Theologians, scholars, and lay people from across the Catholic-Orthodox divide came together at LMU this weekend for a discussion on the role of women in both churches.
The often lively symposium was put on by the Huffington Ecumenical Institute at LMU, which is dedicated to fostering dialogue between the Orthodox and Catholic churches. The symposium explores a topic of common ground between the two churches.
“The ever-growing number of women theologians, both Orthodox and Catholic, is something which our churches can rejoice in,” said Fr. Dorian Llywelyn, S.J., associate professor of Theological Studies and acting director of the Huffington Ecumenical Institute. “Yet in our official ecumenical dialogues, there have been surprisingly few women’s voices heard.”
In events such as this, the goal is to build a grassroots conversation that reflects discussions between church officials at higher levels in both the Catholic and Orthodox hierarchies.
Among the roster of this year’s event were Dr. Kyriaki Karidoyanes FitzGerald, Orthodox theologian, author and licensed psychologist; Sister Mary Beth Ingham C.S.J., LMU Professor of Philosophy; and Sister LaReine-Marie Mosely, S.N.D. assistant professor of theology at the Loyola University of Chicago.
Saturday’s session included a student panel of Orthodox and Catholic LMU students who were each given time to present their experience of women in their respective churches.
“I think the symposium really complemented the official dialogue between our churches,” Llywelyn said. “It provided normal rank-and-file Orthodox and Catholic people the opportunity to not only listen to each other, but get to know each other personally as part of this grassroots movement to engage with and eventually unite our churches.”