, USCCB Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, holds a doctorate in Hebrew culture and education from New York University and is a member of the Society of Biblical Literature; Catholic Biblical Association; National Association of Professors of Hebrew; Biblical Archaeology Society; American Academy of Religion, Fellowship of Reconciliation; Christian Study Group on Judaism and the Jewish People; The National Institute on the Holocaust; Center for Holocaust Studies, Churches’ Center for Theology and Public Policy; the Vatican Commission for Religious Relations with Jewish People and the National Association of Ecumenical Officers. He is a Contributing Editor to the New Catholic Encyclopedia (Second Edition, 2003) and represents the Holy See at international dialogues. He has published over 20 books and 300 articles, and has been honored for his work by institutes for Jewish-Christian Studies of Muhlenberg College, Notre Dame College, the National Jewish Chautauqua Society, and the Tanenbaum Center in New York and the Ecumenical Institute in Detroit. In 1995, he was winner of a Best Book Award from the National Jewish Book Council. Dr. Fisher has met the Pope at least seven different times and is willing to be interviewed on his expertise of the Holy Father’s legacy of Catholic-Jewish relations.
Sheila Garcia, Assistant Director, USCCB Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women and Youth, holds a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University and a master’s degree in theology from the DeSales School of Theology. She has written on topics related to women and the Church for such publications as Liguorian, Spiritual Life and Catholic Woman.
Brother Jeffrey Gros, FSC, Associate Director, USCCB Secretariat for Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, is a member of the De LaSalle Christian Brothers and holds a doctorate in systematic theology from Fordham University. He is a frequent speaker at ecumenical seminars and has written widely in theological journals and periodicals. He is editor of The Search for Visible Unity, and co-editor with Joseph Burgess of Building Unity and Growing Consensus, and co-editor with Ellen Wondra and Rozanne Elder of Common Witness to the Gospel. He is a member of the Catholic Theological Society of America, the College Theological Society, the National Association of Evangelicals, and the North American Academy of Ecumenists. Brother Gros’ areas of interest and expertise are ecumenism, renewal of the church, catechetics, the Church in Latin America, social teaching, the renewal of religious life, empowerment of the laity, ecclesial structures and catholic education. He has been in the Pope’s presence twice in small audiences on ecumenical affairs.
Daniel Lizarraga, Director, USCCB Secretariat for Latin America, holds a master’s degree in public affairs from the Lynden B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin, a master’s degree in Theological Studies from Washington Theological Union and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Notre Dame. He is a member of the board of directors of the St. Vincent Pallotti Center for Apostolic Development and the National Association for Lay Ministry.
Monsignor Francis J. Maniscalco, Director, USCCB Department of Communications, is a priest of the Diocese of Rockville Centre, New York, and holds a doctorate in church administration and a master’s degree in religious studies from Fordham University. He has written and spoken extensively on the Church and the mass media, and for eight years was editor of the Long Island Catholic, a weekly newspaper with a circulation of 130,000. He was media coordinator of the 1995 visit of the pope to Baltimore, New York, Brooklyn and Baltimore. He is a member of the Catholic Academy for Communications Arts Professionals, the Catholic Press Association, and is President of the Interfaith Broadcasting Commission.
Sister Eileen McCann, CSJ, Program Coordinator, Youth and Young Adults, USCCB Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women and Youth, is a member of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondolet, Albany, NY Province. She has ministered in the field of youth ministry for 22 years and has been a frequent workshop presenter on areas of interest in youth ministry. She is available to talk to the media on the way John Paul II related to youth during his pontificate.
Father James McCann, SJ, Executive Director, USCCB Office to Aid the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, has a B.A. in French and Russian from the University of Detroit, and a master’s degree in Russian and East European Studies from Yale University. He has a license in theology from Centre Sevres, Paris, and a Ph.D. in politics from Princeton University. He is a member of the American Political Science Association, the American Association for the Advancement of Slavic Studies and the German Studies Association.
H. Richard McCord, Executive Director, USCCB Secretariat for Family, Laity, Women, and Youth, holds a master’s degree from Princeton Theological Seminary and a doctorate in education from the University of Maryland. He is the recipient of the Gaudium et Spes Award from the National Association for Lay Ministry in 2000 and the National Recognition Award from the National Association of Catholic Family Life Ministers in 1993. He has written extensively in Catholic periodicals and contributed chapters to Vatican II: The Continuing Agenda, Families and Communities in Partnership, Using a Family Perspective, and Why We Serve.
Sister Glenn Anne McPhee, OP, Secretary for Education, USCCB Department of Education, is a member of the Dominican Sisters of Mission San Jose. She is a member of the National Catholic Educational Association, the Chief Administrators of Catholic Education, the National Association of Secondary School Principals, and the Council for American Private Education. Her awards include the Outstanding Leadership Award from the Institute for Catholic Educational Leadership, and the University of San Francisco’s Distinguished Lecturer Award, where she has also served as adjunct professor of educational leadership. She has met with the Pope in person a number of times.
Monsignor James P. Moroney, Executive Director, USCCB Secretariat for the Liturgy, is a priest of the Diocese of Worcester, Massachusetts, and has pursued theological and liturgical studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome; the Pontifical Liturgy Institute at Saint Anselmo’s, and The Catholic University of America. In 1999 he was appointed by Pope John Paul II as one of two English-speaking consultants to the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and serves on the Vox Clara Committee which advises that same congregation on the translations of the Latin Missal into English. He was present in Saint Peter’s Square for the election of John Paul II and has attended audiences and met with the Holy Father on numerous occasions throughout the years. Msgr. Moroney is available to discuss the papacy of John Paul II especially as it relates to liturgical issues.
Father Michael Perry, Policy Advisor on African Affairs for USCCB Office for International Justice and Peace, is a member of the Franciscan Province of the Sacred Heart, St. Louis. He is a member of the Royal African Society, and worked in college and seminary education in the Democratic Republic of Congo for 10 years. He has taught at the Catholic Theological Union in Chicago and is a frequent lecturer at Washington Theological Union in Washington, D.C. Father Perry is available to speak with the media on the John Paul II’s contribution to poverty eradication in Africa, the fight against HIV/AIDS and the Pope’s deep compassion for the poor and disenfranchised. He has met the Pope on two occasions; most recently in November, 2004, when the Pope met with a group of African and European bishops. Father Perry said that the Pope exhibited a determination and personal touch to each person present at that time.
Thomas Quigley, Policy Advisor for the USCCB Office of International Justice and Peace, completed doctoral studies in language and linguistics at the University of Michigan and has written extensively on religion and politics, especially with regard to the Church in Latin America. He is available to speak on the Pope’s pontificate in relation to Latin America and Asia.
Andrew Rivas, Policy Advisor, Nonviolence, Agriculture, Environmental Issues, USCCB Office of Domestic Social Development, holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of California at Los Angeles and a Juris Doctor degree from the Columbus School of Law, The Catholic University of America.
Father Ronald G. Roberson, CSP, Associate Director, USCCB Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs, is a Paulist Father and holds a doctorate in Oriental Ecclesiastical Sciences from the Pontifical Oriental Institute, Rome. He has written extensively on ecumenism and Catholic-Orthodox relations in scholarly journals and frequently lectures on related topics. He lectures often at the State Department’s National Foreign Affairs Training Center in Arlington, VA. He met the Pope on several occasions while working in the Vatican from 1988-1992. He is available to speak on the Pope’s ecumenical achievements, especially in relation to the Orthodox Church.
Joan Rosenhauer, Special Projects Coordinator for USCCB Department of Social Development and World Peace holds a bachelor’s degree in social work from the University of Iowa and pursued graduate study in community organizing from Beacon College. She has recently given the following speeches: Our Best Kept Secret: Sharing Catholic Social Teaching in Schools and Religious Education, Catholic Teaching and the Economy: A Continuing Challenge, Catholic Political Responsibility: A Parish Perspective, and the Church and Political Life.
Father Anthony Sherman, Associate Director, USCCB Secretariat for the Liturgy, has published on the subjects of death and dying and baptism preparation. He holds a doctorate in sacred theology from the University of Insbruck and is a member of the North American Academy of Liturgy and the Catholic Academy of Liturgy.
Father Andrew Small, OMI, Policy Advisor, International Economic Development, for USCCB Office for International Justice and Peace, is a member of the Anglo-Irish Province of the Congregation of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate. Father Small holds law degrees from the University of Sheffield in England and Georgetown University Law Center (Master’s in International Law). He also holds a B.A. in philosophy and a Licentiate in Sacred Theology from The Catholic University of America.
Sister Mary Ann Walsh, RSM, Deputy Director for Media Relations, USCCB Department of Communications, is a member of the Albany Regional Community of the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas. She was producer of the award-winning video, Five Extraordinary Days, about World Youth Day ‘93 and she was editor of the award-winning book, John Paul II: A Light for the World, which highlights and celebrates the papacy of John Paul II. She was a member of the Vatican Press Corps from 1983 to1986 and also covered the Pope as a journalist during his 1979 and 1987 visits to the United States. In 1993 she was director of communications for World Youth Day when the Pope visited Denver, and she coordinated the Pope’s visits to the United States in 1995 and 1999. She has been honored for her work by several groups, including the New York State Bar Association, New York Press Association, Catholic Press Association, and others. Sr. Mary Ann is available to talk to the media on the papacy of John Paul II. She has met the Pope on several occasions.
Father Thomas Weinandy, O.F.M. Cap, Director, USCCB Secretariat for Doctrine and Pastoral Practices, is a member of the Capuchin order. He holds a master’s degree in systematic theology from Washington Theological Union and a doctorate in historical theology from King’s College, University of London. He is the author of Does God Suffer; Jesus the Christ; Cyril of Alexandria: A Critical Appreciation; The Father’s Spirit of Sonship: Reconceiving the Trinity; and Be Reconciled to God: A Family Guide to Confession. Father Weinandy has also published scholarly articles in such journals as The Thomist, New Blackfriars, Communio, A Journal of Catholic Thought and Culture, and the International Journal of Systematic Theology.
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